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Does college make people less religious?
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New research has found that some countries around the world see their college students find faith. In the US, it's a different story. - photo by Herb Scribner
The United States has something to learn from the rest of the world about keeping the faith.

New research from sociologist Philip Schwadel of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has found in many religious countries, like the U.S., Italy and Mexico, people lose their religiosity upon attending college.

Not surprising, right? Youve likely heard that before.

But the study also found that people in one-fifth of the worlds countries like New Zealand, Sweden, Russia and South Korea who attend college are more likely to stay religious and even join a church, according to phys.org.

"The results illustrate considerable cross-national differences in both the impact of higher education and the social significance of religiosity," Schwadel told phys.org. "In some nations, the highly educated are less religious than other citizens, in other nations they are more religious."

To find this Schwadel reviewed survey answers of more than 46,000 people from 39 countries about peoples religious beliefs and activities, according to phys.org. College proved to have a positive effect (meaning it inspired students to find religion) in nine countries, whereas 18 countries had a negative effect from college (it didnt encourage them to find faith) and 12 countries showed neither negative or positive effects from religion, according to phys.org.

The study focused on mostly Christian nations. About 4 percent of those surveyed were Muslim and 2 percent were Buddhist, according to phys.org.

"Although the non-Christian nations in the sample did not unduly influence the results, this may change with a more diverse sample, particularly since there are generally higher levels of religious practice and belief in majority Muslim nations," Schwadel told phys.org.

The studys findings about the United States arent surprising, since its long been reported that highly educated Americans often step away from religion. Research has found that people in the U.S. with high IQs and test scores are less likely to be religious, according to Christianity Today. This is based off an analysis of 63 studies about religion and intelligence from the last 80 years, Christianity Today reported.

In the U.S., we assume that intelligent people grow up, then reject faith, Christianity Today reported. Faithful teenagers go off to secular colleges, stop attending church and become skeptics. As individuals situate themselves in this narrative, the story becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. This has been the story in academia for some time now.

But this common-held belief has started to change stateside. In fact, a 2014 study found that young, well-educated Americans dont shy way from religion, but rather embrace it, according to The Atlantic.

"The core finding is that the association between graduating from college and religious disaffiliation has changed drastically across generations," Schwadel, who also researched the 2014 study, told The Atlantic.

In fact, for those who were born in the 1960s, theres really no difference between the college-educated and the noncollege educated in terms of their likelihood of disaffiliating from religion, Schwadel told The Atlantic. Those who were born in the 1970s and attended college were more likely to stay religious, too, The Atlantic reported.

The reason college students have become religious may be because of their values. Schwadels 2015 research on religion in different countries showed that students who stayed religious after college often did so because they tended to be more heavily involved in organizations, which inspired them to join churches and religious groups, according to phys.org.

And, as The Atlantic noted, college students are more likely to start families, marry each other and wait until after theyre married to have babies all of which are beliefs supported by religion, making it an easier decision to join a religious group.

"College-educated people are joiners," Schwadel told The Atlantic. Theyre more likely to participate in civic groups, to volunteer in their community. What were seeing is this moving into religion, too not necessarily to hold all these different kinds of beliefs, but at least to participate in a nominal sense."

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How to avoid 'sharenting' and other paparazzi parenting habits
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A recent study revealed parents often spend up to two hours staging a single photo of his or her child to post online. - photo by Amy Iverson
Before having kids, some people just dont appreciate their friends baby posts. But after having a child of their own, three fourths of new parents jump right on the parental social media bandwagon. If you have become a member of this group, there are some rules to follow for posting responsibly.

Much of a parents worry is how to teach their children to use social media responsibly. We talk with our kids about privacy, oversharing, and setting restrictions on their devices to keep them safe. But parents themselves need to look in the digital mirror once in a while. Before having children, it doesnt take as much effort to think about what to post online. Its up to us to decide what we share about our own lives. But once you become a parent, there are many questions to think about regarding what is appropriate to post about your kids on social media.

In a recent survey, kids clothing subscription company Mac and Mia surveyed 2000 new parents to find out how they are documenting their kids lives on social media, and what concerns they may have.

First of all, people without children seem to feel a bit differently about the onslaught of baby pictures online than those who are parents. 18 percent of people say before they had kids, they were annoyed by their friends baby posts. But after having children of their own, 73 percent admit they post progress pictures of their little ones every single month.

Not only are new parents letting the world know each time their baby is a month older, but they are posting about their kids every few days or so. Men and women report they post 6-7 times per month about their baby.

And while 70 percent of new parents say the benefit of using social media is how easy it is to help family and friends feel involved, there are some downsides. Here are a few tips to avoid the pitfall of becoming paparazzi parents.

Dont miss the moment

In the Mac and Mia survey, some parents admitted to spending up to two hours to get the perfect shot of their baby. That seems a little extreme. New and old parents alike should be careful about spending so much time taking pictures and videos that they dont enjoy the moment. Years ago, I decided to never live an experience through my phone. A study by Linda Henkel, a psychology professor at Fairfield University in Connecticut, found that when people took pictures of objects in an art museum, they didnt remember the objects as well as if they simply observed them.

This photo-taking impairment effect can happen to parents as well. If we are so consumed by getting the perfect photo, we can miss out on the moment all together, and our memory of it will suffer.

Dont forget about privacy

60 percent of couples say they have discussed rules and boundaries for posting their babys photos, according to the Mac and Mia survey. Even so, men are 34 percent more likely to publish baby posts on public accounts. If parents are concerned about their childrens privacy, keeping photos off of public accounts is a given.

In the Washington Post, Stacey Steinberg, a legal skills professor at the University of Florida, and Bahareh Keith, a Portland pediatrician, wrote that sharing too much information about kids online puts them at risk. They write that all that sharenting can make it easier for data thieves to target out kids for identity theft. Check that your privacy settings are where they should be and never share identifying information like full names and birth dates.

Dont be paparazzi parents

36 percent of parents say they take issue when their childs photo is posted online by someone else. Responsible social media users will always ask permission before posting a photo of another child. But parents should also think about whether their own children will take issue with their own posted photos a few years down the road.

When parents are constantly snapping pictures and throwing them on social media, it can be easy to forget to pause and make sure the post is appropriate. I always use the billboard example with my kids. I ask them to picture whatever they are posting going up on a billboard in our neighborhood. If they are okay with that, then their post is probably fine. Parents should ask themselves this same question when posting about their children. But they should also ask themselves if their child would be OK with this post on a billboard in 15 years. If it would cause embarrassment or humiliation, it might be best to keep it private.

Once children reach an appropriate age, parents should include them in the process of deciding what pictures are OK to post. Researchers at the University of Michigan surveyed 10- to 17-year-olds and found children believe their parents should ask permission more than parents think they should. The kids in the survey said sharing happy family moments, or accomplishments in sports, school and hobbies is fine. But when the post is negative (like when a child is disciplined) or embarrassing (think naked baby pictures or messy hair), kids say to keep it off social media.
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