The Economic Value of Prayer in Marital Happiness: An Analysis of Evangelical and Catholic Couples

This study analyzes the determinants of marital happiness among 162 religiously married respondents (Catholic and Evangelical) using probit and logit models. Intrinsic religiosity captured by Salvation in God and Faith in God emerges as the strongest predictor of marital satisfaction, with positive and significant effects across specifications. Frequency of prayer has a smaller but positive influence, underscoring the primacy of belief over ritual practice. Household income contributes modestly, while age patterns show younger couples (18–24) report lower happiness, with satisfaction increasing in older age groups. Denominational interactions reveal that evangelicals derive higher marital well-being from intrinsic beliefs, whereas Catholic respondents’ happiness is more tied to income and institutional religious practice. Gender effects also vary: Catholic women benefit more from faith, whereas effects for evangelical women are smaller. Willingness-to-pay (WTP) estimates for marital happiness via prayer highlight these differences: evangelicals exhibit WTP of $4.57 (probit) and $2.05 (logit) per person, compared to Catholics at $0.046 and $0.087, respectively. These findings demonstrate that belief-oriented religiosity, age, and denominational context are primary determinants of marital happiness.