A majority of pastors in the U.S. say they know of at least one church member who was diagnosed with severe mental illness, according to a new Lifeway Research survey that also reveals an uptick in the percentage of pastors who say they themselves have struggled with mental illness.
The poll, released this week, shows that 54 percent of Protestant pastors in the U.S. say they know of at least one church member who has been “diagnosed with a severe mental illness such as clinical depression, bipolar or schizophrenia” in the churches they have served.
Scott McConnell, executive director of Lifeway Research said, “There is a healthy generational shift occurring as younger and middle-aged pastors are much more likely to have encountered people in church with severe mental illness.”
“However, it is not clear whether the presence of those with difficult mental illnesses is increasing among church members or if they have simply felt more comfortable sharing their diagnosis with younger pastors.”
Meanwhile, the survey found a slight increase in the percentage of pastors who say they have “personally struggled with mental illness of any kind,” with 26 percent agreeing with that statement compared to 23 percent in 2014.
17 percent of pastors say it was diagnosed. Pastors aged 18-44 are more likely to say they have struggled with mental illness and it was diagnosed than any other age group of pastors.