Perceived accountability to God, the religious role, and psychological well-beingUpenieks, Laura; Orfanidis, Christos
doi: 10.1080/13674676.2024.2322123pmid: N/A
Accountability is a relationally responsive virtue that bears meaningful connection to religion and spirituality in addition to well-being and flourishing. We consider how perceptions of accountability to God are associated with psychological well-being and how this may be conditioned by other aspects of the “religious role,” religious attendance, prayer, and biblical literalism. We draw on national data from the 2017 Baylor Religion Survey. Results suggest that accountability to God was associated with lower depressive symptoms and greater happiness but did not have a significant association with symptoms of anxiety. More frequent prayer strengthened the favourable association between accountability to God and psychological well-being. The relationship between accountability to God and better psychological well-being was also strengthened by high (weekly or more) religious attendance. Finally, our results also suggested that a literalist interpretation of the Bible in the context of low accountability to God was associated with lower psychological well-being.
Understanding the role of spirituality during COVID-19: a cross-cultural qualitative analysisWaila, Kamla; Lindsay, Nicole
doi: 10.1080/13674676.2024.2350473pmid: N/A
The novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in 2019 brought widespread disruptions to normal daily functioning. The current qualitative phenomenological study explored the role of spirituality during the pandemic across two divergent cultural contexts; India and New Zealand. Inductive thematic analysis of results revealed that spirituality was found to entail a range of convergent health and wellbeing effects that were categorised into four major themes; hope, meaning amidst chaos, strengthened mental fortitude, and inner transformation. Overall, spirituality provided individuals a range of tools to navigate the crisis, building individual resilience and providing courage to face the pandemic’s most difficult challenges. Moreover, the inner-transformative effects of spirituality fostered significant post-traumatic growth above and beyond the immediate impacts of the event, providing evidence for the therapeutic potential inherent within spirituality.
The relationship between daily spiritual experiences and spiritual health of nursing students: the role of demographic factorsEstebsari, Fatemeh; RahimiKhalifehKandi, Zahra; Barati, Mohadaseh; Stiri, Sara; Sabohi, Zahra; Latifi, Marzieh; Mostafaie, Davoud
doi: 10.1080/13674676.2023.2252748pmid: N/A
The present study aimed to identify the relationship between nursing students’ daily spiritual experiences and spiritual health, as well as investigate the role of demographic variables. The cross-sectional study was conducted on 401 nursing students from Medical Sciences Universities in Tehran province in 2021. Data were collected through a demographic questionnaire, the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale, and the Spiritual Health Questionnaire. The findings revealed a significant relationship between students’ daily spiritual experiences and spiritual health (p < .001). Additionally, significant associations were found between daily spiritual experiences and demographic variables such as sex, marital status, place of residence, adherence to religious rituals, economic status, smoking, and alcohol use (p < .05). These results highlight the influence of demographic factors on nursing students’ daily spiritual experiences and spiritual health, emphasising the interconnection between the two. Consequently, it is recommended to prioritise spiritual health as a crucial aspect of holistic spiritual care provision to patients.
The influence of religion on the care experiences of family carers of older migrants with dementia in Belgian citiesChaouni, Saloua Berdai; Claeys, Ann; De Donder, Liesbeth
doi: 10.1080/13674676.2024.2337619pmid: N/A
The number of older migrants with dementia in Western European cities is growing, and so is the share of their family caregivers. This study explores the influence of religion on the caregiving experiences of family caregivers responsible for older labour migrants residing in Belgian cities. In-depth interviews were conducted with 34 family caregivers of older migrants of Moroccan, Turkish, and Italian descent with dementia. Our findings underscore the significance of religion in four key dimensions: (i) as a co-definer of the meaning of dementia, (ii) as a way to deal with dementia and care burden, (iii) as an influencer of family care motives, and (iv) that more religious sensitivity is needed in professional dementia care, especially for Muslims. The discussion advocates for recognising religion as an integral aspect of the multifaceted identity of older migrants. Incorporating religious sensitivity offers a promising pathway toward more comprehensive intersectional-person-centred dementia care.
How serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints might affect individuals’ self-esteem?Chou, Hui-Tzu Grace; White, Ellery; Handojo, Yohanes
doi: 10.1080/13674676.2024.2338887pmid: N/A
The purpose of this research is to examine how serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints might affect individuals’ self-esteem. By analysing the results of a survey filled out by undergraduate students at a state university in Utah, this research has several findings: (1). About 71% of those who served a mission believed that the mission increased their self-esteem, and one major reason is that the mission helped them step outside their comfort zone and finishing a challenging task gave them a sense of achievement; (2). About 17% of those who served a mission believe that the mission decreased their self-esteem, and one major reason was that they felt that they could not meet the expectations. (3). The results of multivariate analysis indicated that those who served a mission had higher self-esteem than those who had never served a mission.
Stigmatisation of schizophrenia and alcohol use disorder: relationship with evangelicalism in a U.S. sampleRowe, Emily; Hersh, Jacqueline; Curtin, Lisa; Monroe, Andrew
doi: 10.1080/13674676.2024.2370966pmid: N/A
Stigmatisation of mental illness and substance use disorders has negative health implications. Previous research suggests that religious fundamentalism relates to stigmatising attitudes; Christian evangelicalism, as one type of fundamentalism, is a prevalent influence on personal belief systems in the United States. We recruited 380 participants from Amazon’s Mechanical Turk, who self-identified as evangelical or non-evangelical, read vignettes depicting schizophrenia, alcohol use disorder (AUD), or asthma (control), and completed a stigmatisation measure. Notably, about a quarter of the non-evangelical group were non-religious individuals. Evangelicals had higher stigmatisation of schizophrenia and asthma, but no between-group difference was found regarding AUD. Higher stigmatisation of schizophrenia among evangelicals might reflect perceived violations of societal and religious norms, while widespread stigmatising attitudes related to AUD in the general population might explain the comparable stigmatisation of AUD among both groups. These findings highlight the importance of considering evangelical religious beliefs in stigma research and anti-stigma interventions.