WYD 08

1

Andrew Singleton (Monash University)SSSR 2009 Denver

The Impact of World Youth Day on Belief and The Impact of World Youth Day on Belief and BehaviourBehaviour

Project Website: http://dlibrary.acu.edu.au/research/wyd

““Pilgrims’ Progress 2008” Project: World Youth Day AustraliaPilgrims’ Progress 2008” Project: World Youth Day Australia

Rev. Dr Michael Mason

(Australian Catholic University)

Professor Ruth Webber

(Australian Catholic University)

Dr Andrew Singleton

(Monash University)

Project Stages:Project Stages:

• Stage I - Leading up to WYD08: Interviews and survey. Survey in May 2008 (n=12,275)

• Stage II - During WYD08 week: Participant observation; interviews, focus groups

• Stage III- After WYD08: Interviews, then Survey in Nov-Dec 2008 (n=4776)

The Pilgrim TypesThe Pilgrim Types

• Devoted: These are highly religious Catholic youth who attend Mass in their parish every week (often more than once a week), pray every day, accept Church teachings and have a very strong sense of Catholic identity

• Involved: Have a regular involvement in their parish and pray very often,

and while less fervent than the Devoted, have a strong faith nonetheless. Compared to the Devoted, they are somewhat less committed to Church teachings.

• Open: These are youth who identify as Catholic, and the majority attend

Mass regularly. Their Catholic identity is not as strong as the Involved and Devoted pilgrims. They are also less likely than the two more religious pilgrim types to agree with important church teachings.

• Social: These youth have a looser affiliation with the Catholic Church and

lower levels of religious practice – few pray daily. A majority disagree with some Catholic teachings.

WYD OutcomesWYD Outcomes

Asked pilgrims in Post WYD survey:

• “Did your WYD experience change how you approach your faith?”

• “Did your WYD experience change your understanding/feeling about God/ Jesus/ Holy Spirit?”

• “Probably most people would like to be a better person. But could you honestly say your WYD experience has made you really be determined to be different in the following ways?”

WYD OutcomesWYD Outcomes

Cognitive changes. Agreement with one or more of these statements:

•“I’m not embarrassed now to let others see that I am a believer”•“I’m more interested now in learning about my Catholic faith”•“Up till WYD I was just going along with my family’s religion, but now it’s more because of my decision that I believe and want to be involved”•“I feel more confident in my belief in God – that God is real”

Commitment changes. Agreement with one or more of these statements:

•“To be a follower of Christ, and live as he wants me to”•“To accept Jesus as Lord of my life”•“Now I want to live as a disciple of Jesus, a witness to Him”

Table 1: WYD Pilgrims (aged 15-24): Pilgrim types reporting Table 1: WYD Pilgrims (aged 15-24): Pilgrim types reporting “commitment” & “cognitive” WYD changes“commitment” & “cognitive” WYD changes

Pilgrim Types

Type of change Devoted Involved Open Social All

Cognitive Changes 67% 82% 86% 80% 80%

Commitment Changes 62% 66% 54% 41% 56%

Table 2: WYD Pilgrims (15-24): Influence of religious Table 2: WYD Pilgrims (15-24): Influence of religious background, demographic factors on religious changebackground, demographic factors on religious change

Influences: Reporting “cognitive”

Change

Reporting “commitment”

Change Personal religiosity pre WYD:

Mass

Attends Mass weekly/daily 79% 60%

Attends Mass infrequently 77% 38%

Prayer

Prays by self daily 77% 61%

Rarely prays by self 66% 32%

Peers

Most friends attend Church 77% 65%

Most friends don’t attend 82% 49%

Catholic groups

Involved 77% 62%

Not involved 81% 51%

Demographic:

Gender

Female 82% 56%

Male 77% 60%

Table 3: WYD Pilgrims (15-24): Influence of WYD events on Table 3: WYD Pilgrims (15-24): Influence of WYD events on religious changereligious change

Influences: Reporting “cognitive”

Change

Reporting “commitment”

Change Major WYD Events:

Stations of the Cross

Not helpful 68% 49%

Very spiritually helpful 84% 64%

Vigil

Not helpful 55% 30%

Very spiritually helpful 83% 62%

Papal Mass

Not helpful 65% 27%

Very spiritually helpful 84% 64%

Other events:

Catecheses

Not helpful 70% 38%

Very spiritually helpful 84% 66%

Other WYD factors:

WYD atmosphere: Holy Spirit: sense God was present

Not helpful 79% 49%

Very spiritually helpful 82% 74%

WYD atmosphere: Faith: Being with others who share same faith

Not helpful 77% 53%

Very spiritually helpful 85% 61%

Friends in attendance

No friends 82% 53%

2+ friends 79% 62%

Previous WYD attendance

Attended a previous WYD 64% 54%

Not attended previous WYD 82% 57%

Multivariate analysisMultivariate analysis (I): Cognitive change(I): Cognitive change Factors associated with cognitive change:

• Finding the Vigil and Catecheses very helpful for spiritual development

• Rating as “most helpful for spiritual journey” either or both these aspects of the WYD “atmosphere”: “Faith: Being with so many people my age who share the same faith”; “Church: Pride in being Catholic, being part of something greater than ourselves – worldwide and long-lasting”

• First time attendance at a WYD • Most friends not attending church • Semi-regular praying by self

Multivariate analysisMultivariate analysis (I): Commitment change(I): Commitment change

Factors associated with commitment change:• Finding the Papal Mass, Vigil and Catecheses very helpful for

spiritual development• Rating as “most helpful for spiritual journey” either or all these

aspects of the WYD “atmosphere”: “Faith: Being with so many people my age who share the same faith”; “Holy Spirit: The sense that God was present” and “Church: Pride in being Catholic, being part of something greater than ourselves – worldwide and long-lasting”

• Being younger• Most friends attending church• Being a member of a Catholic organization