Spirituality - the Story of a concept in the psychology of religion

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Říčan, Pavel

2004-01-01

Roč. 26, - (2004), s. 135-156 ISSN 0084-6724 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA7025301 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z7025918 Keywords : Spirituality * religiousness * psychology Subject RIV: AN - Psychology

Predicting dimensions of psychological well being based on religious orientations and spirituality: an investigation into a causal model.

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Abbasali Soleimani Khashab

2015-03-01

Full Text Available The aim of this study was to investigate the possibility of predicting psychological well-being based on spirituality and religiousness.A sample of 300 participants was selected from the whole entrants to Shiraz University of Medical Sciences and Shiraz University using a random cluster sampling. The tools of this study were the Spiritual Scale of Ironson, the Internal and External Orientations of Allport and Ross, Spiritual Religious Orientation of Betson and Showinerdand and the Psychological Well-Being Scale. To analyze the results of this study, we used the statistical method of Pearson correlation and we also performed the path analysis. Multiple regressions were used in a hierarchical simultaneous way in accordance with the stages of Barron and Kenny.The following results were obtained in this study: 1Spirituality positively predicted two religious orientations (question and internal among which the internal spirituality possessed a higher degree of predictability; 2Through intra-religious orientation, and in a direct way, spirituality predicted psychological well-being; 3The internal orientation was the only strong mediator in the relationship between spirituality and psychological well-being.Spirituality and religiosity were significant determinants of mental health, and they had more shares in psychological well-being, and made religious beliefs profound and internalized them.

The Metaphysical Instincts & Spiritual Bypassing in Integral Psychology

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Bahman A.K. Shirazi

2013-09-01

Full Text Available Instincts are innate, unconscious means by which Nature operates in all forms of life including animals and human beings. In humans however, with progressive evolution of consciousness, instincts become increasingly conscious and regulated by egoic functions. Biological instincts associated with the lower-unconscious such as survival, aggressive, and reproductive instincts are well known in general psychology. The higher-unconscious, which is unique to human beings, may be said to have its own instinctual processes referred to here as the ‘metaphysical instincts’. In traditional spiritual practices awakening the metaphysical instincts has often been done at the expense of suppressing the biological instincts—a process referred to as spiritual bypassing. This essay discusses how the metaphysical instincts initially expressed as the religious impulse with associated beliefs and behaviors may be transformed and made fully conscious, and integrated with the biological instincts in integral yoga and psychology in order to achieve wholeness of personality.

Psychological Health, Trauma, Dissociation, Absorption, and Fantasy proneness among Danish Spiritual practitioners

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Cardena, Etzel; Reijman, Sophie; Wimmelmann, Cathrine Lawaetz

2015-01-01

distress. P did not differ from the control groups in the Global Severity scale (GSI) or the other subscales of the BSI-53 except for scoring lower on the phobic anxiety subscale. In contrast, R scored higher in the GSI and most BSI-53 subscales than P and the control groups, and published norms for Danish...... to be in a committed relationship and belong to the Danish National Church, whereas R had a lower level of education and were unlikely to be in a committed relationship or belong to the Church, suggesting social marginality. All groups completed the Brief Symptom Inventory-53 (BSI-53), a measure of psychological...... correlated with dissociation, a history of serious trauma and (weakly) with absorption, but not with general trauma or fantasy-proneness. Overall, the results do not support the view that most spiritual practitioners have higher psychological distress or are socially marginal, although there is a subset...

Spirituality, psychological well-being, and HIV symptoms for African Americans living with HIV disease.

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Coleman, C L; Holzemer, W L

1999-01-01

The purpose of this descriptive cross-sectional study was to explore the contribution of spiritual well-being and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) symptoms to psychological well-being measured by depression, hope, and state-trait anxiety in a sample of 117 African-American men and women with a mean age of 38 years living with HIV disease. Of the respondents, 26% had acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), and 74% were HIV seropositive. Each participant completed a sociodemographic questionnaire, the Sign and Symptom Checklist for Persons with HIV Disease, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, the Nowotny Hope Scale, State-Trait Inventory, and the Beck Depression Inventory. The findings suggest that existential well-being, a spiritual indicator of meaning and purpose, more than religious well-being, was significantly related to the participants' psychological well-being. In addition, HIV symptoms were found to be significant predictors of psychological well-being. These findings support the need for nurses to continue exploring ways to integrate and support spirituality within the domains of clinical practice.

Social Justice and Spirituality: Educating for a Complicated Workplace

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English, Leona M.; Cameron, Paula

2016-01-01

This chapter proposes a spiritually relevant and social justice pedagogy that assists learners in making the transition to the workplace. Key elements of this spirituality include religion, cultural diversity, identity, health, and social class. Pedagogical strategies for infusing this spirituality in the curriculum are given.

Spiritual Transcendence and Psychological Adjustment: The Moderating Role of Personality in Burn Patients.

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Jibeen, Tahira; Mahfooz, Musferah; Fatima, Shamem

2017-08-30

The current study examined the moderating role of personality traits (neuroticism and extraversion) on the relationship between spiritual transcendence and positive change, and spiritual transcendence and distress in burn patients. The sample (N = 98) comprised adult burn patients (age = 25-50) admitted to three hospitals in Lahore, Pakistan. They were assessed according to a demographic information sheet, the NEO Personality Inventory (McCrae and Costa in J Personal Soc Psychol 52:81-90, 1987), the Spiritual Transcendence Index (Seidlitz et al. in J Sci Study Relig 41:439-453, 2002), the Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scales-21 (Lovibond and Lovibond in Manual for the Depression Anxiety Stress scales, Psychology Foundation, Sydney, 1995), and the Perceived Benefit Scales (McMillen and Fisher in Soc Work Res 22(3):173-186, 1998). Stepwise moderated regression analysis showed that both personality traits (neuroticism and extraversion) played a moderating role in the relationship between spiritual transcendence and positive change, and spiritual transcendence and distress in burn patients. The findings highlight the potential role spiritual transcendence may have in understanding and improving the psychological adjustment of burn patients.

Spirituality in Indian University Students and its Associations with Socioeconomic Status, Religious Background, Social Support, and Mental Health.

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Deb, Sibnath; McGirr, Kevin; Sun, Jiandong

2016-10-01

The present study aimed to understand spirituality and its relationships with socioeconomic status (SES), religious background, social support, and mental health among Indian university students. It was hypothesized that (1) female university students will be more spiritual than male university students, (2) four domains of spirituality will differ significantly across socioeconomic and religious background of the university students in addition to social support, and (3) there will be a positive relationship between spirituality and mental health of university students, irrespective of gender. A group of 475 postgraduate students aged 20-27 years, 241 males and 234 females, from various disciplines of Pondicherry University, India, participated in the study. Students' background was collected using a structured questionnaire. Overall spirituality and its four dimensions were measured using the Spirituality Attitude Inventory, while mental health status was estimated based on scores of the psychological subscale of the WHO Quality of Life Questionnaire. Female students were significantly more spiritual than male students, particularly in spiritual practice and sense of purpose/connection. Hindu religion and lower family income were associated with lower spirituality. Higher spirituality was associated with congenial family environment and more support from teachers and classmates. There was a strong association between overall spirituality and two spirituality domains (spiritual belief and sense of purpose/connection) with better mental health. Findings suggest an opportunity for open dialogue on spirituality for university students as part of their mental health and support services that fosters a positive mind set and enhancement of resilience.

The Role of Spiritual Attitude in Child-Rearing in Predicting the Psychological Hardiness of Mothers with Handicapped Children

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Bahman Bahmani

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Objectives: Providing care to children who have disability is often a stressful experience, yet spiritual beliefs may help mothers to be patient, tolerant and  hard in coping with child-rearing difficulties. This study examined the relationship between the spiritual attitudes of mothers of handicapped children to child-rearing and psychological hardiness. Methods: In a descriptive correlational study, 120 mothers of handicapped children who were referred to the rehabilitation clinics of the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences (Rofeideh, Akhavan and Sina clinics were selected through purposeful sampling and answered the Sanctification of Parents Scale (SPS, and Personal Views Survey (PVS. Data were analyzed by SPSS-20 software and statistical procedures including Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis were used. Results: Results showed that spiritual attitudes to child-rearing are significant predictors of hardiness in mothers. Discussion: It seems like having spiritual attitudes in difficult situations such as providing care for disabled children plays a significant role in mother’s patience and hardiness.

[Evolutionary Concept Analysis of Spirituality].

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Ko, Il Sun; Choi, So Young; Kim, Jin Sook

2017-04-01

This study was done to clarify attributes, antecedents, and consequences of spirituality. Rodgers's evolutionary concept analysis was used to analyze fifty seven studies from the literature related to spirituality as it appears in systematic literature reviews of theology, medicine, counseling & psychology, social welfare, and nursing. Spirituality was found to consist of two dimensions and eight attributes: 1) vertical dimension: 'intimacy and connectedness with God' and 'holy life and belief', 2) horizontal dimension: 'self-transcendence', 'meaning and purpose in life', 'self-integration', and 'self-creativity' in relationship with self, 'connectedness' and 'trust' in relationship with others·neighbors·nature. Antecedents of spirituality were socio-demographic, religious, psychological, and health related characteristics. Consequences of spirituality were positive and negative. Being positive included 'life centered on God' in vertical dimension, and among horizontal dimension 'joy', 'hope', 'wellness', 'inner peace', and 'self-actualization' in relationship with self, 'doing in love' and 'extended life toward neighbors and the world' in relationship with others·neighbors·nature. Being negative was defined as having 'guilt', 'inner conflict', 'loneliness', and 'spiritual distress'. Facilitators of spirituality were stressful life events and experiences. Spirituality is a multidimensional concept. Unchangeable attributes of spirituality are 'connectedness with God', 'self-transcendence', 'meaning of life' and 'connectedness with others·nature'. Unchangeable consequences of spirituality are 'joy' and 'hope'. The findings suggest that the dimensional framework of spirituality can be used to assess the current spiritual state of patients. Based on these results, the development of a Korean version of the scale measuring spirituality is recommended. © 2017 Korean Society of Nursing Science

The concept of spirituality and its relation to religion in positive psychology

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Luciana Fernandes Marques

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This is a theoretical study that aims to provide a review of current scientific studies on the concept of spirituality and proposes some issues for future research. The article brings a literature review on the subject, including several areas of positive psychology. Articles and books in Portuguese, Spanish and English were examined  and held a computerized search in the SciELO (www.scielo.br and electronic Indexer Google Scholar, and the references of materials examined. The descriptors were: conceit, espirit, religion, and their counterparts in Spanish and English. The purpose of this review is outline some definitions to set limits and help in conducting research when the researcher should choose constructs and measurement instruments. Comment some classical authors such as Wundt, Maslow and James. After there is a difference about religion and spirituality, discussing their similarities and antagonisms that are mentioned in the reviewed literature and how the concept of spirituality appears in Positive Psychology. 

PROMOTING PSYCHO-SOCIAL-SPIRITUAL RESPONSE IN PATIENTS WITH TYPE 2 DIABETES MELLITUS THROUGH APLICATION ON SELF CARE MANAGEMENT MODUL

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Kusnanto Kusnanto

2017-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Diabetes mellitus was a kind of incurable chronic disease that actually manageable. The global prevalence tends to increase due to less self management of the disease and the impact of it was severe health condition. There were so many interventions implemented but failed to give optimal improvement in patient’s condition and there are so many DM patients have insufficient ability to manage their own disease. Patients need to have knowledge, skills, and self confident to be able to manage their disease. Patient’s self-management depends on patient’s education, empowerment, and self monitoring in evaluating their self-care management. The purpose of this research was promoting patient’s psychological, social, and spiritual conditions through Self Care Management. Improvement in psychological, social, and spiritual conditions in patients with DM will lead to better level of blood glucose and HbA1C. Method: Patient newly diagnose with Type 2 DM at Puskesmas Kebonsari was selected with purposive sampling and divided into two groups. Each group contains 25 patients. Intervention group was given Self Diabetes Management Module. Before and after intervention patient was given Questionnaire. The data then analyzed using Student-T test, McNemar and Chi-Square. Result: The result of this research showed patient have constructive coping, increase interpersonal relation. Patients also have better acceptance about the disease and involve in its management. Discussion: Self Care Management Module promotes psychological, social, and spiritual conditions in patients with type 2 DM.

Equipping Social Workers to Address Spirituality in Practice Settings: AModel Curriculum

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David R. Hodge

2002-12-01

Full Text Available While there is growing interest in incorporating clients’ spiritual beliefs and values into social work practice, several studies have shown that social workers lack the necessary training to address spiritual issues in a culturally competent manner. This paper addresses this need by providing an annotated spirituality training course for use in various settings. Topics or domains covered in the curriculum include ethics and values, research and theory on spirituality, the nation’s spiritual demographics, the cultures of major spiritual traditions, value conflicts, spiritual interventions, assessment approaches, and the rights of spiritual believers. A number of potential assignments are offered,which are designed to promote practitioner self-awareness, respect for spiritual diversity, and an enhanced ability to assess and operationalize spiritual strengths to ameliorate problems in practice settings.

Twenty-five years later--what do we know about religion/spirituality and psychological well-being among breast cancer survivors? A systematic review.

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Schreiber, Judith A; Brockopp, Dorothy Y

2012-03-01

A diagnosis of cancer is a life-changing event for most people. The trauma and uncertainties of a breast cancer diagnosis can affect survivors' psychological well-being. Religion and/or spirituality can provide a means of support for many women as they live with the realities of a diagnosis of cancer. The purpose of this focused review is to critically analyze and synthesize relationships among psychological well-being, religion, and spirituality among women with breast cancer. MEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science, Cambridge Scientific Abstracts, Cochrane CENTRAL, and PsycINFO databases were searched: January 1985-March 2010. The search terms religi*(religious/religion), spiritu*(spiritual/spirituality), breast cancer, psychological adjustment, psychological outcomes, psychological distress, psychological well-being, and outcomes were searched for separately and in combination. Eighteen quantitative studies were analyzed in order to examine associations among religion, spirituality, and psychological well-being for women diagnosed with breast cancer. These three variables were operationally defined as follows: (a) religious practice, religious coping, and perception of God; (b) spiritual distress, spiritual reframing, spiritual well-being, and spiritual integration; and (c) combined measure of both the religion and spirituality constructs. Results of this review suggest that within this population, limited relationships exist among religion, spirituality, and psychological well-being. Given the various definitions used for the three variables, the strength and clarity of relationships are not clear. In addition, the time of assessment along the course of the disease varies greatly and in some instances is not reported. Diagnosis and/or prognosis, factors that could influence psychological well-being, are frequently not factored into results. There does, however, appear to be sufficient evidence to include a brief, clinically focused assessment of women diagnosed with

Social representations about religion and spirituality.

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Borges, Moema da Silva; Santos, Marília Borges Couto; Pinheiro, Tiago Gomes

2015-01-01

to identify the social representations about the concepts of spirituality and religion of of health teachers. exploratory and descriptive study, based on a qualitative approach. 25 subjects participated in it. The following instruments were used to collect data: questionnaire to identify the profile; questionnaire of free association, whose inducing words were religion and spirituality, and an interview based on the scale FICA (Puchalski, 2006). the representations about religion and spirituality, for professors, are forged around the faith in God and it gives them meaning and purpose to deal with the challenges of personal and professional living. there are still barriers that need to be overcome with a view to a comprehensive care. For this, it is essential to incorporate spirituality in the process in the curricula of health courses.

Reconstructing Sikh Spirituality in Recovery from Alcohol Addiction

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Asesha Morjaria-Keval

2015-03-01

Full Text Available This paper situates Sikh identity, spirituality, and recovery from alcohol addiction within a nexus of complex social, psychological, and cultural factors. The way in which affected people in Sikh communities in Britain are able to locate and utilize unofficial recovery trajectories, often successfully alleviating suffering, presents both academic research and service provision with potential puzzles. While Sikh communities have been long settled in the UK, there is still a dearth of extensive, multi-method, and analytically rich research investigating the role of spirituality and Sikh identity. We present existing models of recovery process and locate them against an individual psychological and sociological backdrop, so that through the use of spirituality, recovery along this route is interpreted as having both otherworldly as well as materially grounded formations. It is this duality, we argue, that is prominent socially, culturally, and psychologically as important in the recovery from addiction. The multi-factorial nature of this mechanism of change raises important questions for not only addiction recovery, but also notions of continuity and change in Sikh identity. We aim to contribute to this growing body of work in order to re-situate the role of spirituality and identity in alcohol addiction recovery.

Narrating spiritual well-being in relationship to positive psychology and religion

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B. van Rooyen

2009-07-01

Full Text Available Constructed as new and located in the discourse of positive psychology, “spiritual well-being” is a signifier with a (hisstory in which one possible reading is highlighted in this postmodern (deconstructive narrative. The construction of “spiritual + well-being” could be narrated as a secularisation of the religious by positivist psy-complex knowledges, where spiritual well-being is reconstructed as a measurable outcome. Or it could be nar-rated as a “spiritualisation” of the psy-complex by religious knowledges, with measurable well-being becoming dependent on the pursuit of the postmodern, multiple-storied spiritual/ religious features. As the psy-complex has followed medicine from a focus on pathology to a focus on holistic wellness, it has found itself in the religious realm which it has simultaneously centred and marginalised. Additionally, as the psy-complex has moved from measuring illness to measuring wellness, it could be described as having constructed new categories of non-well-being or ill-being.

Psycho-Spiritual Integrative Therapy: Psychological Intervention for Women with Breast Cancer

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Corwin, Diana; Wall, Kathleen; Koopman, Cheryl

2012-01-01

Women with breast cancer frequently report psychological distress throughout the treatment process. Patients have several empirically supported options for group psychotherapy while undergoing breast cancer treatment. However, few interventions have been developed that incorporate spirituality into psychotherapy, despite indications that patients…

Changes in spiritual well-being and psychological outcomes in ovarian cancer survivors.

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Davis, Lauren Z; Cuneo, Michaela; Thaker, Premal H; Goodheart, Michael J; Bender, David; Lutgendorf, Susan K

2018-02-01

Because of the poor prognosis of ovarian cancer and concomitant distress, understanding contributors to positive well-being is critical. This study examines spiritual growth as a domain of posttraumatic growth and its contribution to longitudinal emotional outcomes in ovarian cancer. Ovarian cancer patients (N = 241) completed measures assessing spirituality (Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-being-12; subscales: faith, meaning, and peace), depression (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale), cancer-specific anxiety (Impact of Event Scale), and total mood disturbance (TMD; Profile of Mood States) prior to surgery and 1-year postsurgery. Stressful life events in the year after diagnosis were measured at 1-year postsurgery. Regressions examined the association between changes in spirituality and depression, anxiety, and TMD at 1-year postsurgery. Additionally, spiritual change was examined as a moderator of the effect of recent life events on mood. Increases in peace were related to lower depression (β = -.40, P spiritual growth in cancer patients. Furthermore, changes in peace appear to moderate the effect of life events on psychological well-being. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The Effects of the Activation of Money and Credit Card vs. that of Activation of Spirituality - Which One Prompts Pro-Social Behaviours?

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Wierzbicki, Jakub; Zawadzka, Anna Maria

Pro-social behaviours may be prompted or inhibited depending on the situation. Numerous experiments show that, when exposed to the idea of money, people are less willing to help, devote their time or share their resources with others (Vohs et al. Science, 314, 1154-1156, 2006, Current Directions in Psychological Science, 17(3), 208-212, 2008). Conversely, when exposed to the idea of spirituality, they often cheat less and are more willing to help others (Mazar and Ariely Journal of Marketing Research, 45, 633-644, 2008; Randolph-Seng and Nielsen The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 17(4), 303-315, 2007). The aim of this article is to present the results of two experiments in which we activated thoughts about money, i.e. both cash and credit cards, and thoughts about spirituality in order to find out in what way these two kinds of activation may influence pro-social behaviours. In experiment 1, participants, when reminded of money, offered lower donations to others whereas those reminded of spirituality offered higher donations. In experiment 2, those participants reminded of money offered to devote less time to help others whereas those reminded of spirituality offered to devote more time to help others.

Nursing research on religion and spirituality through a social justice lens.

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Reimer-Kirkham, Sheryl

2014-01-01

Critical theories such as postcolonial feminism and intersectionality can provide new and vital perspectives on the interplay between social justice, religion, spirituality, health, and nursing. Criticality prompts us to examine taken-for-granted assumptions, such as the neutrality and universality of spirituality, while analyzing social relations of power, including the racialization of religion and religious patriarchy, that may result in oppressive conditions and social exclusion. The argument is made that when refracted through critical, intersectional lenses, religious and spiritual traditions can be rich sources of theoretical foundations and practical services that could inform nursing's recent re/turn toward social justice.

Spiritual Meaning in Life and Values in Patients With Severe Mental Disorders.

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Huguelet, Philippe; Mohr, Sylvia Madeleine; Olié, Emilie; Vidal, Sonia; Hasler, Roland; Prada, Paco; Bancila, Mircea; Courtet, Philippe; Guillaume, Sébastien; Perroud, Nader

2016-06-01

Spirituality and meaning in life are key dimensions of recovery in psychiatric disorders. The aim of this study was to explore spiritual meaning in life in relation to values and mental health among 175 patients with schizophrenia, borderline personality disorder, bipolar disorder, and anorexia nervosa. For 26% of the patients, spirituality was essential in providing meaning in life. Depending on the diagnosis, considering spirituality as essential in life was associated with better social functioning; self-esteem; psychological and social quality of life; fewer negative symptoms; higher endorsement of values such as universalism, tradition (humility, devoutness), and benevolence (helpfulness); and a more meaningful perspective in life. These results highlight the importance of spirituality for recovery-oriented care.

An Inclusive Definition of Spirituality for Social Work Education and Practice

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Senreich, Evan

2013-01-01

A formidable body of recent literature advocates the incorporation of spirituality into the bio-psycho-social framework of social work education and practice. No consistent conceptualization of spirituality has been developed, however, that can be used with all clients and that is fully consonant with social work values as taught in schools of…

Self-Disclosure and Spiritual Well-Being in Pastors Seeking Professional Psychological Help.

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Salwen, Erik D; Underwood, Lee A; Dy-Liacco, Gabriel S; Arveson, Kathleen R

2017-01-01

Pastoral mental health is a topic that has only rarely been researched empirically in the psychological literature, yet a pastor's mental health can have a significant impact on churches, communities, and even nations (Royal and Thompson, Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 31 (3), 195-204, 2012). One of the thoughts prompting this research is that evangelical pastors might be expected to resist the findings of psychological research and lack understanding of specific mental illnesses they are potentially facing. Combined with historical and cultural dynamics that could influence resistance to professional psychological help, evangelical pastors have personal, internal factors that could also strengthen resistance, including the researched issues of self-disclosure flexibility and spiritual well-being. A correlational research design with multivariate regression was used to determine potentially significant or predictive relationships between the relevant factors. Among evangelical seminary students ( N  = 251) preparing for parish-based pastoral ministry, this research determined that no significant relationship, predictive or otherwise, existed between self-disclosure flexibility, spiritual well-being, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Implications include a shift in focus toward external factors influencing pastors' help-seeking attitudes, such as the need for the mental health community to develop connections with evangelical pastors and the development of more support for Christian mental health professionals in the larger evangelical community.

Spirituality for democracy and social cohesion versus the spirituality of money

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Ulrich Duchrow

2014-08-01

Full Text Available We live in a life-killing global system, and thus, we are called by our own biblical basis � re-read in the spirit of other than Western traditions � to search for life-giving alternatives and to develop democracy accordingly. However, this is not a geographical exercise. We cannot count on South Africa as a place where Ubuntu is practiced or on South Korea living in communities according to Sangsaeng. The reason is that Western civilisation, with its own spirituality, has permeated all corners of the earth. My thesis is that this is the spirituality of money; biblically speaking, of Mammon. Before we can talk about a spirituality for democracy and social cohesion, we need to address the spirituality of the status quo in order to understand what the alternative could be. The issue gets complicated by the new insight that Western civilisation has deep roots in history; in fact a history of almost 3000 years. Only by looking at this history can we really understand how money did not only change socio-economic and political structures but also hearts, minds and the spirituality of people.Intradisciplinary and/or�interdisciplinary�implications: This article challenges the normal Western assumption that democracy is but a political issue of voting every 4 or 5 years. Instead it shows that real democracy is linked to economic and social justice, as well as to deep cultural and spiritual roots. Authors should carefully identify the contextual perspective they challenge, identifying the potential results of the proposed research and whether it calls for a change in traditional discourse as well as whether such a change is possible. Key insights into the research results and its future function should be revealed.Today we are faced with life-killing civilization, manifested in economic injustice, ecological destruction, the threat of Empire, and the escalation of religious conflicts. This compels us to urgently explore the possibility of life

SPIRITUALITY AS PHILOSOPHICAL, SOCIAL AND CULTURAL DE-VELOPMENT PROBLEM

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V. E. Gromov

2013-12-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the article is to regard the essence and phenomenon of spirituality in connection with ontological foundation of human being existence. The author suggests the concept of new cosmo-theocentric paradigm of human world outlook, as a ground of perspective transformation of social life activity on the contrary to anthropocentric view, which dominates in present society consciousness. The author gives the characteristics of the ideal sage and underlines the importance of spiritual teachers in cultural development of society. Methodology. The method of philosophizing is connected with the unity of mind, sensuality, belief, will in integral body and mental organization of a man. Such point of view takes into consideration not only aspects of objective determination, but includes senses of existence and world outlook ideas in culture on particular and universal levels of social experience. The author considers a special ontological disposition of the human being in the world as a “transcendent project” with “metaphysic responsibility”. Scientific novelty. In the history of social culture the problem of its spiritual attitude towards reality is a basic problem, but now it becomes especially up-to-date and important. Now the survival of the civilization depends on the development of spirituality. From metaphysical point of view it means how spiritual the human being may be. The author connects the consideration of spirituality with particular human being ontological status in the world and provides his reflection with speculative character. Conclusions. The transition of modern civilized society to the cosmo-theocentric paradigm is prepared by contradictions of its technological and cultural development. In historical circumstances when the conscious influence of society on itself is growing, the realization of this process depends on spiritual trend of human beings cultural activity and mental quality of social leaders

Spirituality as an Essential Determinant for the Good Life, its Importance Relative to Self-Determinant Psychological Needs

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D. van Dierendonck (Dirk)

2012-01-01

textabstractThis study focuses on the relevance of spirituality as an essential element for the Good Life. Despite spirituality’s prominence in people’s lives and cultures, it has been mostly neglected in psychological needs theories. This paper investigates the value of spirituality compared to

The Role of Psychological Hardiness and Spiritual Health in Predict of Quality of Life in Students of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences

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Afsaneh Shahbazirad

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Nowadays, quality of life is one of the main phenomena in health, which is affected by different factors. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of psychological hardiness and spiritual health in predicting the quality of life among students. Materials and Methods: This descriptive-correlational study was conducted on 120 students of Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Iran, during 2013-2014. Participants were selected by cluster sampling method. Data were collected using a demographic questionnaire, Ahvaz psychological hardiness questionnaire, spiritual health questionnaire of Paloutzian & Park and Quality of life questionnaire. Data were analyzed in SPSS 19 using Pearson’s correlation test and stepwise regression analysis. Results: There was a significant positive correlation between psychological hardiness and quality of life (P < 0.05. There was a significant positive correlation between spiritual health and quality of life (P < 0.05. However, there was no significant relationship between quality of life and spiritual health in the existential dimension; while, there was a significant relationship with religious dimension (P < 0.05. Psychological hardiness and spiritual health can predict 11.3 % of the variance in quality of life. Conclusions: Considering the relationship between the variables, it is better to provide training packages about the increase of spiritual health and psychological hardiness, in order to enhance the quality of life of university students.

HIGHER SPIRITUAL AND SELF-REGULATIVE CAPACITIES IN ANCIENT KNOWLEDGE SYSTEM - BUDDHISM (APPROACH OF HISTORY OF PSYCHOLOGY

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G V Ozhiganova

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The necessity of research on higher spiritual and self-regulative capacities in the context of ancient oriental system of knowledge is expressed. The historical and psychological methods of studying ancient knowledge are described. The methods of the history of psychology, proposed by the author, are used: such as the method of revealing scientific knowledge reserves, aimed at restoring and practical mastering the psychological heritage of ancient times, as well as the experimental method, involving the verification of psychological facts, phenomena and laws described in ancient texts, with the help of modern scientific research methods (observation, experiment, statistical data. Meditative practices and philosophical concepts of Buddhism are considered from the standpoint of modern psychology. The ancient Buddhist meditative practices “Contemplation of the mind”, linked to the concept of “mindfulness” is described. It is concluded that the concept of the mind is the key in the Buddhist system of knowledge. The understanding of the mind in the ancient Buddhist doctrine is compared with a modern interpretation of the concept of “mind” in psychological science, as well as its content is revealed due to psychological terms “higher self-regulative capacities” and “moral-value aspect of spiritual capacities”. It is revealed that in the Buddhist system of knowledge there can be seen close links between higher self-regulative capacities and moral-value aspect of spiritual capacities. The results of empirical studies of the ancient meditative practices and their positive impact on self-regulation of the modern people are submitted.

Spirituality: its psychological operationalization via measurement of individual differences: A Czech perspective

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Říčan, Pavel; Janošová, Pavlína

2005-01-01

Roč. 47, č. 2 (2005), s. 157-165 ISSN 0039-3320 R&D Projects: GA ČR GA406/05/0940 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z70250504 Keywords : Spirituality * Mysticism * Ecology * Togetherness * Transcendence Subject RIV: AN - Psychology Impact factor: 0.136, year: 2005

Association between spiritual intelligence and mental and physical health in elderly

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Andreia Domingues Pereira

2016-02-01

Full Text Available // // // // // Aims: To analyze the levels of spiritual intelligence, psychological well-being, depressive and anxious symptoms, and mental and physical health in elderly attending nursing homes or social centers and explore associations between all these variables (and with some sociodemographic variables.   Method: In this non-experimental study, the Integrated Spiritual Intelligence Scale, the Older Americans Resources and Services (to evaluate physical and mental health, the Philadelphia Geriatric Center Morale Scale (evaluates psychological well-being, the Geriatric Depression Scale and the Geriatric Anxiety Inventory were applied, in an interview format, to 65 aged citizens (age, M = 83.46; SD = 6.65; female, n = 46; 70.8%.   Results: Most elders perceived their physical health (80.0% and mental health (84.0% as unsatisfactory. An important percentage presented depressive (56.9% and anxiety symptoms (64.6%. The total score of spiritual intelligence was positively correlated with attitudes towards aging and negatively with the total score of depressive symptoms. Conscience (spiritual intelligence was positively associated with attitudes towards aging (psychological well-being and negatively with depressive symptoms. Meaning (spiritual intelligence was positively associated with the total score of psychological well-being and it´s dimensions, solitude/dissatisfaction, and agitation, and negatively with depressive and anxious symptoms. Grace was positively associated with the total score of psychological well-being and it´s dimension attitudes towards aging and negatively with depressive and anxiety symptoms. Finally, aged citizens living in nursing homes showed lower values of grace and higher values of meaning (spiritual intelligence, depressive and anxious symptoms.   Conclusions: It is of concern the prevalence of unsatisfactory physical and mental health, depression and anxiety. Higher total levels (and in some of the dimensions of

Spiritual Intimacy, Marital Intimacy, and Physical/Psychological Well-Being: Spiritual Meaning as a Mediator.

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Holland, Karen J; Lee, Jerry W; Marshak, Helen H; Martin, Leslie R

2016-08-01

Intimacy is an essential part of marital relationships, spiritual relationships, and is also a factor in well-being, but there is little research simultaneously examining the links among spiritual intimacy, marital intimacy, and well-being. Structural equation modeling was used to examine associations among the latent variables-spiritual intimacy, marital intimacy, spiritual meaning, and well-being-in a cross-sectional study of 5,720 married adults aged 29-100 years ( M = 58.88, SD = 12.76, 59% female). All participants were from the Adventist Health Study-2, Biopsychosocial Religion and Health Study. In the original structural model, all direct associations between the three latent variables of spiritual intimacy, marital intimacy, and well-being were significantly positive indicating that there was a significant relationship among spiritual intimacy, marital intimacy, and well-being. When spiritual meaning was added as a mediating variable, the direct connections of spiritual intimacy to marital intimacy and to well-being became weakly negative. However, the indirect associations of spiritual intimacy with marital intimacy and with well-being were then strongly positive through spiritual meaning. This indicates that the relationship among spiritual intimacy, marital intimacy, and well-being was primarily a result of the meaning that spiritual intimacy brought to one's marriage and well-being, and that without spiritual meaning greater spirituality could negatively influence one's marriage and well-being. These findings suggest the central place of spiritual meaning in understanding the relationship of spiritual intimacy to marital intimacy and to well-being.

The mediating role of spirituality (meaning, peace, faith) between psychological distress and mental adjustment in cancer patients.

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Jimenez-Fonseca, Paula; Lorenzo-Seva, Urbano; Ferrando, Pere Joan; Carmona-Bayonas, Alberto; Beato, Carmen; García, Teresa; Muñoz, María Del Mar; Ramchandani, Avinash; Ghanem, Ismael; Rodríguez-Capote, Alejandra; Jara, Carlos; Calderon, Caterina

2018-05-01

The objectives of this study were (a) to determine the psychometric properties of the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being (FACIT-Sp) scale and (b) to provide that FACIT scores behave one-dimensional to establish the mediating role of spiritual well-being in psychological distress and mental adjustment in a sample of patients with non-metastatic, resected cancer. A total of 504 consecutive patients completed the FACIT-Sp, Brief Symptom Inventory, and Mini-Mental Adjustment to Cancer scales. The dimensionality and structure of the scale were assessed by semi-confirmatory factor analysis; the reliability of the derived scale scores was evaluated using the omega coefficient, and regression analysis appraised the FACIT-Sp's mediating role between psychological distress and mental adjustment. A clear and theoretically interpretable solution in two factors that agreed generally with solutions reported in other languages was obtained for the FACIT item scores and omega reliabilities of the derived Meaning/Peace (0.85) and Faith (0.86) scales were acceptable. The oblique solution in two factors was compatible with an essentially unidimensional solution of general well-being and associated strongly with psychological distress and mental adjustment. Spiritual well-being acted as a partial mediator between psychological distress and mental adjustment strategies, such as fighting spirit, hope, and cognitive avoidance. The Spanish version of the FACIT-Sp scale is a reliable and valid clinical evaluation tool, and further highlights the potential clinical implications of spirituality for improving quality of life and adjustment to cancer.

Spirituality, Religion, Social Justice Orientation, and the Career Aspirations of Young Adults

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Chenot, David; Kim, Hansung

2017-01-01

Spirituality and religion predicted the development of social justice orientation (SJO) among young adults in a previous study (Chenot & Kim, 2013). The current study explores the manner in which the effects of spirituality and religion on social justice orientation vary depending on the career aspirations of young adults. The longitudinal…

The Relationships Between Spiritual Well-Being, Quality of Life, and Psychological Factors Before Radiotherapy for Prostate Cancer.

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Walker, Sara J; Chen, Yiyi; Paik, Kyungjeen; Mirly, Brandy; Thomas, Charles R; Hung, Arthur Y

2017-10-01

Given shifting trends of religious identities in the USA, better understanding the impact of patients' religious identities on health-related quality of life (QOL) may help tailor the use of psychological interventions. Men with prostate cancer (N = 43) completed measures of quality of life (QOL), spiritual well-being in two domains (i.e., Faith and Meaning/Peace), psychological state, and psychological trait before undergoing radiotherapy. We hypothesized that (1) higher existential Meaning/Peace would correlate with higher QOL and psychological trait protective factors (e.g., Agreeableness) and that (2) higher existential Meaning/Peace would correlate with lower depression, anxiety, and Neuroticism (i.e., a psychological trait risk factor). We did not anticipate similar relationships between religious Faith and QOL, depression, anxiety, or psychological traits and consider related analyses to be exploratory in nature. Meaning/Peace was indeed negatively associated with depression, anxiety, and Neuroticism. Meaning/Peace was positively correlated with Physical, Social, Functional, and Emotional well-being, as well as Extraversion. Religious Faith was positively associated with Functional well-being, but not the other state, trait, or QOL domains. In sum, prostate cancer patients' sense of existential Meaning/Peace prior to radiotherapy was associated with well-being in many domains, whereas religious Faith appeared less so.

Workplace spirituality and job satisfaction.

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van der Walt, Freda; de Klerk, Jeremias J

2014-06-01

In order to obtain an improved understanding of behaviour at work, employees should be studied from physical, psychological, and spiritual dimensions. Although the physical and psychological dimensions of individuals at work have been studied extensively, the spiritual dimension has been neglected for many years. The objective of the current research was to determine the relationship between workplace spirituality and a positive attitude related to work, that is, job satisfaction. A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 600 white-collar workers, chosen from two organizations in different industries in South Africa. The research results indicate that there is a positive relationship between workplace spirituality and job satisfaction. These findings deepen the understanding of personal spirituality, organizational spirituality, and job satisfaction. They bring new insights into the significant role which spirituality plays in the context of the workplace. To survive in the 21st century, organizations need to be spiritually based. This, in turn, will lead to workers being satisfied with their entire work experience.

Training and education in religion/spirituality within APA-accredited clinical psychology programs: 8 years later.

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Schafer, Rachel M; Handal, Paul J; Brawer, Peter A; Ubinger, Megan

2011-06-01

This study was a follow up investigation of Brawer et al.'s (Prof Psychol Res Pr 33(2):203-206, 2002) survey of education and training of clinical psychologists in religion/spirituality. Directors of clinical training were surveyed to determine whether changes had occurred in the coverage of religion and spirituality through course work, research, supervision, and in the systematic coverage of the content area. Results indicated an increased coverage in the areas of supervision, dedicated courses, inclusion as part of another course, and research. There was no increase in systematic coverage, but significantly more programs provided at least some coverage. The current study also assesses other areas of incorporation as well as directors' opinions regarding the importance of religion/spirituality in the field of psychology.

Spirituality, shifting identities and social change: Cases from the Kalahari landscape

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Mary E. Lange

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Storytelling, art and craft can be considered aesthetic expressions of identities. Kalahari identities are not fixed, but fluid. Research with present-day Kalahari People regarding their artistic expression and places where it has been, and is still, practised highlights that these expressions are informed by spirituality. This article explores this idea via two Kalahari case studies: Water Stories recorded in the Upington, Kakamas area, as well as research on a specific rock engraving site at Biesje Poort near Kakamas. The importance of the Kalahari People’s spiritual beliefs as reflected in these case studies and its significance regarding their identities and influence on social change and/or community development projects is discussed. The article thus highlights ways in which spirituality can be considered in relation to social change projects that are characterised by partnerships between local community, non-government and tertiary education representatives and researchers and that highlight storytelling as an integral part of people’s spirituality.

Correlates of self-perceptions of spirituality in American adults.

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Shahabi, Leila; Powell, Lynda H; Musick, Marc A; Pargament, Kenneth I; Thoresen, Carl E; Williams, David; Underwood, Lynn; Ory, Marcia A

2002-01-01

To advance knowledge in the study of spirituality and physical health, we examined sociodemographic, behavioral, and attitudinal correlates of self-perceptions of spirituality. Participants were a nationally representative sample of 1,422 adult respondents to the 1998 General Social Survey. They were asked, among other things, to rate themselves on the depth of their spirituality and the depth of their religiousness. Results indicated that, after adjustment for religiousness, self-perceptions of spirituality were positively correlated with being female (r = .07, p religious or spiritual activities (range in correlations = .12-.38, all p religiousness. The spiritual and religious group had a higherfrequency of attending services, praying, meditating, reading the Bible, and daily spiritual experience than any of the other 3 groups (all differences p religious-only group (p intolerant than either of the nonreligious groups (p intolerance to the religious-only group. We conclude that sociodemographicfactors could confound any observed association between spirituality and health and should be controlled. Moreover, individuals who perceive themselves to be both spiritual and religious may be at particularly low risk for morbidity and mortality based on their good psychological status and ongoing restorative activities.

THE PROGRAM SUPPORT SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL SAFETY OF CHILDREN WITH INTELLECTUAL DISABILITIES

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Pavel Aleksandrovich Kislyakov

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The article presents a description of the author’s program to support the social and psychological safety of children with intellectual disabilities enrolled in boarding school of VIII kind. The object of the study were children with intellectual disabilities. The subject of research – features of formation to children with intellectual disabilities the social and psychological safety. The methodological base are the special psychology (L.S. Vygotsky, S.L. Rubinstein, A. Speck. The results. Complex psychological and pedagogical support of social and psychological safety of children with intellectual disabilities reflects the content of psychological and pedagogical tasks (target function and technologies of their solution (instrumental function aimed at reducing internal and external risk factors. The target functions are: social and psychological adaptation, personal and developmental, the function of social support and psychological and pedagogical assistance, preventive and correctional function. Psycho-pedagogical objectives are the formation of skills of safe behavior and confront the dangers through the development of appropriate social skills, mental, physical and cognitive abilities, establishing a real and more comfortable with social contact (including municipal and educational environment, thereby ensuring individual protection and psychosocial well-being, support emotional balance, development of harmonious personality, to facilitate adaptation to the social environment, correction of risk factors of dysontogenesis. The program includes informative, technological and diagnostic modules. The basis for the construction of educational information in the field of security us based on the principle of integratively – interdisciplinary cooperation of academic subjects; a mix of mandatory core classes and extra-curricular and remedial work. Technological support included the following teaching methods: interactive (psychotechnical

Spiritual Bypass: A Preliminary Investigation

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Cashwell, Craig S.; Glosoff, Harriet L.; Hammond, Cheree

2010-01-01

The phenomenon of spiritual bypass has received limited attention in the transpersonal psychology and counseling literature and has not been subjected to empirical inquiry. This study examines the phenomenon of spiritual bypass by considering how spirituality, mindfulness, alexithymia (emotional restrictiveness), and narcissism work together to…

The Spiritual Space of Modern Education: Problems, Theory, Practice. The Interregional Conference in Memory of A. D. Chervyakov

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Serova O.E.,

2018-04-01

Full Text Available The authors provided information on the first interregional conference of scientific and pedagogical community of the Yaroslavl region dedicated to the memory of the Psychological Institute employee A.D.Chervyakov - scholar, historian of psychology, methodology and organizer of work on the formation of spiritual and moral content of training courses for children and teenagers. In the plenary session speakers invited to discuss a wide range of General methodological issues: the moral lessons of the creative heritage of Russian ascetics, scholars and teachers; the importance of the Orthodox culture in historical educational research context; the practice of the study of old Russian literature as a factor in the spiritual development of students; studying in school and University language of the icon as the basis of spiritually-moral education of a person; moral criteria for the development of the individual student in the modern education; the spiritual foundations of psychological perspectives; ethical and moral standards in the work of the teacher. Discussion at the round table "Youth subculture: tradition and deviation, moral and psychological-pedagogical problems" turned on: a subculture as a tool of socialization and moral formation adolescents; antisocial practices in subcultural spaces; the moral and psychological degradation as a consequence of aggressive subcultural associations; the way to build a dialogue of generations in the modern educational space; the family as an important resource for the confrontation of anti-social effects of youth subcultures; the spiritual and moral traditions of the Yaroslavl region as a means to counter the influence of destructive youth subcultures.

Integrating spirituality into a group psychological therapy program for cancer patients.

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Cunningham, Alastair J

2005-06-01

Although the importance of spiritual issues to people with cancer is by now widely acknowledged, there has been almost no research on the value of interventions specifically designed to enhance the spiritual experience of these patients. The present report describes an exploratory study on the effects of a brief psychoeducational course emphasizing spiritual aspects of coping and healing. Ninety-seven patients with various types and stages of cancer took part in the 8-session course as the third stage in a progressive, stepwise program of support and psychological education. Standard psychometric tests were administered at entry, 8 weeks, and 6 months. Written home assignments, returned by participants, provided an insight into their experience. Significant improvements in scores were found immediately following the intervention; by 6 months, however, these improvements above entry level had declined to about half the 8-week value. In their written homework, patients grappled with such issues as doubts about the existence of a god, judgment and forgiveness, guilt, projection, self-importance, and the meaning of love. As the course progressed, many claimed to be better able to accept their condition and to experience an enhanced sense of meaning in their lives, coupled with a heightened appreciation for the events of everyday life and less tendency to conflict with others. These preliminary findings indicate that further, more rigorous investigation would be worthwhile and support the growing view that addressing spiritual issues within the framework of group therapy can be of great benefit to people with cancer.

Relevance of Spiritual Principles for Resolving Social Problems

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Ashok Natarajan

2016-05-01

Full Text Available Society unknowingly follows the course of spiritual evolution. Spirituality is the quest for self-existent order and harmonious perfection. The evolution of society is driven by an irrepressible aspiration for the values that are the translation and embodiment of that order. The history of civilization is a record of its progressive emergence. Spirituality is the quest for a unifying reality that transcends all limitations, distinctions and differences; an inner oneness that unites rather than divides us; a faith in and quest for perfection in all its myriad forms; and a power accessible to human beings to overcome impossible obstacles and achieve the inconceivable. It is founded on the principles of absolute freedom, equality and unity. In the modern era, faith in spirit is embodied in the realization of the intrinsic value, extraordinary endowments and unmanifest potentials of the human being. We find expressions of it in the idealism and power released by revolutionary social change. We revere its power in great individuals. The aspiration for perfection in any form or field of endeavor is spiritual. So also we recognize expressions of spirit in the movements of the masses. Spirituality is not confined to pursuit of the otherworldly or unattainable. It is a living power for the transformation of human consciousness and the solution to the compelling challenges confronting humanity.

Social Work Practice with Arab Families: The Implications of Spirituality vis-à-vis Islam

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Ronald E. Hall

2007-12-01

Full Text Available In the aftermath of September 11, 2001, spiritualism has become apparent as critical to social work practice with Arab families. Regrettably, research on Arab families today is all but non-existent.Their belief in Islam is the fastest growing form of spirituality in Central Asia. Social workers who do not acknowledge this fact will be at a severe disadvantage in their attempts to treat Arab clientele. It is not compulsory that practitioners endorse client belief systems or other aspects of their spirituality, but practitioners should acknowledge said systems as a critical point in the client’s frame of reference. In the interest of social justice, social workers are thus challenged to develop creative treatment strategies less confined to Western bias.

Anthropological aspects of health psychology

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Alexander V. Shuvalov

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The paper presents the results of a theoretical study carried out in the framework of the research project «Determinants of psychological health of the modern person». The issue of psychological health is considered in the context of the anthropological crisis that affects public body and causes a decrease in synergetic social life. On the level of specific manifestations, it is associated with damage to the spiritual and moral sphere, distortion of personal way of life and interpersonal relationships, which leads to a general decline in viability. A growing number of people, whose subjective state can be described as mentally fit, but personally sick is identified. Secondary symptoms of such conditions are depression, aggression, dependent behaviour. However, their essential characteristics are not captured by the existing social psychological, psychological pedagogical and medical psychological concepts and also do not fit the typical description of psychological emotional and/or behavioural disorders. The author adheres to the hypothesis that these states have specific spiritual and psychological conditions and symptoms that deserve scientific analysis and philosophical reflection. The leitmotif of the paper is the issue of mental health in its scientific and philosophical sense. Representation of health from the standpoint of modern humanitarian knowledge and traditional spiritual culture are generalized. The theory of general psychological health is developed. The main approaches to the problem of psychological health are presented. Comparative analysis of the humanistic and anthropological models of mental health is shown. Correspondence between the anthropological conditions and criteria of mental health concepts of the modern national educational ideal is presented. Educational activity is described as anthropological practice aimed at acquiring by a child the wide range of values as a person. As such, it is the most conducive to

The relationship between spirituality and burnout among medical students.

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Wachholtz, Amy; Rogoff, MaiLan

2013-01-01

Medical student burnout has been associated with depression, loss of empathy, and suicidal ideation. Spirituality has been identified in previous studies as a protective factor in coping with the stress but has not been examined as a factor in medical student burnout. An internet link to an anonymous survey was sent via email to medical students at a public northeastern medical school; 259/469 (55.2%) completed it. The survey included measures of spirituality, burnout, psychological distress, coping, and general happiness. A Pearson-r correlation showed significant inverse correlations between measures of spirituality and measures of psychological distress/burnout (r's ranging from -.62 to -.14; p's burnout remained significantly related to lower scores on both spirituality measures (FACIT-SP pStudents having higher levels of spiritual well being and daily spiritual experiences described themselves as more satisfied with their life in general, while students with low scores on spiritual well being and daily spiritual experiences had higher levels of psychological distress and burnout. Spirituality may therefore be a protective factor against burnout in medical students and future studies should explore potential causal relationships.

Modern health worries - the dark side of spirituality?

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Köteles, Ferenc; Simor, Péter; Czető, Márton; Sárog, Noémi; Szemerszky, Renáta

2016-08-01

Modern health worries (MHWs) are widespread in modern societies. MHWs were connected to both negative and positive psychological characteristics in previous studies. The study aimed to investigate the relationships among intuitive-experiential information processing style, spirituality, MHWs, and psychological well-being. Members of the Hungarian Skeptic Society (N = 128), individuals committed to astrology (N = 601), and people from a non-representative community sample (N = 554) completed questionnaires assessing intuitive-experiential information processing style, spirituality, modern health worries (MHWs), and psychological well-being. Astrologers showed higher levels of spirituality, intuitive-experiential thinking, and modern health worries than individuals from the community sample; and skeptics scored even lower than the latter group with respect to all three constructs. Within the community sample, medium level connections between measures of spirituality and the experiential thinking style, and weak to medium level correlations between spirituality and MHWs were found. The connection between MHWs and experiential thinking style was completely mediated by spirituality. Individuals with higher levels of spirituality are particularly vulnerable to overgeneralized messages on health related risks. Official communication of potential risks based on rational scientific reasoning is not appropriate to persuade them as it has no impact on the intuitive-experiential system. © 2016 Scandinavian Psychological Associations and John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Personal encounters with children in an informal settlement: Exploring spirituality

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Retha Kruidenier

2017-01-01

Full Text Available This article explores the factors that contribute to the children living in Zama Zama informal settlement�s spiritual development. Postfoundational practical theology and the narrative approach function as paradigm and methodology. Themes and/or discourses like power, poverty, nutrition, health and school enrolment were identified. The faith development theory is discussed, as well as a reflection on children�s spirituality. The research shows that the faith community, cr�che and other partners play a crucial role in the spiritual development of the children.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This study was performed in the field of practical theology. The article is interdisciplinary, covering the fields of religion, psychology, social work, sociology and health studies.

Family Violence Exposure and Health Outcomes Among Older African American Women: Do Spirituality and Social Support Play Protective Roles?

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Kaslow, Nadine

2010-01-01

Abstract Background Family violence (FV), spirituality, and social support are salient psychosocial determinants of health. FV is associated with poor health among older African American women. The effect of spirituality and social support levels on the health of older African American women is unknown. Methods To assess the role of spirituality and social support as culturally relevant determinants of health status for older African American women independent of FV levels, we used a cross-sectional observational study. Two hundred twelve African American women, aged ≥50, were interviewed in two urban primary care practices. The measures used were (1) Family Violence Against Older Women (FVOW) scale, (2) Physical and Mental Composite Scores of the Short-Form 8® scale, (3) Medical Outcomes of Social Support survey (MOSS), and (4) Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS). Spearman correlation coefficients estimated to test associations among lifetime FV exposure, spirituality, social support, and health status outcomes and multivariate regression models were used to examine the independent effect of spirituality and social support on physical and mental health status, controlling for FV and significant demographic variables. Results Mean participant age was 63.9 years. Higher spirituality levels were significantly associated with better physical health status after adjusting for FV levels and demographic factors (F = 6.17, p = 0.0001). Similarly, higher levels of spirituality and social support both significantly correlated with better mental health status in the multivariate model (F = 13.45, p < 0.0001) that controlled for lifetime FV levels and demographic factors. Conclusions Spirituality and social support are two potentially modifiable determinants of health for older African American women. Culturally appropriate mechanisms to enhance social support and spirituality levels need to be explored as potential inteventions to improve the health of those

Spiritual intelligence of nurses in two Chinese social systems: a cross-sectional comparison study.

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Yang, Ke-Ping; Wu, Xin-Juan

2009-09-01

The spirituality of healthcare providers and their clients is becoming a crucial issue in a world increasingly preoccupied with material issues. In light of such, how do nurses enhance their spiritual intelligence against such materialist pressures? After a 60-year separation of Chinese on both sides of the Taiwan Strait and the rancor between their two governments, what are the similarities and the differences in nurse spirituality profiles between these two different societies? With increasing contact between the two, this issue should be examined and explored, as it has the potential to become an essential unspoken element underpinning holistic care quality. The purpose of this study was to compare spiritual intelligence between nurses in two different Chinese societies. A cross-sectional descriptive and inferential study was conducted at five medical centers in China and Taiwan. A total of 524 registered hospital nurses were recruited as participants. We used R. N. Wolman's (2001) self-reported PsychoMatrix Spirituality Inventory to measure participant levels of spiritual intelligence. The PsychoMatrix Spirituality Inventory incorporated seven factors, including divinity, mindfulness, extrasensory perception, community, intellectuality, trauma, and childhood spirituality. Results showed that social systems did have an impact on nurses' spiritual intelligence. Childhood spirituality and religious beliefs and activities greatly affected and effectively predicted nurses' spiritual intelligence. Nurses on either side of the Taiwan Strait all reported a need to deal with their daily lives pragmatically, objectively, and rationally and relied on empirical evidence in work settings. As social and economic contacts increase across the Taiwan Strait, it is imperative that nurses adopt cultural awareness and sensitivity as they provide holistic care to clients. This study opens doors to dialogue about and a better understanding of nurses' spiritual intelligence in Taiwan

A critique of the psychological contract and spirituality in the South African workplace viewed in the light of Utilitarianism and Deontology

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Anton Grobler

2014-01-01

Full Text Available The purpose of the paper is to review, critique and to conceptualise psychological contracts in the workplace and the related concept of spirituality, from an interactionist approach. This approach emphasizes the interactive nature of the working relationship (that is fluid and bi-directional between an individual and the organisation. The psychological contract essentially defines how relationships in the workplace are applied and understood, and is described in this paper within the supplementary or subjective fit / value congruence paradigm and from a deontological perspective. This is in contrast with the formal employment contract that is more related to the complementary or objective fit / need fulfillment paradigm and the utilitarian approach. What is termed a psychological contract thus proposes a means of interpreting and hence improving the often tense relationships between employers and the employees that they oversee. Work and spirituality have also always been connected as employees seek to fulfill their human nature in the course of the need to work. Where there is trust, respect, tolerance, mentorship, objectivity and empathy in a workplace, there is evidence of a psychological contract and generally a sense of spirituality pervades the ethos of the organisation, leading to an perceived ethical culture / climate. Recommendations are also made for further research.

Spiritual assessment of patients with cancer: the moral authority, vocational, aesthetic, social, and transcendent model.

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Skalla, Karen; McCoy, J Patrick

2006-07-01

To explore the nature of spiritual care in patients with cancer and discuss the Moral Authority, Vocational, Aesthetic, Social, and Transcendent (Mor-VAST) Model, a new theoretical model for assessment. Published articles, online references. Discussions regarding spirituality often do not occur for a variety of reasons but may affect physical and spiritual health of an individual. Assessment of spirituality should be an integral part of cancer care. The Mor-VAST model can assist clinicians in discussing spirituality. Nurses should be aware of resources for referral to chaplaincy, but they can be a part of the process of spiritual support. Educational opportunities are available for nurses who wish to address their own spirituality so they can address spirituality comfortably and confidently with their patients.

Association of Lower Spiritual Well-Being, Social Support, Self-Esteem, Subjective Well-Being, Optimism and Hope Scores With Mild Cognitive Impairment and Mild Dementia.

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Dos Santos, Sabrina B; Rocha, Gabrielli P; Fernandez, Liana L; de Padua, Analuiza C; Reppold, Caroline T

2018-01-01

Introduction: Positive psychology (PP) constructs contribute significantly to a better quality of life for people with various diseases. There are still few studies that have evaluated the evolution of these aspects during the progression of dementia. Objective: To compare the scores for self-esteem, life satisfaction, affect, spirituality, hope, optimism and perceived support network between elderly people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), mild dementia and moderate dementia and control group. Methods: Cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of 66 healthy controls, 15 elderly people with MCI, 25 with mild dementia and 22 with moderate dementia matched by age, gender, and schooling. The instruments used were: Spirituality Self Rating Scale (SSRS), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Medical Outcomes Study's Social Support Scale, Life Satisfaction Scale (LSS), Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS), Revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R), and Adult Dispositional Hope Scale (ADHS). Results: The scores for spiritual well-being, social support, self-esteem, life satisfaction, positive affect, optimism, negative affect, and hope differed significantly between the groups ( p spiritual well-being, social support, self-esteem, life satisfaction, positive affect, optimism and hope scores, and higher negative affect scores compared with the controls. The scores for PP constructs did not differ between the group of people with moderate dementia and the control group. Conclusion: Dementia was found to impact several PP constructs in the early stages of the disease. For individuals with greater cognitive impairment, anosognosia appears to suppress the disease's impact on these constructs.

Spirituality in education

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Kirsi Tirri

2009-01-01

Full Text Available In this article the concept of spirituality in the educational framework is discussed. The concepts of religion and spirituality are compared. The psychological view of spirituality is presented with a new suggested intelligence type: spiritual intelligence. The educational view emphasizes spiritual sensitivity as a universal human ability that needs to be developed through education. The sociological view of spirituality explores it as an expression of postsecular religiosity. Empirical studies indicate that an increasing number of people­ now prefer to call themselves ‘spiritual’ rather than ‘religious’. This trend seems to be more present in some European countries, for example, in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and Finland. Empirical studies on spirituality are reviewed and discussed. A special emphasis is given to the Finnish research findings related to the spirituality of a new generation or young adults. It is argued that understanding spirituality as an expression of postsecular religiosity gives more room for young adults to participate in communicative action concerning religion. This would promote a discursive religiousness in the spirit of Jürgen Habermas, in which a plurality of religious beliefs and practices are acknowledged and a dialogical and inter-religious approach is advocated.

Existential Well-Being Spirituality or Well-Being?

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Visser, Anja; Garssen, Bert; Vingerhoets, Ad J. J. M.

Measures of spirituality often contain the dimension existential well-being (EWB). However, EWB has been found to overlap with emotional and psychological well-being. Using the Spiritual Attitude and Involvement List (SAIL), we have further investigated the overlap between aspects of spirituality

Distinguishing spirituality from other constructs: not a matter of well-being but of belief in supernatural spirits.

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Lindeman, Marjaana; Blomqvist, Sandra; Takada, Mikito

2012-02-01

We developed a new Spirituality Scale and tested the argument that the defining attribute of spirituality is belief in supernatural spirits. Study 1 (N = 1931) showed that religiosity and beliefs pertinent to supernatural spirits predicted most of the variation in spirituality. Study 2 (N = 848) showed that the stronger belief in supernatural spirits, the more the person experienced subjective spirituality; that belief in supernatural spirits had higher predictive value of spirituality than religiosity, paranormal beliefs, or values; and that most of the relationship between religiosity and spirituality could be explained through belief in supernatural spirits. Study 3 (N = 972) showed that mental or physical health, social relationships, or satisfaction in marriage or work were not associated with spirituality. In turn, finding life purposeful and inner peace in dealing with spiritual experiences correlated with spirituality. The results highlight the importance of differentiating spirituality from other psychological constructs.

Educational needs of hospice social workers: spiritual assessment and interventions with diverse populations.

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Wesley, Carol; Tunney, Kathleen; Duncan, Ella

2004-01-01

Based on a national survey, this study analyzes the roles and educational needs of hospice social workers regarding assessment and intervention in spirituality, religion, and diversity of their patients. Sixty-two social workers responded to the survey. Results suggest that spiritual care is shared among hospice team members and that most social workers feel comfortable in addressing these issues. However, role conflict and role ambiguity also exist. Respondents to the survey often felt ill-prepared to deal with some complex faith-based conflicts related to diversity. They saw themselves in need of assessment models and end-of-life decision-making interventions regarding assisted suicide and euthanasia. This study provides recommendations for social work practice, education, and research.

The Impact of Missionary Service on the Spiritual Development and Psychological Wellbeing of Mormon College Students

Science.gov (United States)

Melton, Brian S.

2017-01-01

Mormon college students may leave or delay their studies to serve missions for their church, typically for 18 to 24 months. This dissertation studies the impact of serving a mission on the spiritual development and psychological wellbeing of these students. Using a two-factor ANOVA fixed-effects, nonexperimental design, five measurement scales on…

Comparative efficacy of spirituality, cognitive, and emotional support groups for treating eating disorder inpatients.

Science.gov (United States)

Richards, P Scott; Berrett, Michael E; Hardman, Randy K; Eggett, Dennis L

2006-01-01

Spiritual interventions are rarely used in contemporary treatment programs and little empirical evidence is available concerning their effectiveness. The purpose of the present study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a spiritual group intervention for eating disorder inpatients. We compared the effectiveness of a Spirituality group with Cognitive and Emotional Support groups using a randomized, control group design. Participants were 122 women receiving inpatient eating disorder treatment. Patients in the Spirituality group tended to score significantly lower on psychological disturbance and eating disorder symptoms at the conclusion of treatment compared to patients in the other groups, and higher on spiritual well-being. On weekly outcome measures, patients in the Spirituality group improved significantly more quickly during the first four weeks of treatment. This study provides preliminary evidence that attending to eating disorder patients' spiritual growth and well-being during inpatient treatment may help reduce depression and anxiety, relationship distress, social role conflict, and eating disorder symptoms.

Sanctification and spiritual disclosure in parent-child relationships: implications for family relationship quality.

Science.gov (United States)

Brelsford, Gina M

2013-08-01

Social scientific research on family life, religion, and spirituality tends to focus on global religiousness and spirituality with few studies seeking to understand interpersonal religious and spiritual contributors, namely sanctification and spiritual disclosure, from multiple family members' perspectives. This study explored 91 mother-college student and 64 father-college student dyads who rated their use of spiritual disclosure and theistic and nontheistic sanctification of the parent-child dyad in relation to parent-child relationship quality (e.g., parent-child relationship satisfaction and open communication). Results indicate significant positive links between higher levels of spiritual disclosure and greater theistic and nontheistic sanctification, for mothers, fathers, and their children. However, only greater nontheistic sanctification and higher levels spiritual disclosure were significantly related to increased parent-child relationship quality. Through use of Actor-Partner Interdependence Models (APIMs) results indicated unique contributions of spiritual disclosure to parent-child relationship quality above nontheistic sanctification for open communication in the family. However, full models, which included nontheistic sanctification and spiritual disclosure, predict college students' relationship satisfaction with their mothers and fathers. Implications for interpersonal religiousness and spirituality as contributors to familial relationship quality in research and practice are discussed. © 2013 American Psychological Association

Integrating Spiritual Care into a Baccalaureate Nursing Program in Mainland China.

Science.gov (United States)

Yuan, Hua; Porr, Caroline

2014-09-01

Holistic nursing care takes into account individual, family, community and population well-being. At the level of individual well-being, the nurse considers biological, psychological, social, and spiritual factors. However, in Mainland China spiritual factors are not well understood by nursing students. And accordingly, nursing faculty and students are reluctant to broach the topic of spirituality because it is either unknown to students or students believe that the provision of spiritual care is beyond their capabilities. We wonder then, what can we do as nurse educators to integrate spiritual care into a baccalaureate nursing program in Mainland China? The purpose of this article is to propose the integration of Chinese sociocultural traditions (namely religious/spiritual practices) into undergraduate nursing curricula as a means to enter into dialogue about spiritual well-being, to promote spiritual care; and to fulfill the requirements of holistic nursing care. However, prior to discussing recommendations, an overview of the cultural context is in order. Thus, this article is constructed as follows: first, the complexity of Chinese society is briefly described; second, the historical evolution of nursing education in Mainland China is presented; and, third, strategies to integrate Chinese religious/spiritual practices into curricula are proposed. © The Author(s) 2014.

An Investigation of the Perceptions and Practices of Nursing Students Regarding Spirituality and Spiritual Care

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Asli Kalkim

2016-08-01

Full Text Available The aim of this research was to determine Turkish nursing students’ knowledge, practices and perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care and to investigate the relationship between their perceptions and their demographics. This study was a descriptive survey conducted at a nursing school providing degree-level education in the city of Manisa, in the western part of Turkey. The sample of the study consisted of the 400 nursing students. A nursing student sociodemographic form, a form on nursing students’ knowledge and practices of spirituality and spiritual care, and the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale were used to collect the data. Half of the students could meet patients’ or individuals’ spiritual needs, and the spiritual care that they gave was most frequently listening, empathy, and psychological support. The research findings were that nursing students’ perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care were “sufficiently” although not “very sufficiently” defined. Being female, being in the second year of education and seeing spiritual care education as necessary were determinants of their perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care.

Study of Association between Social Adjustment and Spiritual Health in Qom University of Medical Sciences Students

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zahra Aliakbarzade arani

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Background and Objectives: Admission to university is considered an opportunity to learn more and mentally grow further. At the same time, it is considered a stressor by some students and causes maladaptive reactions in them. This study was conducted to investigate the association between social adjustment and spiritual health in university students. Methods: Two hundred and fifty students were enrolled in this descriptive-analytical, cross-sectional study according to random, systematic sampling. The used instruments were Bell Adjustment Inventory, consisting of 32 items, with 89% reliability coefficient and Paloutzian & Ellison Spiritual Well-Being Scale, consisting of 20 items, with validity and reliability of 79% and 82%, respectively. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation coefficient, and univariate and multivariate linear regression in SPSS 16. Results: Women comprised 50.2% of the participants. The mean (SD age of the participants was 21.72 (5.02 and only 18.4% were married. Social adjustment was significantly correlated with total score of spiritual health and scores of the subscales religious health and existential health (P<0.001. Conclusion: Because social adjustment was moderate among Qom University of Medical Sciences students, and in the light of the association between spiritual health and social adjustment, group and individual counseling services can be delivered to students with low levels of social adjustment in universities to help them improve their social and spiritual health. Keywords:

Toward a more social social psychology of power

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Lammers, J.

2008-01-01

In this dissertation I aim to take a step toward a more social social psychology of power. In my opinion the existing social psychology on power is insufficiently social, and too material and physical. I believe this material and physical view has greatly influenced how social psychology has studied

Association of Lower Spiritual Well-Being, Social Support, Self-Esteem, Subjective Well-Being, Optimism and Hope Scores With Mild Cognitive Impairment and Mild Dementia

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Sabrina B. dos Santos

2018-04-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Positive psychology (PP constructs contribute significantly to a better quality of life for people with various diseases. There are still few studies that have evaluated the evolution of these aspects during the progression of dementia.Objective: To compare the scores for self-esteem, life satisfaction, affect, spirituality, hope, optimism and perceived support network between elderly people with mild cognitive impairment (MCI, mild dementia and moderate dementia and control group.Methods: Cross-sectional study. The sample consisted of 66 healthy controls, 15 elderly people with MCI, 25 with mild dementia and 22 with moderate dementia matched by age, gender, and schooling. The instruments used were: Spirituality Self Rating Scale (SSRS, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, Medical Outcomes Study’s Social Support Scale, Life Satisfaction Scale (LSS, Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS, Revised Life Orientation Test (LOT-R, and Adult Dispositional Hope Scale (ADHS.Results: The scores for spiritual well-being, social support, self-esteem, life satisfaction, positive affect, optimism, negative affect, and hope differed significantly between the groups (p < 0.05. The individuals with MCI and mild dementia had lower spiritual well-being, social support, self-esteem, life satisfaction, positive affect, optimism and hope scores, and higher negative affect scores compared with the controls. The scores for PP constructs did not differ between the group of people with moderate dementia and the control group.Conclusion: Dementia was found to impact several PP constructs in the early stages of the disease. For individuals with greater cognitive impairment, anosognosia appears to suppress the disease’s impact on these constructs.

Spiritual culture crisis in modern society

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Rusko Nadiya Mykhaylivna

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The article researches the concept of spirituality as a holistic phenomenon, characterises the current state of spirituality in Ukraine and reveal the basic ways of forming spiritual culture with the help of philosophical, cultural, theological, linguistic, pedagogical, and psychological approaches. Moreover, the crisis in the today’s spiritual culture is analysed, and the determinants of the negative processes in the modern society are examined. Therefore, we can state that education remains a priority area in the spiritual and cultural development of the society. In the current phase of state construction, the main educational objective is the development of the spiritual culture of personality.

[Spiritual Care of Patients With Depression].

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Kao, Chia-Chan; Lin, Yu-Hua

2018-06-01

Spiritual care is a component of holistic care. Patients with depression often experience body-mind-spirit health problems and may suffer from spiritual crises, particularly during the acute stage of a diseases, due to low self-esteem, negative attitudes toward life goals, daily life issues, and beliefs caused by physical, psychological, and occupational dysfunctions. Nonetheless, psychical care is the main treatment for patients with depression. This paper focuses on patients with depression and addresses the concepts of spiritual needs and spiritual care, identifying the factors that influence spiritual needs, the essentials of spiritual intervention, and the health effects of spiritual intervention outcomes on patients with depression. Courses that teach practical spiritual interventions are recommended for nurses. These courses should address topics such as individual approaches, building trusting relationships, setting diverse goals for spiritual interventions based on disease stage, and spiritual interventions involving the body-mind-spiritual aspects for patients with depression.

When does spiritual intelligence particularly predict job engagement? The mediating role of psychological empowerment

OpenAIRE

Mohsen Torabi; Iman Zohoorian Nadali

2016-01-01

Background: Regarding the importance of health care providers such as nurses who are always in stressful environments, it is imperative to better understand how they become more engaged in their work. The purpose of this paper is to focus on health care providers (nurses), and examine how the interaction between spiritual intelligence and psychological empowerment affect job engagement. Materials and Methods: This descriptive and quantitative study was conducted among nurses at the Faghihi Ho...

Spiritually Sensitive Social Work with Victims of Natural Disasters and Terrorism.

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Benson, Perry W; Furman, Leola Dyrud; Canda, Edward R; Moss, Bernard; Danbolt, Torill

2016-07-01

As a primary intervention, raising the topics of faith and religion with individuals traumatised by terrorism and/or natural disasters can be daunting for social workers, because victims often enter the helping relationship with feelings of helplessness, loss of personal control and of doubt about their relationships, environment, and their cultural and belief systems. Just as clients benefit from knowledge and awareness in the aftermath of a traumatic event, insights gleaned from traumatic experiences and from research can be useful for social workers grappling with the challenges associated with designing and deploying appropriate helping strategies with victims of disaster and terrorism. This article draws on extant literature and survey research, to explore how social workers might ethically assess clients' spiritual perspectives and incorporate helping activities that support clients' recovery, in the context of a spiritually sensitive helping relationship with victims of disaster and terrorism.

Forgiveness as a Psychological Antecedent of Perceived Parental Nurturance.

Science.gov (United States)

Buri, John R; And Others

While forgiveness has long been a crucial concept in the churches' formulations for the establishment and the preservation of spiritual, social, and emotional health, consideration of forgiveness by psychology pales in comparison. Research is needed to identify the psychological factors in mothers and fathers which serve as antecedents of the…

Dynamics of context and psychological well-being : the role of subjective health perceptions, personality factors and spirituality / Qambeshile Michael Temane

OpenAIRE

Temane, Qambeshile Michael

2006-01-01

There is a lacuna in the field of positive psychology as far as the conceptualisation of influences of environmental contexts on psychological well-being is concerned, and there is also a lack of credible empirical findings on the dynamics of processes involved. The aim of the current study was to test various models on the possible mediating role of subjective perceptions of health, personality factors and spirituality in the dynamics of context and psychological well-being. ...

Re-authoring life narratives of trauma survivors: Spiritual perspective

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Charles Manda

2015-05-01

Full Text Available Traditionally, the exploration of the impact of trauma on trauma survivors in South Africa has been focused mainly on the bio-psychosocial aspects. The bio-psychosocial approach recognises that trauma affects people biologically, socially and psychologically. In this article, the author explores a holistic understanding of the effects of trauma on people from communities historically affected by political violence in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Using a participatory action research design (PAR as a way of working through trauma, a longitudinal study was conducted in Pietermaritzburg from 2009–2013. At the end of the study, life narratives were documented and published. The textual analysis of these life narratives reveals that, besides the bio-psychosocial effects that research participants experienced during and after the trauma, they also sustained moral and spiritual injuries. Trauma took its toll in their lives emotionally, psychologically, spiritually, morally and in their relationships with themselves, others and God. From these findings, the author argues that the bio-psychosocial approach is incomplete for understanding the holistic effects of trauma on the whole person. Therefore, he recommends the integration of the moral and spiritual aspects of trauma to come up with a holistic model of understanding the effects of trauma on traumatised individuals. The holistic model will enhance the treatment, healing and recovery of trauma survivors. This, in turn, will alleviate the severe disruption of many aspects of psychological functioning and well-being of trauma survivors caused by the effects of trauma.

Counseling psychology trainees' perceptions of training and commitments to social justice.

Science.gov (United States)

Beer, Amanda M; Spanierman, Lisa B; Greene, Jennifer C; Todd, Nathan R

2012-01-01

This mixed methods study examined social justice commitments of counseling psychology graduate trainees. In the quantitative portion of the study, a national sample of trainees (n = 260) completed a web-based survey assessing their commitments to social justice and related personal and training variables. Results suggested that students desired greater social justice training than what they experienced in their programs. In the qualitative portion, we used a phenomenological approach to expand and elaborate upon quantitative results. A subsample (n = 7) of trainees who identified as strong social justice activists were interviewed regarding their personal, professional, and training experiences. Eleven themes related to participants' meanings of and experiences with social justice emerged within 4 broad categories: nature of social justice, motivation for activism, role of training, and personal and professional integration. Thematic findings as well as descriptive statistics informed the selection and ordering of variables in a hierarchical regression analysis that examined predictors of social justice commitment. Results indicated that trainees' perceptions of training environment significantly predicted their social justice commitment over and above their general activist orientation and spirituality. Findings are discussed collectively, and implications for training and future research are provided. (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

The Role of Religiousness/Spirituality and Social Networks in Predicting Depressive Symptoms among Older Korean Americans.

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Lee, Yeon-Shim; Park, So-Young; Roh, Soonhee; Koenig, Harold G; Yoo, Grace J

2017-06-01

This study (1) examined the effects of religiousness/spirituality and social networks as predictors of depressive symptoms in older Korean Americans and (2) compared the best predictors of depressive symptoms. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 200 older Korean Americans residing in the New York City area in 2009. Best-subsets regression analyses were used to evaluate the best predictors of depressive symptoms. Nearly 30% of older Korean participants reported mild or severe depressive symptoms. The best model fit for depressive symptoms involved four predictors: physical health status, religious/spiritual coping skills, social networks, and annual household income. Social networks and religious/spiritual coping skills contributed significantly to the variance of depressive symptoms. Adding additional variables to the model did not enhance predictive and descriptive power. Religiousness/spirituality and social networks are important for coping with life stress and may be useful in developing effective health care strategies in the management of depression among older Korean Americans. Health education and intervention could be framed in ways that strengthen such coping resources for this population. Future research is needed to best guide prevention and intervention strategies.

FEATURES OF USING WEBINARS FOR DEVELOPMENT OF SPIRITUAL AND MORAL VALUES IN INFORMAL ADULTS EDUCATION

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Iryna S. Pichuhina

2014-10-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to examine the features of using webinars for the development of spiritual and moral values in the non-formal adult education. Actualization of the problem of spirituality formation is associated with the modern requirements to moral features of adults arising from their special social function of influence on the formation of spiritual values of younger generation. Conducting psychological and educational on-line workshops, lectures, consultations for adults arising from problems of misunderstanding or loss of key moral features is relevant and demanded. As a form of such interaction the webinar is suggested as an ICT-tool used in non-formal adults education.

YOUNGER PUPILS ATTITUDE TO MONEY AS A FACTOR OF THEIR SPIRITUAL AND ECONOMIC SOCIALIZATION

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Olena Varetska

2017-04-01

Full Text Available In the article the urgency of attitude of primary school children to money as a factor of spiritual and economic socialization is grounded, the analysis of scientific sources, which should be initiated is given and definitions of the issues of some interpretations of the concepts of “socialization”, “economic socialization” are developed, some synonymy meaning of “socialization” and “social competence”, “economic education” and “economic socialization” that reasonably change emphasis on business formation and entrepreneurship initiative are found, goals; objectives and factors, meaning of spiritual and economic socialization are determined. Attention is paid to the factor of money. To investigate the opportunities of elective courses in Economics “Starts of Economy” in the educational progress of the attitude to money, condition of the described problem and its individual aspects, systematization of data, the analysis and synthesis, comparison, generalization of scientific and technical literature, government documents, concepts, periodicals, educational publications, reference books are applied; terminological analysis is used in order to improve conceptual and terminological framework specifying on the nature and definition of concepts; system-activity approach to determine the activity of components forming the spiritual and economic needs of socialization to the result. Detailed description of elective courses in Economics “Starts of Economy”, description of its influence on young learners’ attitude to money, experimental results confirm the significant changes that have taken place in the minds of young learners, led transformation of spiritually enriched economic knowledge in a conscious moral values, attitudes, their quality and socially significant economic actions. Using the developed theoretical positions, methodological support, the original author’s methodology findings will facilitate the

Positive effects of Religious and Spiritual Coping on Bereavement

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Laura Yoffe

2015-09-01

Full Text Available Antonovsky (1987 coined the term “salutogenesis” in opposition to “pathogenesis”, with the intention to point out to cientific researchers ways and mechanisms that could promote health, well -being and life satisfaction. The area of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality began both in Europe and in the United States at the beginning of the twenth century. The research done in this field -since the last two decades- has focused on the relationships between religion, spirituality and health; and on the ways in which religious people cope with negative life events. We could think this area as a complementary one to the Positive Psychology; as both share certain common points of view about health, coping and well-being. In the field of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, Pargament and Koenig (1997 used the term “coping” -coined by Lazarus and Folkman (1986- referring to different styles of “religious coping” as “ways and mechanism by which religious people apply their religious beliefs and behaviours to prevent and /or moderate negative consequences of stressful life events, in order to solve their problems as well”. Each religion promotes ways to overcome negative life events, such as the death of loved ones. By using faith, prayers, meditations, religious rituals and beliefs about life, death and afterlife, religious persons try to cope with their grief and enhance positive feelings of emotional ,mental and spiritual well-being. Clergy of different religions are trained in religious practices, knowledge and skills to provide social support to those ones who face pain and loss. Religious groups can provide different types of emotional, practical, intelectual and spiritual support that can help diminish feelings of loneliness and grief. Being and feeling part of a religious community can promote ways to reconect to life and positive feelings that can help to overcome the grief of the death of loved ones and make

Test spirituální citlivosti

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Říčan, Pavel; Janošová, Pavlína; Tyl, J.

2007-01-01

Roč. 51, č. 2 (2007), s. 153-160 ISSN 0009-062X Grant - others:GAUK(CZ) GAUK379/2005/A-PP/HTF Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z70250504 Keywords : spirituality * spiritual experience * religiosity Subject RIV: AN - Psychology Impact factor: 0.133, year: 2007

Life perceptions of patients receiving palliative care and experiencing psycho-social-spiritual healing.

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Li, Lingsheng; Sloan, Danetta H; Mehta, Ambereen K; Willis, Gordon; Weaver, Meaghann S; Berger, Ann C

2017-07-01

It is important to identify, from the patients' perspectives, the different factors that contribute toward psycho-social-spiritual healing. This was a qualitative study that took place at a large research center, an underserved clinic, and a community hospital. We used a needs assessment questionnaire and open-ended questions to assess the constituents of psycho-social-spiritual healing: (I) how previous life experiences affected patients' present situations in dealing with their illnesses; (II) barriers to palliative care, and (III) benefits of palliative care. Of a total of 30 participants from 3 different study sites, 24 (80%) were receiving inpatient or outpatient palliative care at a research center. Thirteen (43%) participants were female, 10 (33%) were Black/African American, and 16 (53%) reported being on disability. While the initial shock of the diagnosis made participants feel unprepared for their illnesses, many looked to role models, previous work experiences, and spiritual as well as religious support as sources of strength and coping mechanisms. Barriers to palliative care were identified as either external (lack of proper resources) or internal (symptom barriers and perceived self-limitations). The feeling of "being seen/being heard" was perceived by many participants as the most beneficial aspect of palliative care. The needs assessment questionnaire and open-ended questions presented in this study may be used in clinical settings to better help patients achieve psycho-social-spiritual healing through palliative care and to help clinicians learn about the person behind the patient.

Spiritual issues and quality of life assessment in cancer care.

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Efficace, Fabio; Marrone, Robert

2002-11-01

Being diagnosed with cancer forces most human beings to face their own death. The comfortable sense of both invulnerability and immortality is shattered, making the patient thoroughly aware that life is finite and limited. Approaching death, cancer patients commonly embark on an inner journey involving a search for meaning as well as a reordering of priorities involving physical, psychological, social, and spiritual needs. Although interest in the role of spirituality, relating to both adjustment to cancer and the overall quality of life of cancer patients, has increased in recent years, most of the commonly used quality of life (QOL) instruments in oncology typically do not include spiritual issues. In this article, it is argued that assessing QOL effectively should involve all aspects of the personality, including mind, body, and spirit as well. This article also reviews recent studies, which have shown that spiritual well-being, although a many-sided and difficult construct to define, is closely related to the QOL of cancer patients. It is also suggested that further research is needed to understand how the new focus on spirituality can contribute to a more comprehensive assessment of patient's QOL in cancer care.

The Relationship between Spirituality and Religiosity on Psychological Outcomes in Adolescents and Emerging Adults: A Meta-Analytic Review

Science.gov (United States)

Yonker, Julie E.; Schnabelrauch, Chelsea A.; DeHaan, Laura G.

2012-01-01

The present study used meta-analytic techniques to examine the association between spirituality and religiosity (S/R) and psychological outcomes in adolescents and emerging adults. The outcome measures of risk behavior, depression, well-being, self-esteem, and personality were examined with respect to the influence of S/R across 75 independent…

Empathy in Medical Students Is Moderated by Openness to Spirituality.

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Damiano, Rodolfo F; DiLalla, Lisabeth F; Lucchetti, Giancarlo; Dorsey, J Kevin

2017-01-01

Empathy is one component of medical student education that may be important to nurture, but there are many potential psychological barriers to empathy, such as student depression, burnout, and low quality of life or wellness behaviors. However, few studies have addressed how positive behaviors such as wellness and spirituality, in combination with these barriers, might affect empathy. We hypothesized a negative relationship between psychological distress and empathy, and a positive relationship between empathy and wellness behaviors. We also hypothesized that openness to others' spirituality would moderate the effects of psychological distress on empathy in medical students. This cross-sectional study included 106 medical students in a public medical school in the U.S. Midwest. Mailed questionnaires collected student information on specialty choice and sociodemographics, empathy, spirituality openness, religiosity, wellness, burnout, depression, anxiety, and stress. Hierarchical multiple regression analysis was conducted, with empathy as the dependent variable, psychological distress and all wellness behaviors as predictors, and spirituality openness as a moderator. Specialty choice, burnout, wellness behaviors, spirituality openness, and religiosity were significant independent predictors of empathy. In addition, when added singly, one interaction was significant: Spirituality Openness × Depression. Spirituality openness was related to empathy only in nondepressed students. Empathy of students with higher levels of depression was generally lower and not affected by spirituality openness. Nondepressed students who reported lower openness to spirituality might benefit most from empathy training, because these students reported the lowest empathy. Highly depressed or disengaged students may require interventions before empathy can be addressed. In addition, burnout was related to lower levels of empathy and wellness was related to higher levels. These provide

Spiritual and Affective Responses to a Physical Church and Corresponding Virtual Model.

Science.gov (United States)

Murdoch, Matt; Davies, Jim

2017-11-01

Architectural and psychological theories posit that built environments have the potential to elicit complex psychological responses. However, few researchers have seriously explored this potential. Given the increasing importance and fidelity of virtual worlds, such research should explore whether virtual models of built environments are also capable of eliciting complex psychological responses. The goal of this study was to test these hypotheses, using a church, a corresponding virtual model, and an inclusive measure of state spirituality ("spiritual feelings"). Participants (n = 33) explored a physical church and corresponding virtual model, completing a measure of spiritual feelings after exploring the outside and inside of each version of the church. Using spiritual feelings after exploring the outside of the church as a baseline measure, change in state spirituality was assessed by taking the difference between spiritual feelings after exploring the inside and outside of the church (inside-outside) for both models. Although this change was greater in response to the physical church, there was no significant difference between the two models in eliciting such change in spiritual feelings. Despite the limitations of this exploratory study, these findings indicate that both built environments and corresponding virtual models are capable of evoking complex psychological responses.

New social tasks for cognitive psychology; or, new cognitive tasks for social psychology.

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Wettersten, John

2014-01-01

To elucidate how differing theories of rationality lead to differing practices, their social rules must be analyzed. This is true not merely in science but also in society at large. This analysis of social thinking requires both the identification of innate cognitive social psychological processes and explanations of their relations with differing rules of rational practice. These new tasks can enable social psychologists to contribute to the study of how social situations facilitate or inhibit rational practice and enable cognitive psychologists to improve social psychological theory. In contrast to dominant current research strategies, social and cognitive psychologists can integrate social studies of rational practices and their consequences with studies of underlying cognitive psychological processes. In this article I do not attempt to carry out these tasks but rather point to both their lack of recognition and their importance.

The Effects of Spiritual/Religious Engagement on College Students' Affective Outcomes: Differences by Gender and Race

Science.gov (United States)

Rennick, Liz A.; Smedley, Cynthia Toms; Fisher, Dan; Wallace, Elizabeth; Young, Kim

2013-01-01

This study examines the general and differential effects of spiritual/religious engagement on affective college outcomes (i.e., leadership skills, interpersonal skills, social satisfaction, sense of belonging, and psychological well-being) across different gender and racial groups among undergraduate students at research universities. The study…

Bridging history and social psychology

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Glaveanu, Vlad Petre; Yamamoto, Koji

2012-01-01

This special issue aims to bridge history and social psychology by bringing together historians and social psychologists in an exercise of reading and learning from each other’s work. This interdisciplinary exercise is not only timely but of great importance for both disciplines. Social psycholog......This special issue aims to bridge history and social psychology by bringing together historians and social psychologists in an exercise of reading and learning from each other’s work. This interdisciplinary exercise is not only timely but of great importance for both disciplines. Social...... psychologists can benefit from engaging with historical sources by being able to contextualise their findings and enrich their theoretical models. It is not only that all social and psychological phenomena have a history but this history is very much part of present-day and future developments. On the other...... hand historians can enhance their analysis of historical sources by drawing upon the conceptual tools developed in social psychology. They can “test” these tools and contribute to their validation and enrichment from completely different perspectives. Most important, as contributions to this special...

Conceptualising spirituality and religion for healthcare.

Science.gov (United States)

Pesut, Barbara; Fowler, Marsha; Taylor, Elizabeth J; Reimer-Kirkham, Sheryl; Sawatzky, Richard

2008-11-01

To discuss some of the challenges of conceptualising spirituality and religion for healthcare practice. With the growing interest in spirituality in healthcare, has come the inevitable task of trying to conceptualise spirituality, a daunting task given the amorphous nature of spirituality, the changing understandings of spirituality among individuals and the diverse globalised society within which this task is taking place. Spirituality's relationship to religion is a particularly challenging point of debate. Critical review. Three social and historical conditions - located in the context of Western thought - have contributed to current conceptualisations of spirituality and religion: the diminishment of the social authority of religion as a result of the Enlightenment focus on reason, the rise of a postmodern spirituality emphasising spiritual experience and current tensions over the ideological and political roles of religion in society. The trend to minimise the social influence of religion is a particular Western bias that seems to ignore the global megatrend of the resurgence of religion. Current conceptualisations are critiqued on the following grounds: that they tend to be ungrounded from a rich history of theological and philosophical thought, that a particular form of elitist spirituality is emerging and that the individualistic emphasis in recent conceptualisations of spirituality diminishes the potential for societal critique and transformation while opening the door for economic and political self interest. Constructing adequate conceptualisations of spirituality and religion for clinical practice entails grounding them in the wealth of centuries of philosophical and theological thinking, ensuring that they represent the diverse society that nursing serves and anchoring them within a moral view of practice.

Christian Spirituality in Eating Disorder Recovery

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Cora Grant

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Eating disorders are some of the most severe and destructive of all psychological conditions. They are associated with restricted capacities in cognitive, emotional, physical, and spiritual development. This paper provides an examination of the practical application of Christian spirituality as a force for recovery from an eating disorder. Specifically, it expounds the transformative potential in the spiritual qualities of hope, trust, acceptance, surrender, and courage underpinning engagement with evidence-based therapeutic models of care in eating disorder recovery.

The lunar community church: Contributions to lunar living and to evolution of ethical and spiritual thinking

Science.gov (United States)

Allton, J. H.

1992-01-01

Should religious institutions get interested in lunar settlement? Would their participation make positive contributions or would it discourage creative diversity and interfere with science and good technical judgement? Among the spacefaring nations of today, religion is distinctly separated from the governments that plan and pay for space exploration. However, as we move off the Earth, our art and philosophy will follow our science and technology. Spiritual thinking will follow as part of our culture. It is time to consider in what ways this can occur constructively. Transport of religious values to a lunar base may have positive effects in two ways. First, the social structure of a 'community church' as found in today's United States, supports its members psychologically. Mutual psychological and social support will be needed in a lunar community. Second, our space pioneers will experience a unique view of the universe which may, in their philosophical discussions, forge new ideas in the spiritual realm.

The Emergence of Contextual Social Psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Pettigrew, Thomas F

2018-07-01

Social psychology experiences recurring so-called "crises." This article maintains that these episodes actually mark advances in the discipline; these "crises" have enhanced relevance and led to greater methodological and statistical sophistication. New statistical tools have allowed social psychologists to begin to achieve a major goal: placing psychological phenomena in their larger social contexts. This growing trend is illustrated with numerous recent studies; they demonstrate how cultures and social norms moderate basic psychological processes. Contextual social psychology is finally emerging.

Impact of Quran in Treatment of the Psychological Disorder and Spiritual Illness.

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Saged, Ali Ali Gobaili; Mohd Yusoff, Mohd Yakub Zulkifli; Abdul Latif, Faizuri; Hilmi, Syed Mohammad; Al-Rahmi, Waleed Mugahed; Al-Samman, Ahmed; Alias, Norma; Zeki, Akram M

2018-02-26

This paper studies the effect of Quranic therapy on psychological diseases and spiritual diseases. The experiments have been conducted on a random sample with 121 patients from both genders. The procedures that have been followed were different sessions with the patients, who were given some verses from the Holy Quran to listen within a specific period of time. After that, each patient was given a remedy program. This study aimed to measure the effectiveness and responsiveness of patients to receive treatment through Quran. This study highlighted the employment of a quantitative research, which achieved its objective through validity and reliability. The results of the effectiveness factor came after ability and willingness and gave a result of 92.6% for those who support the contention that the Quran has a significant healing influence. Also, some of the patients who regularly attended Quranic therapy sessions have been successfully cured, 81.8% of the sample believe that Quranic therapy sessions support their health needs. This study has empirically proved that the sound of the Holy Quran is an effective treatment for those who suffer from spiritual and psychological issues. Folk medicine and other traditional methods of treatment are important field of study that require further investigation. The study also illustrates that it's highly important for patient to have confidence in his doctor or healer. Furthermore, our results show that the ability and willingness positively and significantly are related to the effectiveness and responsiveness, also effectiveness positively and significantly related to the responsiveness. Therefore, the patients satisfied to receive treatment through Quran and they have the ability and willingness to do so as they believe that Quran is an essential part of their life.

The Future of Spirituality in Social Work: The Farther Reaches of Human Nurture

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Edward R. Canda

2005-05-01

Full Text Available This essay discusses the development of the social work profession in relation to the subject of spirituality and proposes future possibilities and recommendations for innovation. It presents historical trends within four phases leading to the present and beyond. Current trends indicate rapidly increasing quantities of publications and other professional activities about spirituality within a pattern of an ever farther reaching integrative approach that encompasses diverse religious and nonreligious perspectives, academic disciplines, international collaborations, and humanity’s relationship with the Earth.

Does the biopsychosocial-spiritual model of addiction apply in an Islamic context? A qualitative study of Jordanian addicts in treatment.

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Ghaferi, Hamad Al; Bond, Christine; Matheson, Catriona

2017-03-01

There is a dearth of research in the published literature on substance use and addiction in the Middle East and Islamic countries. This study was the first to explore whether the biopsychosocial-spiritual model of addiction was relevant to an addicted treatment population in Jordan, an Islamic country. A qualitative study design using semi-structured, face-to-face interviews were conducted with a sample of 25 males in addiction treatment. The sample was drawn from a cohort of in-patients at a treatment centre in Amman, Jordan who had already participated in a quantitative survey. A purposive sample was selected to ensure the inclusion of a range of characteristics that might affect their experience of developing addiction and its consequences, i.e., age, marital status and educational level. Interviews were transcribed and thematic analysis conducted using verbatim quotes to illustrate themes. Themes were mapped onto the biopsychosocial-spiritual model of addiction. This study found addiction was associated with a range of health (physical and psychological), social and spiritual factors. Unpleasant physical withdrawal effects, psychological symptoms, such as anxiety and suicide attempts, were experienced. There was breakdown in marital and family relations, loss of employment, involvement in crime and neglect of religious practices, resulting in social isolation. This study found that, despite some differences in emphasis, the biopsychosocial, spiritual model of addiction fit wel,l particularly given the relative importance of religion in Islamic culture. Spirituality was not explored and further study of spirituality versus religious practice in this culture is recommended. Copyright © 2016. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Integrating Spirituality into Counselling and Psychotherapy: Theoretical and Clinical Perspectives

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Daniels, Carla; Fitzpatrick, Marilyn

2013-01-01

In recent decades, spirituality has become a prominent focus of psychological inquiry. As research begins to elucidate the role of spiritual beliefs and behaviours in mental health and the influences of spirituality in psychotherapy, developing therapist competency in this domain has increased in importance. This article will first situate…

Historical spaces of social psychology

OpenAIRE

Kalampalikis , Nikos; Delouvée , Sylvain; Pétard , Jean-Pierre

2006-01-01

International audience; An extensive analysis of all social psychology textbooks published, in french, between 1947 and 2001, including a history chapter, provides a rich corpus for the study of the history of social psychology. In this article we choose to study the historical spaces of social psychology, in order to show how the discipline was located in geographical, urban, institutional and collective spaces. We argue that, into this specific corpus, spaces are essentially related to some...

The role of spiritual intelligence in employees’ withdrawal behaviors in physical education organization

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Davoud Noroozi

2015-03-01

Full Text Available Spiritual intelligence is the mind’s capacity to handle substantial and spiritual aspects of life. According to previous studies, spiritual intelligence can be effective in reducing the withdrawal behavior of employees. This study investigated the effect of spiritual intelligence on employees’ withdrawal behavior in Ardabil Physical Education organization. The statistical population of this study included all the employees of Physical Education organization of Ardabil (N=60. Descriptive Statistics, Pearson Correlation, and Linear Regression Analyses were used to assess the association between spiritual intelligence and withdrawal behaviors. The results of the study revealed that spiritual intelligence had positive and significant effect on reducing employees’ withdrawal behavior. The findings supported that spiritual intelligence training as a new psychological and religious construction may reduce psychological and physical withdrawal behaviors and improve the employees’ perception of themselves.

Methodological and Methodical Principles of the Empirical Study of Spiritual Development of a Personality

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Olga Klymyshyn

2017-06-01

Full Text Available The article reveals the essence of the methodological principles of the spiritual development of a personality. The results of the theoretical analysis of psychological content of spirituality from the positions of system and structural approach to studying of a personality, age patterns of the mental personality development, the sacramental nature of human person, mechanisms of human spiritual development are taken into consideration. The interpretation of spirituality and the spiritual development of a personality is given. Initial principles of the organization of the empirical research of the spiritual development of a personality (ontogenetic, sociocultural, self-determination, system are presented. Such parameters of the estimation of a personality’s spiritual development as general index of the development of spiritual potential, indexes of the development of ethical, aesthetical, cognitive, existential components of spirituality, index of religiousness of a personality are described. Methodological support of psychological diagnostic research is defined.

Sacred content, secular context: a generative theory of religion and spirituality for social work.

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Liechty, Daniel

2013-01-01

Although a secular profession, social work practitioners and educators do explore human spirituality, and this is embraced now by the profession as integral to a holistic view of the human being. Social workers in hospice and end-of-life care are on the front line of this shift. Still needed is for the profession to coalesce around a generative theory of religion to inform the discipline. The author proposes that a synthesis of ideas, particularly from anthropologists Ernest Becker and Fredrick Streng, provides a generative theory of religion that advances meaningful interface between diverse religious and spiritual ideations of clients and clinicians alike. This theory of generative death anxiety locates the basic religious urge as response to the human awareness of the ontological condition of mortality, which then becomes expressed existentially in all of its diverse particularities. This approach avoids being overly reductionist, yet does provide categories for clear analysis. It cultivates critical respect for human religiosity and fosters productive and creative incorporation of human spirituality into the practical and pragmatic clinical perspective.

MORAL AND SPIRITUAL FOUNDATIONS OF YOUTH POLICY IN REAL SECTOR OF ECONOMY

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N. V. Popova

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction. The basic contradiction between market relations and social sphere is distinguished from the main sources of negative phenomena among young people and failures in realization of youth policy. Substitution of social production goals by its means, a sharp distortion towards a primacy of market economy with its only indicator of success in the form of money deform a process of formation of a personality of a young specialist both in professional, and in sociocultural plans. As a rule, management teams of enterprises expect the generation of young workers to possess initiative and role behaviour which consists in highly skilled independent performance of production functions. At the same time, creative importance of «Person – Person» relations is underestimated. In this regard, questions of social-moral education of young personnel are brought into focus, whereas providing and further increase in competitiveness of production in many respects depends on their decision.The aim of the present article is to conceptualize spiritual and moral foundations of youth policy implementation in a real sector of the economy.Methodology and research methods. The research methodology involves a comprehensive application of anthropological, ontological and axiological approaches. Dialectical method, method of historical and logical unity, statistical and comparative data analyses are used.Results and scientific novelty. Spiritual and moral characteristics of young workers which formation demands system educational measures are one of the most important development provisions of enterprises in new social and economic reality. The questions of realization of youth policy in real sector of economy, including Sverdlovsk region, are considered. The following concepts and aspects are analyzed from social and philosophical perspectives: the concept «spirituality»; features of mental phase of psychology and spiritual stages of consciousness; the

Concepts of spirituality prevailing among undergraduate medical students in Delhi

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Shantanu Sharma

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Spirituality is considered one of the determinants of health. Various studies have documented its role in the management of psychological illnesses such as schizophrenia, and anxiety disorders. Doctors often lack skills to do spiritual assessment of the patients. Aim: The current study was conducted among the 1st year undergraduate medical students to find out their ideas and thoughts about spirituality using self-administered questionnaire. Methodology: This was a college based cross sectional study wherein 168 students were interviewed using semistructured, self administered questionnaire. Ethical clearance was obtained from Institutional ethical committee.Results: Most of the students (93.5% believed in spirituality, but only about half (49% of them had complete knowledge about it. Only psychological disorders and chronic diseases were labeled by students who need spirituality as a modality of treatment. Girls linked spirituality with God more than boys. A formal training in spirituality is not essential according to 43% of the subjects. Conclusion: The undergraduates need to understand the importance of this dimension of health. A mere gain in knowledge about spiritual strength available in some of the textbooks would not be able to orient doctors sufficiently to apply it in their practice. Future Direction: Skill building and practicing the culture of spiritual counseling among health workers is the need of hour.

The Effects of Education on Spirituality through Virtual Social Media on the Spiritual Well-Being of the Public Health Students of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences in 2015

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Maryam Hasanshahi

2016-04-01

Full Text Available Background: The role and effects of people’s spiritual well-being have received more attention in recent years. Knowing the factors related to spiritual well-being, especially in students as the educated class and future builders of society, is too important. The aim of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of education on spirituality through social media in the spirituality well-being of public health students of Isfahan University of medical science. Methods: A semi-experimental, pre-test, post-test study was conducted on 50 under- graduate public health students (3 men, 47 women; age range 18-30 years of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences through convenience and purposive sampling. The educational content of spirituality education was used to promote and improve spiritual well-being, being sent by using one of the mobile phone applications. Using spiritual well-being questionnaire, the level of the individuals’ spiritual well-being before and after the educational was evaluated. To analyze the data in this study, descriptive statistics and t-test were use SPSS software was used to analyze the data and the significance level was considered lower than 0.05%. Result: In total, 50 students including 3 men and 47women participated in the study. The mean age of the participants was 22.02±3.78. About 68% of the students were single and the remaining were married. The score of the participants’ spiritual well-being was 96.5 before the intervention and it promoted to 103.3 after the intervention. The result of the analysis by t-test on the two groups showed that spirituality education can cause a significant increase in peoples’ spiritual well-being (P<0.001. Conclusion: After the educational intervention, the level of people’s spiritual well-being increased significantly. As a result, spirituality education causes conditions to improve the peoples’ spiritual well-being.

Religion, spirituality, and medicine: research findings and implications for clinical practice.

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Koenig, Harold G

2004-12-01

A growing body of scientific research suggests connections between religion, spirituality, and both mental and physical health. The findings are particularly strong in patients with severe or chronic illnesses who are having stressful psychologic and social changes, as well as existential struggles related to meaning and purpose. Recent studies indicate that religious beliefs influence medical decisions, such as the use of chemotherapy and other life-saving treatments, and at times may conflict with medical care. This article addresses the ways physicians can use such information. Spirituality is an area that makes many physicians uncomfortable, since training in medical schools and continuing medical education programs are limited. Not only do most physicians lack the necessary training, they worry about spending additional time with patients and overstepping ethical boundaries. While these concerns are valid, each can be addressed in a sensible way. Taking a spiritual history, supporting the patient's beliefs, and orchestrating the fulfillment of spiritual needs are among the topics this article will address. The goal is to help physicians provide medical care that is sensitive to the way many patients understand and cope with medical illness.

Structural Model of Drug Use among Students: The Role of Spirituality, Social Modeling and Attitude to Drugs

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samira yavari

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Objective: This study was an attempt to explore the structural relationship between religious activity, religious struggle, attitude to drugs, social modeling, spiritual well-being, and cigarette and tobacco smoking among students. Method: For this purpose, 504 male and female students from Kharazmi University, Agricultural Paradise, and Azad University of Karaj were selected by cluster sampling and they were asked to complete spiritual well-being scale, religious activity scale, religious struggle scale, social modeling scale, negative beliefs about drugs, and the tobacco section of the high-risk behavior questionnaire. Results: The results showed that the effect of religious activity on cigarette and tobacco smoking was mediated by negative beliefs about drugs, social modeling, spiritual well-being, and incentives for drug use. Similarly, the effect of religious struggle on cigarette and tobacco smoking was mediated by spiritual well-being. Conclusion: It seems that religion prevents people joining the unhealthy peer groups by the establishment of moral discipline, internal and external rules, and healthy coping styles therefore, people get less attracted to cigarette and tobacco smoking. Accordingly, these factors should be paid more attention in prevention programs for drug use, particularly cigarette and tobacco that are considered as the gateway to other drugs.

Spiritual well-being and quality of life in Iranian women with breast cancer undergoing radiation therapy.

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Jafari, Najmeh; Farajzadegan, Ziba; Zamani, Ahmadreza; Bahrami, Fatemeh; Emami, Hamid; Loghmani, Amir

2013-05-01

Psychological distress and morbidity are common consequences of diagnosis and treatment of breast cancer and associated with poor quality of life (QOL). Spiritual well-being is an important aspect of QOL, but little is known about the spiritual well-being and its relationship with QOL in patients of different cultures such as Iranian Muslim patients. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of QOL and spirituality among patients with breast cancer undergoing radiation therapy. This was a cross-sectional study which was conducted in the Breast Cancer Research Center of St. S. Al-Shohada Hospital, Isfahan, Iran. Spiritual well-being was measured using the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being Scale (FACIT-Sp12). The European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life (EORTC QLQ-C30) and its supplementary breast cancer questionnaire (QLQ-BR23) were used to assess the quality of life of patients. Descriptive analysis, Pearson's correlation, and multiple regression analysis were performed for statistical assessment. In all, 68 patients fulfilled the study's inclusion criteria and were interviewed. The mean global QOL was 41.42 (SD = 18.02), and the mean spiritual well-being was 28.41 (SD = 6.95). There was a significant positive correlation between general QOL and total spiritual well-being scores. Also, spiritual well-being, social functioning, pain, and arm symptoms were significant predictors of global QOL. The results of this study provide evidence that breast cancer survivors in Iran experience a poor quality of life across a broad spectrum of health domains, particularly social, emotional, and spiritual, indicating that psychosocial-spiritual support should be considered in caring for patients with breast cancer.

"Be the love of god rather than talk about it": ministers study psychology.

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Muravchik, Stephanie

2012-05-01

After World War II, American ministers successfully drew on training in psychology to nurture their spiritual and vocational development. Contrary to what critics of a therapeutic ethos in American culture have asserted, this social history of ministers shows that their adoption of psychological modes of thinking was neither atomizing nor secularizing. Rather, it helped them become better people and better ministers. It nurtured their faith as well as their social connections. Thus, I argue against critics who have feared the civically enervating effects of psychological outlooks in American society.

“HABITUS” IN SOUL CARE. TOWARDS “SPIRITUAL ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

by ideas emanating from the fields of psychology and sources of secular therapeutic ... second assumption is that Christian spirituality, as a theological category, ..... in American psychology due to the impact of Anton Boisen's thesis of the.

Toward a Psychology of Social Change: A Typology of Social Change

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de la Sablonnière, Roxane

2017-01-01

Millions of people worldwide are affected by dramatic social change (DSC). While sociological theory aims to understand its precipitants, the psychological consequences remain poorly understood. A large-scale literature review pointed to the desperate need for a typology of social change that might guide theory and research toward a better understanding of the psychology of social change. Over 5,000 abstracts from peer-reviewed articles were assessed from sociological and psychological publications. Based on stringent inclusion criteria, a final 325 articles were used to construct a novel, multi-level typology designed to conceptualize and categorize social change in terms of its psychological threat to psychological well-being. The typology of social change includes four social contexts: Stability, Inertia, Incremental Social Change and, finally, DSC. Four characteristics of DSC were further identified: the pace of social change, rupture to the social structure, rupture to the normative structure, and the level of threat to one's cultural identity. A theoretical model that links the characteristics of social change together and with the social contexts is also suggested. The typology of social change as well as our theoretical proposition may serve as a foundation for future investigations and increase our understanding of the psychologically adaptive mechanisms used in the wake of DSC. PMID:28400739

Toward a Psychology of Social Change: A Typology of Social Change.

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de la Sablonnière, Roxane

2017-01-01

Millions of people worldwide are affected by dramatic social change (DSC). While sociological theory aims to understand its precipitants, the psychological consequences remain poorly understood. A large-scale literature review pointed to the desperate need for a typology of social change that might guide theory and research toward a better understanding of the psychology of social change. Over 5,000 abstracts from peer-reviewed articles were assessed from sociological and psychological publications. Based on stringent inclusion criteria, a final 325 articles were used to construct a novel, multi-level typology designed to conceptualize and categorize social change in terms of its psychological threat to psychological well-being. The typology of social change includes four social contexts: Stability, Inertia, Incremental Social Change and, finally, DSC. Four characteristics of DSC were further identified: the pace of social change, rupture to the social structure, rupture to the normative structure, and the level of threat to one's cultural identity. A theoretical model that links the characteristics of social change together and with the social contexts is also suggested. The typology of social change as well as our theoretical proposition may serve as a foundation for future investigations and increase our understanding of the psychologically adaptive mechanisms used in the wake of DSC.

Spirituality and religion among HIV-infected individuals.

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Szaflarski, Magdalena

2013-12-01

Spirituality and religion are important to many people living with HIV (PLWH). Recent research has focused on special populations (ethnic-minorities, women, and youth), spirituality/religion measurement, mediating/moderating mechanisms, and individual and community-level interventions. Spirituality/religion in PLWH has been refined as a multidimensional phenomenon, which improves health/quality of life directly and through mediating factors (healthy behaviors, optimism, social support). Spirituality/religion helps people to cope with stressors, especially stigma/discrimination. Spiritual interventions utilizing the power of prayer and meditation and addressing spiritual struggle are under way. Faith-based community interventions have focused on stigma and could improve individual outcomes through access to spiritual/social support and care/treatment for PLWA. Community engagement is necessary to design/implement effective and sustainable programs. Future efforts should focus on vulnerable populations; utilize state-of-the-art methods (randomized clinical trials, community-based participatory research); and, address population-specific interventions at individual and community levels. Clinical and policy implications across geographic settings also need attention.

Community Psychology, Evaluation, and Social Critique

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Miller, Robin Lin

2015-01-01

Community psychology blends psychological science, a community-level perspective on social issues, and a social justice orientation. Despite important difference between community psychology and program evaluation, program evaluation is a key component of many community psychologists' practice and holds a central place in my own. In this…

Protective factors for mental disorders and psychological distress in female, compared with male, service members in a representative sample.

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Mota, Natalie P; Medved, Maria; Whitney, Debbie; Hiebert-Murphy, Diane; Sareen, Jitender

2013-10-01

Although military interest in promoting psychological resilience is growing, resources protective against psychopathology have been understudied in female service members. Using a representative sample of Canadian Forces personnel, we investigated whether religious attendance, spirituality, coping, and social support were related to mental disorders and psychological distress in female service members, and whether sex differences occurred in these associations. Religious attendance and spirituality were self-reported. Coping items were taken from 3 scales and produced 3 factors (active, avoidance, and self-medication). Social support was assessed with the Medical Outcomes Study Social Support Survey. Past-year mental disorders were diagnosed with the World Mental Health Composite International Diagnostic Interview. The Kessler Psychological Distress Scale assessed distress. Multivariate regression models investigated links between correlates and psychological outcomes within each sex. For associations that were statistically significant in only one sex, sex by correlate interactions were computed. In female service members, inverse relations were found between social support and MDD, any MDD or anxiety disorder, suicidal ideation, and distress. No associations were found between religious attendance and outcomes, and spirituality was associated with an increased likelihood of some outcomes. Active coping was related to less psychological distress, while avoidance coping and self-medication were linked to a higher likelihood of most outcomes. Although several statistically significant associations were found in only one sex, only one sex by correlate interaction was statistically significant. Social support was found to be inversely related to several negative mental health outcomes in female service members. Few differences between men and women reached statistical significance. Future research should identify additional helpful resources for female service members.

Hope for the future: intensifying spirituality in the workplace.

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Batcheller, Joyce; Davis, James; Yoder-Wise, Patricia S

2013-01-01

Healthy workplaces address various issues. Work focused on ergonomics addresses physical issues, satisfaction surveys reveal psychosocial issues; and other approaches address spirituality issues. Spirituality in the workplace contributes to holistic care and to the worth of the individual. Incorporating the concept of spirituality, in its broad sense, into the workplace enriches leadership practice and contributes to a holistic work environment. Spirituality is core to the servant leader approach to leadership and beneficial to other approaches. Followers benefit from a holistic approach to leadership; and some specific practices can exhibit the belief an organization holds related to the worth of the individual. Incorporating spirituality into an organization reflects the same values nursing holds for person-centered care, a view of integration of physical, psychological, and spiritual needs.

Spiritual care in Christian parish nursing.

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van Dover, Leslie; Pfeiffer, Jane Bacon

2007-01-01

This paper reports the development of a substantive theory to explain the process parish nurses use to provide spiritual care to parishioners in Christian churches in a context where patients and nurses share a common set of values. Despite a surge of interest in spirituality and spiritual care in nursing, consensus is lacking on how care should be conceptualized and provided. Grounded theory method was used to explore and describe the processes 10 American parish nurses experienced and used as they gave spiritual care. Data were collected between 1998 and 2001. Participants were interviewed and audiotapes transcribed verbatim. Constant comparative methods were used to analyse more than 50 separate incidents reported by the nurses. From its initial emergence as the core category, 'Bringing God Near' became a Basic Social Process theory of giving spiritual care for these parish nurses. This Basic Social Process became a theory through writing theoretical memos that described how the 'main concern' of the nurses to give spiritual care was resolved. Phases within the process include: trusting God, forming relationships with the patient/family, opening to God, activating/nurturing faith and recognizing spiritual renewal or growth. The essence is bringing God near to people as they face health challenges. Findings from the study and spiritual care literature are integrated in the discussion. The parish nurses' spiritual challenge is to respond to what God is directing the nurse to be and do to strengthen people spiritually. This spiritual care can help restore the patient's sense of well-being, and encourage growth in faith. Those interested in providing and teaching spiritual care in the church context will find this theory useful as a conceptual guide.

Divorce and the Divine: The Role of Spirituality in Adjustment to Divorce

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Krumrei, Elizabeth J.; Mahoney, Annette; Pargament, Kenneth I.

2009-01-01

This study examined the role of three spiritual responses to divorce for psychological adjustment: appraising the event as a sacred loss/desecration, engaging in adaptive spiritual coping, and experiencing spiritual struggles. A sample of 100 adults (55% female) was recruited through public divorce records. Most appraised their divorce as a sacred…

Social psychology, war and peace: Towards a critical discursive peace psychology.

OpenAIRE

Gibson, Stephen

2011-01-01

In this paper I make two related arguments: that peace psychology and social psychological peace research should give greater attention to discourse, and that critical discursive approaches in social psychology should explore matters of international military conflict, an area which has hitherto been somewhat neglected in this tradition of work. These arguments are developed in relation to debates concerning the nature and status of psychological ‘science’, and the neglect of language in soci...

Quality-of-life and spirituality.

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Panzini, Raquel Gehrke; Mosqueiro, Bruno Paz; Zimpel, Rogério R; Bandeira, Denise Ruschel; Rocha, Neusa S; Fleck, Marcelo P

2017-06-01

Spirituality has been identified as an important dimension of quality-of-life. The objective of this study was to review the literature on quality-of-life and spirituality, their association, and assessment tools. A search was conducted of the keyterms 'quality-of-life' and 'spirituality' in abstract or title in the databases PsycINFO and PubMed/Medline between 1979-2005, complemented by a new search at PUBMED from 2006-2016. Quality-of-life is a new concept, which encompasses and transcends the concept of health, being composed of multiple domains: physical, psychological, environmental, among others. The missing measure in health has been defined as the individual's perception of their position in life in the context of culture and value system in which they live and in relation to their goals, expectations, standards, and concerns. There is consistent evidence of an association between quality-of-life and religiosity/spirituality (R/S), through studies with reasonable methodological rigour, using several variables to assess R/S (e.g. religious affiliation, religious coping, and prayer/spirituality). There are also several valid and reliable instruments to evaluate quality-of-life and spirituality. Further studies are needed, however, especially in Brazil. Such studies will provide empirical data to be used in planning health interventions based on spirituality, seeking a better quality-of-life. In the last 10 years, research is consistently growing about quality-of-life and spirituality in many countries, and also in many areas of health research.

Embodiment in social psychology.

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Meier, Brian P; Schnall, Simone; Schwarz, Norbert; Bargh, John A

2012-10-01

Psychologists are increasingly interested in embodiment based on the assumption that thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are grounded in bodily interaction with the environment. We examine how embodiment is used in social psychology, and we explore the ways in which embodied approaches enrich traditional theories. Although research in this area is burgeoning, much of it has been more descriptive than explanatory. We provide a critical discussion of the trajectory of embodiment research in social psychology. We contend that future researchers should engage in a phenomenon-based approach, highlight the theoretical boundary conditions and mediators involved, explore novel action-relevant outcome measures, and address the role of individual differences broadly defined. Such research will likely provide a more explanatory account of the role of embodiment in general terms as well as how it expands the knowledge base in social psychology. Copyright © 2012 Cognitive Science Society, Inc.

An exploration of how spiritual nursing care is applied in clinical nursing practice

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Lydia V. Monareng

2013-05-01

Full Text Available Spiritual nursing care is a significant concept for nurses as they are expected to provide holistic care to patients. Many nurses have difficulty to understand and integrate it into practice and consequently neglect this aspect of care. The study was conducted to explore and describe how professional nurses provide spiritual care to patients. A generic qualitative, explorative and descriptive study was conducted based on Symbolic Interactionism as the philosophical base. The population comprised professional nurses from a public hospital. Participants were recruited through purposive and snowball sampling methods. Data were collected through the use of individual, focus group interviews and observation. Data analysis methods utilised included the NUD*ISTcomputer program, coding, constant comparison method and Tesch’s guidelines on data analysis. Findings revealed that nurses struggled to conceptualise spiritual nursing care and to differentiate it from emotional, social or psychological care. However, prayer with or for patients and singing spiritual songs had the highest count of interventions perceived to be effective. Recommendations suggest that the scope of practice and curriculum of training of nurses be reviewed to consider how spiritual nursing care can be evidenced and realised both in the classroom and in the clinical setting. Spiritual nursing care is still a neglected and seemingly complex component of patient care. However, the scientific worldview practices, beliefs and insufficient statutory endorsement of such care hamper its realisation in practice.

A social work study on the effect of family life education on marital satisfaction of women attending in Isfahan Counseling Centers

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Zahra Mahmoudi Kataki

2013-06-01

Full Text Available This paper performs a social work study on the effect of spiritual intelligence and psychological capital on sense of vitality among elementary school teachers in two regions of city of Esfahan, Iran. The proposed study uses three standard questionnaires of psychological capital questionnaire (PCQ, Spiritual Intelligence Self-Report Inventory (SISRI-24 and sense of vitality and distributes them among 263 teachers selected, randomly. The results of the survey have been analyzed using Pearson correlation as well as stepwise regression techniques. The results of the Pearson correlation tests have shown that the components of psychological capital questionnaire and spiritual intelligence have meaningful relationship with sense of vitality (P<0.01. The survey have also confirmed that psychological capital and spiritual intelligence have meaningful effects on teachers’ personal characteristics.

The Role of Social Workers in Spiritual Care to Facilitate Coping With Chronic Illness and Self-Determination in Advance Care Planning.

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Francoeur, Richard B; Burke, Nancy; Wilson, Alicia M

2016-01-01

Spiritual values and beliefs of patients and families influence resilience during chronic illness and shape patient choices during advance care planning. The spiritual needs of Baby Boomers will be more diverse than previous generations, in connection with the questioning, experimental mind-set of this group and the fact that it includes a higher proportion of immigrant populations outside the Judeo-Christian tradition. Social workers are trained explicitly to intervene with diverse populations and are well positioned to offer spiritual support in ways that do not necessarily conform to traditional religions. To the extent of their individual expertise and competence, social workers should assess and provide spiritual care to clients, including those who either are underserved or prefer not to seek assistance from clergy or chaplains because they feel alienated from religious institutions and representatives. They should also be aware of ethical dilemmas in consulting with spiritual care professionals in developing spiritual interventions. Social work education should address clients' humanistic and existential concerns, beliefs and behaviors of the major religions, and forms of nontraditional religious and spiritual experiences; it should also provide experiential opportunities for engaging with grief and earlier advance care planning. There should be attention to different theodical perspectives of the major religions regarding the problem of good and evil, which may preoccupy even clients who no longer participate in organized religion, because these unresolved existential issues may weaken client coping with chronic conditions and may diminish clarity and self-awareness for engaging authentically and effectively in advance care planning.

An Overview of Spiritually Oriented Cognitive Behavioral Therapy

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Ayfer Summermatter

2017-02-01

Full Text Available While spirituality/religion has a healing effect for some individuals, for others it may have the opposite effect of enhancing psychological symptoms. For this reason, efforts are being made to address spirituality as a therapeutic or accelerating factor and reduce the potential negative effects of spirituality in the therapy process. The effectiveness of these applications is investigated in various studies. A comprehensive literature is being formed out of the studies conducted worldwide. Newly started studies in Turkey and similar countries are promising, but there are few coherent examples of how to address spirituality in therapy. In this article, the techniques and applications used in spiritually oriented cognitive behavioral therapy have been compiled and therapeutic applications are proposed. Ethical practices and applications specific to Muslim clients are also discussed.

The idea of atmosphere: Social psychology and other prolegomena

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Jahir Navalles Gomez

2008-05-01

Full Text Available The history of social psychology in this article differs from the standard versions. This is due to the fact that I call on contribtuons from different interlocutors, some of them from outside the discipline of social psychology. Their theorical insights provide a clue to the idea hidden in the background of social psychology –the idea of "atmosphere". I begin by setting out what official social psychology has held in contempt – its own past, its own unofficial history. I also make a case for the work of certain authors who have been ignored within social psychology, and introduce others who have cautiously developed the idea of 'atmosphere'. I trace how 'atmosphere' became the central metaphor which historically informed the discipline of social psychology, taking account of the work of historians and philosophers, as well as sociologists and philologists. 'Atmosphere' is the origin of social psychology, an idea that results in a nostalgic psychology, an historical psychology and a collective psychology.

African breathing and spiritual healing | Edwards | Indilinga: African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Abstract. Discerning visitors to Africa typically have an 'ancestral-roots' experience on encountering an essential humanity and ... In its original, essential and literal meaning, psychology is concerned with the breath, energy ... some other form. Such an essential and spiritual form of psychology, still practiced internationally,

Nursing students' spiritual well-being, spirituality and spiritual care.

Science.gov (United States)

Abbasi, Mojgan; Farahani-Nia, Marhamat; Mehrdad, Neda; Givari, Azam; Haghani, Hamid

2014-05-01

Spiritual care should be considered an important part of holistic and multidisciplinary care and it has not been given much importance so far. We should begin with student nurses, who will soon be clinicians, to find out about potentiality of the nursing profession to put spiritual care into practice. Little has been known about spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives among nursing students. In this study, a comparison has been made in spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives between the first and fourth year baccalaureate nursing students. This is a descriptive-comparative study that was carried out among 283 nursing students. All the students were Iranians studying in the universities of Iran, Tehran, and Shahid Beheshti medical sciences. They volunteered to participate in the study. There were 105 first year students and 178 fourth year students. The questionnaires used were on Spiritual Well-being (SWB) Scale, Spiritual Perspective Scale (SPS), and Nursing Spiritual Care Perspective Scale (NSCPS). The statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS software, version 10. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (distribution frequency, mean, and standard deviation). Mann-Whitney test was to compare each item and independent t-test to compare the mean values of two groups. Regarding spiritual well-being, there were no significant differences between the two groups. 98.8% of the first year students and 100% of the fourth year students were in the category of moderate spiritual well-being. Neither were there any significant differences between the two groups in spiritual perspective and spiritual care perspectives. The scores of fourth year nursing students were similar to those of first year students in spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives, though the fourth year students had already undergone 4-year nursing course. Including spiritual care in the curriculum of

Nursing students’ spiritual well-being, spirituality and spiritual care

Science.gov (United States)

Abbasi, Mojgan; Farahani-Nia, Marhamat; Mehrdad, Neda; givari, Azam; Haghani, Hamid

2014-01-01

Background: Spiritual care should be considered an important part of holistic and multidisciplinary care and it has not been given much importance so far. We should begin with student nurses, who will soon be clinicians, to find out about potentiality of the nursing profession to put spiritual care into practice. Little has been known about spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives among nursing students. In this study, a comparison has been made in spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives between the first and fourth year baccalaureate nursing students. Materials and Methods: This is a descriptive–comparative study that was carried out among 283 nursing students. All the students were Iranians studying in the universities of Iran, Tehran, and Shahid Beheshti medical sciences. They volunteered to participate in the study. There were 105 first year students and 178 fourth year students. The questionnaires used were on Spiritual Well-being (SWB) Scale, Spiritual Perspective Scale (SPS), and Nursing Spiritual Care Perspective Scale (NSCPS). The statistical analysis was performed using the SPSS software, version 10. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics (distribution frequency, mean, and standard deviation). Mann–Whitney test was to compare each item and independent t-test to compare the mean values of two groups. Results: Regarding spiritual well-being, there were no significant differences between the two groups. 98.8% of the first year students and 100% of the fourth year students were in the category of moderate spiritual well-being. Neither were there any significant differences between the two groups in spiritual perspective and spiritual care perspectives. Conclusions: The scores of fourth year nursing students were similar to those of first year students in spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives, though the fourth year students had already undergone 4-year

Spirituality in childhood cancer care

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Lima NN

2013-10-01

Full Text Available Nádia Nara Rolim Lima,1 Vânia Barbosa do Nascimento,1 Sionara Melo Figueiredo de Carvalho,1 Modesto Leite Rolim Neto,2 Marcial Moreno Moreira,2 Aline Quental Brasil,2 Francisco Telésforo Celestino Junior,2 Gislene Farias de Oliveira,2 Alberto Olavo Advíncula Reis3 1Health Sciences Postgraduate Program, ABC Region Medical School, Santo André, São Paulo, Brazil; 2Department of Medicine, Federal University of Ceará, Barbalha, Ceará, Brazil; 3Public Health Postgraduate Program, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil Abstract: To deal with the suffering caused by childhood cancer, patients and their families use different coping strategies, among which, spirituality appears a way of minimizing possible damage. In this context, the purpose of the present study was to analyze the influence of spirituality in childhood cancer care, involving biopsychosocial aspects of the child, the family, and the health care team facing the disease. To accomplish this purpose, a nonsystematic review of literature of articles on national and international electronic databases (Scientific Electronic Library Online [SciELO], PubMed, and Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature [LILACS] was conducted using the search terms “spirituality,” “child psychology,” “child,” and “cancer,” as well as on other available resources. After the search, 20 articles met the eligibility criteria and were included in the final sample. Our review showed that the relation between spirituality and health has lately become a subject of growing interest among researchers, as a positive influence of spirituality in the people's welfare was noted. Studies that were retrieved using the mentioned search strategy in electronic databases, independently assessed by the authors according to the systematic review, showed that spirituality emerges as a driving force that helps pediatric patients and their families in coping with cancer. Health care workers

Spiritual activity is associated with better cognitive function in old age.

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Fung, A W T; Lam, L C W

2013-09-01

This cross-sectional study aimed to explore the association between late-life spiritual activity participation and cognitive function in older Chinese adults in Hong Kong. Participants aged 60 years or older without clinical dementia or major psychiatric disorders were recruited. Dementia severity and global cognitive function were assessed using the Clinical Dementia Rating and Cantonese version of the Mini-Mental State Examination, respectively. Cognitive performance was measured using 10-minute delayed recall, the Category Verbal Fluency Test, Visual Aural Digit Span Test, and Modified Card Sorting Test. Psychological status was assessed using the Chinese version of the Purpose in Life scale. Activities participated in were categorised into 6 domains of physical, cognitive, social, prosocial, spiritual, and recreational activities. A total of 380 participants were enrolled. Bivariate correlation showed that the composite score of cognitive function was positively correlated with aerobic exercise (r = 0.14; p = 0.01), cognitive activity (r = 0.30; p < 0.001), and spiritual activity (r = 0.16; p = 0.002). Multiple linear regression suggested that frequent participation in cognitive activity (B = 0.87, beta = 0.22; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.52-1.25 and p < 0.001) and spiritual activity (B = 0.45, beta = 0.11; 95% CI = 0.13-0.76 and p = 0.01) were associated with better cognitive function after controlling for age and years of education. Engagement in spiritual activity may benefit cognitive function in old age. Longitudinal studies are recommended to further examine the causal relationship of spiritual activity and cognitive function.

Political diversity will improve social psychological science.

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Duarte, José L; Crawford, Jarret T; Stern, Charlotta; Haidt, Jonathan; Jussim, Lee; Tetlock, Philip E

2015-01-01

Psychologists have demonstrated the value of diversity--particularly diversity of viewpoints--for enhancing creativity, discovery, and problem solving. But one key type of viewpoint diversity is lacking in academic psychology in general and social psychology in particular: political diversity. This article reviews the available evidence and finds support for four claims: (1) Academic psychology once had considerable political diversity, but has lost nearly all of it in the last 50 years. (2) This lack of political diversity can undermine the validity of social psychological science via mechanisms such as the embedding of liberal values into research questions and methods, steering researchers away from important but politically unpalatable research topics, and producing conclusions that mischaracterize liberals and conservatives alike. (3) Increased political diversity would improve social psychological science by reducing the impact of bias mechanisms such as confirmation bias, and by empowering dissenting minorities to improve the quality of the majority's thinking. (4) The underrepresentation of non-liberals in social psychology is most likely due to a combination of self-selection, hostile climate, and discrimination. We close with recommendations for increasing political diversity in social psychology.

In Spirituality: A Perspective from a Traditionally Latin Culture

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Guenther, Zenita; Németh-Torres, Geovani

2016-01-01

The concept of spirituality is influenced by culture and the values and mores of Brazil, and though not directly linked to religion it actually grows from the same roots. This paper examines spirituality in education from the perspective of a humanistic psychology framework expressed as an ideal of the adequate personality or healthy personality.…

Assessment of the Relationship between Spiritual and Social Health and the Self-Care Ability of Elderly People Referred to Community Health Centers.

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Mohammadi, Mahboobeh; Alavi, Mousa; Bahrami, Masoud; Zandieh, Zahra

2017-01-01

Promotion of self-care ability among older people is an essential means to help maintain and improve their health. However, the role of spiritual and social health has not yet been considered in detail in the context of self-care ability among elderly. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between spiritual and social health and self-care ability of older people referred to community health centers in Isfahan. In this cross-sectional correlation study, 200 people, aged 60 years and older, referred to healthcare centers in 2016 were recruited through convenience sampling method. Data were collected by four-part tool comprising of: (a) demographics, (b) Ellison and Palotzin's spiritual well-being scale, (c) Kees's "social health" scale, and (d) self-care ability scale for the elderly by Soderhamn's; data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential (independent t -test, analysis of variance - ANOVA, Pearson's coefficient tests, and multiple regression analysis) statistics by SPSS16 software. Findings showed that the entered predictor variables were accounted for 41% of total variance ( R 2 ) of the two self-care ability in the model ( p well-being and social health, significantly predicted the self-care ability of older people. The results of this study emphasized on the relationship between spiritual and social health of the elderly people and their ability to self-care. Therefore, it would be recommended to keep the focus of the service resources towards improving social and spiritual health to improve self-care ability in elderly people.

The role of spirituality as a coping mechanism for South African ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

2017-02-22

Feb 22, 2017 ... physical, emotional, mental and spiritual characteristics, and ... Generally, coping is a positive psychological construct .... by parents and others seems to play a fundamental role in ... spirituality, and the two cannot be separated (Rowe & Allen ... revealed that childhood circumstances developed their.

The Relationship of Spiritual Health with Quality of Life,Mental Health, and Burnout: The Mediating Role of Emotional Regulation

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mehdi akbari

2018-02-01

Full Text Available Objective: The World Health Organization's definition of health now stands open to severe criticism due to changes in today's world and the accompanying mental void; in addition to physical, psychological, and social aspects, spiritual health and its interaction with the other aspects has been studied in scientific literature and recent research. The present study was conducted to investigate the mediating role of emotional regulation in the relationship between spiritual health with quality of life, psychological health, and burnout.Method: In this study, 231 staff from Baqiyatallah University of Medical Sciences completed Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS, Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS, World Health Organization Quality of Life-BREF (WHOQOL-BREF, General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28, and Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI. The gathered data were analyzed using Pearson correlation, Hierarchical Regression analysis, and Sobel’s test.Results: All variables were correlated with one another (p<0.001. The hierarchical regression analysis and Sobel’s test indicated that the emotional regulation have a relative mediating role in the relationship between spiritual health and quality of life (ß=0.53, Z=4.05, p<0.001 and a complete mediating role in the relationship between spiritual health with mental health (ß=0.68, Z=5.62, p<0.001 and burnout (ß=0.70, Z=6.12, p<0.001.Conclusion: There is a complex and non-linear relationship between spiritual health and the areas of quality of life, mental health and burnout. This relationship is potentially influenced by emotional regulation.

Spirituality vis-a-vis Islam as prerequisite to Arab American well being: the implications of Eurocentrism for mainstream psychology.

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Hall, Ronald E; Breland-Noble, Alfiee

2011-01-01

Due to the historical preponderance of racial and/or intellectual homogeneity in the field of psychology, Eurocentrism set the "gold standard" for its method of intervention. As such, it might be argued that psychology remains a bastion of Eurocentric thought despite the globalization of knowledge and the influx of racially and ethnically diverse scientists into the research endeavor. At the same time and the significant increase in the immigrant Arab population, Arab Americans remain a less familiar component of society. Among the various Arab populations, spirituality through Islam is fundamental. Thus, psychologists would be remiss to exclude a critical aspect of Arab American life from intervention when it is essential to well-being.

Existential Social Work

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Donald F. Krill

2014-05-01

Full Text Available The existential impact upon social work began in the 1960’s with the emphasis upon freedom, responsibility and a sense of the absurd. It affirmed human potential while faulting the deterministic thinking that was popular with psychological theorists at that time. It was open to the prospects of spirituality, but was less than optimistic concerning great progress among social institutions. It was a forerunner to the strengths-based social work programs of our present day.

Contributions of Literature to Social Psychology

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Anastasio Ovejero

2012-11-01

Full Text Available There are two main kind of psychology: a intuitive psychology, and an academic and professional psychology. These two psychologies are different, but they can make important reciprocals contributions. And the best of the intuitive psychology, that in my opinion is in the literature and overall in the romance, can be very useful for professional psychologists. The main end of this paper is to show how the social psychologists can learn from the intuitive psychology of the great romances. This contribution of the romance to the social psychology is, at least, at these two levels. At the level of construction of the subjectivity and the modern subject and the, therefore, of the psychology’s arise, and at the level of some concrete subjects studied by the psychologists (romantic love, jealousy, infidelity, compunction, emotions, vengeance, human relations…

Nursing students’ spiritual well-being, spirituality and spiritual care

OpenAIRE

Abbasi, Mojgan; Farahani-Nia, Marhamat; Mehrdad, Neda; givari, Azam; Haghani, Hamid

2014-01-01

Background: Spiritual care should be considered an important part of holistic and multidisciplinary care and it has not been given much importance so far. We should begin with student nurses, who will soon be clinicians, to find out about potentiality of the nursing profession to put spiritual care into practice. Little has been known about spiritual well-being, spirituality, and spiritual care perspectives among nursing students. In this study, a comparison has been made in spiritual well-be...

Perspectives on the Social Psychology of Creativity

OpenAIRE

Amabile, Teresa M.; Pillemer, Julianna

2012-01-01

Scholars began serious study into the social psychology of creativity about 25 years after the field of creativity research had taken root. Over the past 35 years, examination of social and environmental influences on creativity has become increasingly vigorous, with broad implications for the psychology of human performance, and with applications to education, business, and beyond. In this article, we revisit the origins of the social psychology of creativity, trace its arc, and suggest dire...

Assessment of the relationship between spiritual and social health and the self-care ability of elderly people referred to community health centers

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Mahboobeh Mohammadi

2017-01-01

Full Text Available Background: Promotion of self-care ability among older people is an essential means to help maintain and improve their health. However, the role of spiritual and social health has not yet been considered in detail in the context of self-care ability among elderly. The aim of this study was to assess the relationship between spiritual and social health and self-care ability of older people referred to community health centers in Isfahan. Materials and Methods: In this cross-sectional correlation study, 200 people, aged 60 years and older, referred to healthcare centers in 2016 were recruited through convenience sampling method. Data were collected by four-part tool comprising of: (a demographics, (b Ellison and Palotzin's spiritual well-being scale, (c Kees's “social health” scale, and (d self-care ability scale for the elderly by Soderhamn's; data were analyzed by descriptive and inferential (independent t-test, analysis of variance – ANOVA, Pearson's coefficient tests, and multiple regression analysis statistics by SPSS16 software. Results: Findings showed that the entered predictor variables were accounted for 41% of total variance (R2 of the two self-care ability in the model (p < 0.001, F3, 199 = 46.02. Two out of the three predictor variables including religious well-being and social health, significantly predicted the self-care ability of older people. Conclusions: The results of this study emphasized on the relationship between spiritual and social health of the elderly people and their ability to self-care. Therefore, it would be recommended to keep the focus of the service resources towards improving social and spiritual health to improve self-care ability in elderly people.

Positive emotional change: mediating effects of forgiveness and spirituality.

Science.gov (United States)

Levenson, Michael R; Aldwin, Carolyn M; Yancura, Loriena

2006-01-01

We evaluated the efficacy of an emotional education program that seeks to reduce the intergenerational transmission of negative interaction patterns by increasing forgiveness and spirituality. We examined both reduction of psychological symptoms and increase in positive psychological outcomes over the course of a year, as well as the mediators of this change. At baseline, the sample consisted of 99 participants and 47 waiting list controls. Comparisons of scores from baseline (Time 1) to one week after the Hoffman Quadrinity Process (Time 2) showed large declines in negative affect (depressive symptoms) and increases in both positive outcomes (mastery, empathy, emotional intelligence, life satisfaction, forgiveness, and spiritual experience) and health and well-being. Over the course of a year, most of these gains were sustained, in comparison with the control group. Further, increases in forgiveness and spirituality mediated the effect of program participation on depressive symptoms.

Religiousness, Race, and Psychological Well-Being: Exploring Social Psychological Mediators.

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Blaine, Bruce; Crocker, Jennifer

1995-01-01

Examined predictions (n=125) that the relationship between religious belief and psychological well-being should be more positive among black than white individuals, and the relationship should be mediated by social psychological aspects of religion with positive implications for well-being. Religious belief salience and psychological well-being…

The impact of pain on spiritual well-being in people with a spinal cord injury.

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Siddall, P J; McIndoe, L; Austin, P; Wrigley, P J

2017-01-01

The study uses a cross-sectional, group comparison, questionnaire-based design. To determine whether spinal cord injury and pain have an impact on spiritual well-being and whether there is an association between spiritual well-being and measures of pain and psychological function. University teaching hospital in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Questionnaires evaluating pain, psychological and spiritual well-being were administered to a group of people with a spinal cord injury (n=53) and a group without spinal cord injury (n=37). Spiritual well-being was assessed using the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness and Therapy - Spirituality Extended Scale (FACIT-Sp-Ex). Pain and psychological function were also assessed using standard, validated measures of pain intensity, pain interference, mood and cognition. Levels of spiritual well-being in people with a spinal cord injury were significantly lower when compared with people without a spinal cord injury. In addition, there was a moderate but significant negative correlation between spiritual well-being and pain intensity. There was also a strong and significant negative correlation between depression and spiritual well-being and a strong and significant positive correlation between spiritual well-being and both pain self-efficacy and satisfaction with life. Consequences of a spinal cord injury include increased levels of spiritual distress, which is associated, with higher levels of pain and depression and lower levels of pain self-efficacy and satisfaction with life. These findings indicate the importance of addressing spiritual well-being as an important component in the long-term rehabilitation of any person following spinal cord injury. This study was supported by grant funding from the Australian and New Zealand College of Anaesthetists, and the National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia.

Spiritual Needs of Patients with Chronic Diseases

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Harold G. Koenig

2010-11-01

Full Text Available For many patients confronted with chronic diseases, spirituality/religiosity is an important resource for coping. Patients often report unmet spiritual and existential needs, and spiritual support is also associated with better quality of life. Caring for spiritual, existential and psychosocial needs is not only relevant to patients at the end of their life but also to those suffering from long-term chronic illnesses. Spiritual needs may not always be associated with life satisfaction, but sometimes with anxiety, and can be interpreted as the patients’ longing for spiritual well-being. The needs for peace, health and social support are universal human needs and are of special importance to patients with long lasting courses of disease. The factor, Actively Giving, may be of particular importance because it can be interpreted as patients’ intention to leave the role of a `passive sufferer´ to become an active, self-actualizing, giving individual. One can identify four core dimensions of spiritual needs, i.e., Connection, Peace, Meaning/Purpose, and Transcendence, which can be attributed to underlying psychosocial, emotional, existential, and religious needs. The proposed model can provide a conceptual framework for further research and clinical practice. In fact, health care that addresses patients’ physical, emotional, social, existential and spiritual needs (referring to a bio-psychosocial-spiritual model of health care will contribute to patients’ improvement and recovery. Nevertheless, there are several barriers in the health care system that makes it difficult to adequately address these needs.

Correlational study between spiritual well-being, religiosity, religion and spiritual coping and quality of life of elderly in hemodialysis treatment

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Calíope Pilger

2016-03-01

spiritist was the most reported. Regarding Spiritual Well-Being, the participants showed moderate total Spiritual Well-Being and Existential Well-Being, and high Religion Well-Being. Concerning to religiosity, 54,4% of the elderly had high Religiosity Organizational, 83,4% high Religiosity Non Organizational and 90% high Intrinsic Religiosity. All searched elderly used Religious and Spiritual Coping strategies. The searched elderly QOL from WHOQOL bref was 64,0 and the highest domain scores from WHOQOL bref were the psychological and the social relations (66,8. With respect to WHOQOL old, the highest mean score was to the intimacy facet (76,3, then death and dying (69,4. The elderly used the total, positive and negative religious and spiritual coping, and these were related to QOL. There was statistical significance to the association between elderly global measurements of QoL, with the Spiritual Well-Being total level, total religious and spiritual coping uses and Organizational and Intrinsic Religiosity. Final Considerations: The elderly QOL that realized hemodialysis treatment is related to, in a positive or negative way, with the constructs: Spiritual Well-Being, Religiosity and the use of Religious and Spiritual Coping.

Spirituality in diaconia

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Zeitler, Ullrich Martin Rudenko

2014-01-01

The subject of this article is the role of spirituality in diaconal work. This raises two questions: first, what do we mean by spirituality, and second, what characterises the field of diaconia and diaconal practice?. To begin with, a few conceptual clarifications are necessary. C. Otto Scharmer......’s Theory U (TU) provides the conceptual and methodological framework for operationalising spirituality in diaconal work. It is argued that the concept of “presencing” is an adequate way to express “spirituality”, and that, overall TU is an appropriate model to describe and develop the essential features...... of diaconal social work and diaconal leadership. I shall use the Danish Blue Cross as an example of an organisation that can be interpreted as working on the basis of TU....

Ecological psychology and social psychology: it is Holt, or nothing!

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Charles, Eric P

2011-03-01

What is the greatest contribution that ecological psychologists can offer social psychology? Ideally, ecological psychologists could explain how people directly perceive the unique properties of their social partners. But social partners are distinguished from mundane objects because they possess mental traits, and tradition tells us that minds cannot be seen. When considering the ideal possibility, we reject that doctrine and posit minds as perceivable. For ecological psychology, this entails asserting that minds are the types of things able to structure ambient energy. Contemporary research and theory suggests distinctly ecological ways of attacking this problem, but the problem is not new. Almost 100 years ago, Holt argued for the visibility of minds. Thus when considering these ideas, ecological psychologists face a choice that is at once about their future and their past. Extending ecological psychology's first principles into the social realm, we come to the point where we must either accept or reject Holt's arguments, and the wider context they bring. In doing so, we accept or reject our ability to study the uniquely social.

The Spiritual Approach to Group Psychotherapy Treatment of Psychotraumatized Persons in Post-War Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Mark Agius

2011-07-01

Full Text Available Psychological trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD may have an intensive negative impact on a patient’s spiritual beliefs or his/her belief in God; this effect may diminish the social and professional skills of many survivors. In the same time researches showed that religion plays a coping role among patients with medical and mental health illnesses. During the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina (1992-1995 the whole population, regardless of age, gender, nationality or profession, suffered severely. During the pre-war period in communistic Yugoslavia religious believes altered with atheistic public life styles. Additionally, war traumatization had a negative impact on spirituality and religious beliefs. In the series of case reports we intended to describe and assess the impact of a session of group psychotherapy, with spiritual topics and content, which was offered to patients who needed to reestablish religious beliefs. The patients who come to the Psychiatry Clinic because of trauma-induced mental health problems and who we are interested in strengthening their spirituality met each other in the group regardless of their religious or spiritual conviction. We described the conceptualization and development of such a group and present some self-reported views of clients who took part in these groups. The supportive and empathetic presence of such group in the community helps to prevent withdrawal and isolation, alienation and deviation of traumatized persons. The presence of such group facilitates the rehabilitation process of the victims, allowing them to understand that people are available to them in certain critical moments, to help, to offer protection or to console. Groups like this one, offer long term social and spiritual support to extremely severely traumatized victims.

The SAGE Model of Social Psychological Research

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Power, Séamus A.; Velez, Gabriel; Qadafi, Ahmad; Tennant, Joseph

2018-01-01

We propose a SAGE model for social psychological research. Encapsulated in our acronym is a proposal to have a synthetic approach to social psychological research, in which qualitative methods are augmentative to quantitative ones, qualitative methods can be generative of new experimental hypotheses, and qualitative methods can capture experiences that evade experimental reductionism. We remind social psychological researchers that psychology was founded in multiple methods of investigation at multiple levels of analysis. We discuss historical examples and our own research as contemporary examples of how a SAGE model can operate in part or as an integrated whole. The implications of our model are discussed. PMID:29361241

The SAGE Model of Social Psychological Research.

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Power, Séamus A; Velez, Gabriel; Qadafi, Ahmad; Tennant, Joseph

2018-05-01

We propose a SAGE model for social psychological research. Encapsulated in our acronym is a proposal to have a synthetic approach to social psychological research, in which qualitative methods are augmentative to quantitative ones, qualitative methods can be generative of new experimental hypotheses, and qualitative methods can capture experiences that evade experimental reductionism. We remind social psychological researchers that psychology was founded in multiple methods of investigation at multiple levels of analysis. We discuss historical examples and our own research as contemporary examples of how a SAGE model can operate in part or as an integrated whole. The implications of our model are discussed.

Footprints in the Sand: Personal, Psychological, and Relational Profiles of Religious, Spiritual, and Atheist LGB Individuals.

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Foster, Aasha B; Brewster, Melanie E; Velez, Brandon L; Eklund, Austin; Keum, Brian T

2017-01-01

The present study offers a comparison of the demographic features and lived experiences of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals with religious, spiritual, or atheist (R/S/A) belief systems. In this sample of 212 participants, the relationship of participants' R/S/A beliefs to personal variables (e.g., age, gender, race), mental health variables (e.g., life satisfaction, psychological distress, internalized heterosexism, self-esteem), and relational variables (e.g., outness, connection to LGBTQ communities) were assessed. Correlational analyses indicated that level of R/S/A belief was unrelated to self-esteem, life satisfaction, or psychological distress; however, greater religious belief was correlated positively and significantly with internalized heterosexism and outness as LGB. To test the interactions of R/S/A beliefs and categorical variables of interest (e.g., race), log-linear analyses with follow-up chi-square tests were conducted. Findings suggested more similarities than differences for LGB people across R/S/A systems of belief. Limitations and implications for future research are discussed.

Core References in Introductory Social Psychology and Developmental Psychology Textbooks

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Whitehead, George I., III; Smith, Stephanie H.; Losonczy-Marshall, Marta

2017-01-01

The purpose of the present study was to identify the core references in introductory textbooks in two sub-disciplines of psychology: social psychology and developmental psychology. One research question was the extent to which the common references in these textbooks present the trends in contemporary research in each sub-discipline. An analysis…

Spirituality and Older Adults: Ethical Guidelines to Enhance Service Provision

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David R. Hodge

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Spirituality plays an important role in the lives of many older adults. Consequently, it is not surprising that gerontological social workers frequently engage spirituality in practice settings. The paucity of training gerontological workers have received on this topic, however, is a cause for concern. To help equip workers, three ethical principles are proposed to guide interactions in the area of spirituality. These principles can be summarized as: 1 client autonomy, 2 spiritual competence, and 3 professional competence. The application of these principles in practice settings will enhance the ability of gerontological social workers to interact with older adults’ spirituality in a professional and ethical manner.

Conflicting Values: Spirituality and Wilderness at Mt. Shasta

Science.gov (United States)

Maria Fernandez-Gimenez; Lynn Huntsinger; Catherine Phillips; Barbara Allen-Diaz

1992-01-01

Many people from a variety of backgrounds believe that Mt. Shasta is a major spiritual center. Although these "spiritual users" value the area's natural features, their spiritual and social activities, including construction of sweat lodges, medicine wheels, altars, meditation pads, trails, and campsites, are leading to rapid ecological degradation. This...

The Role of Spirituality in Quality of Life Patients with AIDS/HIV

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Z Nikmanesh

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction: AIDS will change route of life people with disease and to be cause loss of self – esteem, increased vulnerability feeling and confusion thoughts in their. The purpose of this study is investigating the role of spirituality in quality of life of patients with AIDS/HIV. Methods: This study was conducted with a sample of 43 patients with AIDS/HIV in Sistan & Baluchestan province in 1390 that had been selected via method of available sampling. Spirituality was measured using the Spirituality Questionnaire (Parsian and Dunning, 2009 and quality of life was measured using the World Health Organization Quality of Life (WHOQOL-BREF. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficient,s stepwise multiple regression, t Test and ANOVA. Results: The study results indicated that there is a significant positive relationship between spirituality and quality of life, but there is no significant relationship between demographic variables (gender, marital status, age, and disease duration and quality of life. Results of regression analyses indicated that component of self-awareness is best predictor of physical health, psychological health and social relationships. Also, there was a significant difference among male and female patients in quality of life. Conclusion: According to these results, it can be deduced that spirituality has an impact on quality of life in patients with AIDS/HIV, and it can be used as a coping method for improving mental health and increasing quality of patients' life with AIDS/HIV

Realizing the promise of social psychology in improving public health.

Science.gov (United States)

Klein, William M P; Shepperd, James A; Suls, Jerry; Rothman, Alexander J; Croyle, Robert T

2015-02-01

The theories, phenomena, empirical findings, and methodological approaches that characterize contemporary social psychology hold much promise for addressing enduring problems in public health. Indeed, social psychologists played a major role in the development of the discipline of health psychology during the 1970s and 1980s. The health domain allows for the testing, refinement, and application of many interesting and important research questions in social psychology, and offers the discipline a chance to enhance its reach and visibility. Nevertheless, in a review of recent articles in two major social-psychological journals (Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin and Journal of Personality and Social Psychology), we found that only 3.2% of 467 studies explored health-related topics. In this article, we identify opportunities for research at the interface of social psychology and health, delineate barriers, and offer strategies that can address these barriers as the discipline continues to evolve. © 2014 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.

Patients’ and caregivers’ needs, experiences, preferences and research priorities in spiritual care: A focus group study across nine countries

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Selman, Lucy Ellen; Brighton, Lisa Jane; Sinclair, Shane; Karvinen, Ikali; Egan, Richard; Speck, Peter; Powell, Richard A; Deskur-Smielecka, Ewa; Glajchen, Myra; Adler, Shelly; Puchalski, Christina; Hunter, Joy; Gikaara, Nancy; Hope, Jonathon

2017-01-01

Background: Spiritual distress is prevalent in advanced disease, but often neglected, resulting in unnecessary suffering. Evidence to inform spiritual care practices in palliative care is limited. Aim: To explore spiritual care needs, experiences, preferences and research priorities in an international sample of patients with life-limiting disease and family caregivers. Design: Focus group study. Setting/participants: Separate patient and caregiver focus groups were conducted at 11 sites in South Africa, Kenya, South Korea, the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Belgium, Finland and Poland. Discussions were transcribed, translated into English and analysed thematically. Results: A total of 74 patients participated: median age 62 years; 53 had cancer; 48 were women. In total, 71 caregivers participated: median age 61 years; 56 were women. Two-thirds of participants were Christian. Five themes are described: patients’ and caregivers’ spiritual concerns, understanding of spirituality and its role in illness, views and experiences of spiritual care, preferences regarding spiritual care, and research priorities. Participants reported wide-ranging spiritual concerns spanning existential, psychological, religious and social domains. Spirituality supported coping, but could also result in framing illness as punishment. Participants emphasised the need for staff competence in spiritual care. Spiritual care was reportedly lacking, primarily due to staff members’ de-prioritisation and lack of time. Patients’ research priorities included understanding the qualities of human connectedness and fostering these skills in staff. Caregivers’ priorities included staff training, assessment, studying impact, and caregiver’s spiritual care needs. Conclusion: To meet patient and caregiver preferences, healthcare providers should be able to address their spiritual concerns. Findings should inform patient- and caregiver-centred spiritual care provision, education and

Spiritual Well-Being and Correlated Factors in Subjects With Advanced COPD or Lung Cancer.

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Hasegawa, Takaaki; Kawai, Momoko; Kuzuya, Nanori; Futamura, Yohei; Horiba, Akane; Ishiguro, Takashi; Yoshida, Tsutomu; Sawa, Toshiyuki; Sugiyama, Yasuyuki

2017-05-01

Spiritual care for patients with COPD has rarely been discussed, and thus much remains unknown about their needs. The aims of this study were to identify the factors associated with spiritual well-being and to compare the levels of spiritual well-being between subjects with advanced COPD and those with inoperable lung cancer. A total of 96 subjects with COPD or lung cancer participated in this study, which was conducted between December 2014 and April 2016. Measures included the Japanese version of the 12-item Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being (FACIT-Sp-12) scale, the McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire (MQOL), the modified Medical Research Council (mMRC) dyspnea scale, and various other medico-social factors. No significant differences were found between subjects with COPD and those with lung cancer in median FACIT-Sp-12 scores (COPD, 27; lung cancer, 26; P = .81). However, significant differences were found in the 2 MQOL domains, suggesting that subjects with COPD had a better psychological state ( P = .01) and that subjects with lung cancer had a better support state ( P = .002). Multiple regression analysis revealed that mMRC was significantly associated with FACIT-Sp-12 scores in subjects with COPD. These results suggest that subjects with advanced COPD experience spiritual well-being similar to that of subjects with inoperable lung cancer. Copyright © 2017 by Daedalus Enterprises.

A phenomenological study of spontaneous spiritual and paranormal experiences in a 21st-century sample of normal people.

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Woodard, Fredrick James

2012-02-01

Summary.-This paper presents a phenomenological study using the methodology of Woodard's phenomenological and perceptual research. This method examines individuals' internal meanings during spontaneous spiritual and paranormal experiences, as described from their point of view. A group of 40 adults was phenomenologically interviewed after they responded to a newspaper announcement in New Hampshire asking for volunteers who had had spiritual and paranormal experiences. Using the method, Six Individual Situated Structures and a General Structure were identified and examined. Nine major themes were explicated during the participants' spontaneous experiencing: unexpectedness, contrariness to belief, certainty, contradictory experiencing, language as a barrier to expression, external influences, internal dialogue, evil as separateness, and some social psychological influences. Several themes observed in hypnotic experiencing, such as the characteristics of the Adequate Personality in Perceptual Psychology, are interpreted and discussed. This research illustrates how subjective experience can be adequately researched in a qualitative manner outside the confines of the laboratory setting. Limitations of the study and suggestions for further research are given.

Mental Footnotes. Knowledge Constructivism From Logical Thinking and Personal Beliefs to Social Rationality and Spiritual Freedom.

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Vilchez, Jose Luis

2018-03-10

Cognition is an efficient but limited system that deals with mundane tasks. Daily life demands the system to save energy in order to be able to solve other more relevant tasks. Reasoning out every single problem would immeasurably increase our mental load and fatigue. Our minds avoid this waste of resources by taking shortcuts when reasoning. Outputs from previous episodes of reasoning turn into pieces of implicit information. These outputs go on to constitute the meanings that we give to things or circumstances, which in turn become the general framework where other reasonings occur. These implicit meanings determine the manner in which we represent our social environment and, therefore, our emotions and behaviors. These "mental footnotes" set the way in which we contemplate and conceive the world and deal with reality. World order capitalizes on the mechanisms of the mind to control and guide humanity. The better we understand these processes, the better we can control and restructure them. Academic psychology often ignores the power of the discipline to set humankind free from those meanings that restrict spiritual and human development.

The Four Domains Model: Connecting Spirituality, Health and Well-Being

OpenAIRE

John Fisher

2011-01-01

At our core, or coeur, we humans are spiritual beings. Spirituality can be viewed in a variety of ways from a traditional understanding of spirituality as an expression of religiosity, in search of the sacred, through to a humanistic view of spirituality devoid of religion. Health is also multi-faceted, with increasing evidence reporting the relationship of spirituality with physical, mental, emotional, social and vocational well-being. This paper presents spiritual health as a, if not THE, f...

[Spirituality and ethics in psychosomatic medicine].

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Irmiš, Felix

2015-01-01

A patient has to cope with an illness on a physical, mental and spiritual level. There exists a difference between religiousness and spirituality even though the approach has a common foundation. Nonreligious spirituality relates to an inner experience, transcendent states of consciousness, meaningfulness, responsibility, sympathy, ethics, humanisation, faith. We encounter the spiritual point of view in humanistic psychotherapy, pastoral medicine, work of hospital chaplains, New Age, psychotherapies with religious and alternative aspects, transpersonal psychotherapy, psycho-spiritual crises, unusual states of consciousness, in meditation, Yoga, relaxation, kinesiology, ethicotherapy, reincarnation therapy, positive motivation, holotropic breathing, etc. There is description of different degrees of spiritual development, rational and irrational feeling of spirituality, Quantum Physics, spiritual intelligence, neuro-theology, physiological change, effects on improving adaptation during stress, drugs addiction, etc. Spirituality in relation with ethics is discussed in terms of socio-biology, evolution, emotions, aggressivity, genetics and social influence. The work analyses the effect of stressful situations on the deterioration of moral attitudes: during lack of time, obedience to authority and order. It is described how temperament and personality disorders can affect perception of spirituality, guilt feeling and conscience. Stressful situations, lack of time, relying only on the auxiliary objective methods leads to alienation of physician with a patient. Spirituality can partially improve the doctor-patient relationship, communication and sense of responsibility.

Evaluation of spiritual well-being in haemodialysis patients.

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Reig-Ferrer, Abilio; Arenas, M Dolores; Ferrer-Cascales, Rosario; Fernández-Pascual, M Dolores; Albaladejo-Blázquez, Natalia; Gil, M Teresa; de la Fuente, Vanesa

2012-01-01

Spirituality can be defined as a personal search for meaning and purpose in life that may or may not encompass religion. In this article we report on the development and testing of an instrument for measuring spiritual well-being within a sample of haemodialysis patients. The main instrument, a 21-item Meaning in Life Scale (MiLS), comprises four scales: Life Perspective, Purpose and Goals, Confusion and Lessened Meaning, Harmony and Peace, and Benefits of Spirituality. A total score for spiritual well-being is also produced. We also used the following variables: clinical (time on haemodialysis, modified Charlson comorbidity index), sociodemographic (age, gender), and self-assessments of health, quality of life (general and recent), personal happiness, religiosity, and belief in the afterlife. A cross-sectional study was carried out on 94 haemodialysis patients. This study demonstrates that the MiLS-Sp is a psychometrically sound measure of spiritual well-being for dialysis patients (reliability, validity) as they manage the complex demands of a chronic illness. Spiritual well-being was significantly associated with various quality of life variables, health status, personal happiness, or religiosity in patients on dialysis. There was no relationship between spirituality scores and comorbidity, HD duration, gender, or age. Spiritual well-being is relatively low in dialysis patients. Spirituality may play an important role on psychological well-being, quality of life, and self-rated health for patients on haemodialysis. Spiritual well-being in these patients is relatively low. Results suggest that assessing and addressing spiritual well-being in dialysis patients may be helpful in clinical practice.

Spiritual therapy to improve the spiritual well-being of Iranian women with breast cancer: a randomized controlled trial.

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Jafari, Najmeh; Farajzadegan, Ziba; Zamani, Ahmadreza; Bahrami, Fatemeh; Emami, Hamid; Loghmani, Amir; Jafari, Nooshin

2013-01-01

Purpose. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of spiritual therapy intervention in improving the spiritual well-being and quality of life (QOL) of Iranian women with breast cancer. Methods. This randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT) recruited 65 women with breast cancer, randomly assigned to a 6-week spirituality-based intervention (n = 34) or control group (n = 31). Before and after six-week spiritual therapy intervention, spiritual well-being and quality of life (QOL) were assessed using Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy Spiritual Well-being scale (FACIT-Sp12) and cancer quality-of-life questionnaire (QLQ-C30), respectively. t-test, Paired t-test, pearson's correlation, and hierarchical regression analyses were used for analysis using Predictive Analytic software (PASW, version 18) for Windows. Results. After six spiritual therapy sessions, the mean spiritual well-being score from 29.76 (SD = 6.63) to 37.24 (SD = 3.52) in the intervention group (P spiritual well-being and overall QOL. Social functioning was another significant predictor of spiritual well-being. Conclusion. The results of this randomized controlled trial study suggest that participation in spiritual therapy program is associated with improvements in spiritual well-being and QOL. Targeted interventions to acknowledge and incorporate spiritual needs into conventional treatment should be considered in caring of Iranian patients with breast cancer.

From psychology of adaptation to psychology of social change

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Awad, Sarah H.

and is influenced by contemporary socio-political contexts, then we need to introduce the science as not only studying how individuals are inclined to adapt, conform, and assimilate to the world as is, but also how and under which conditions individuals are agents for social change. I will discuss challenges......Introducing psychology to first year students comes with its own challenges of presenting it in a clear introductory manner, yet also triggering students to think critically about the theories they are presented with. If we were to think of social psychology as a discipline that mutually influences...

Faith and Belief, Importance, Community, Address in Care spiritual history tool by C. M. Puchalski as an instrument for an interdisciplinary team in patient car

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Krakowiak Piotr

2015-12-01

Full Text Available Being aware of the tradition of research on spirituality in theology and the existence of detailed publications and research concerning psychology of religion and religiosity in psychology as well as other sciences in Poland, the authors propose the recognition and adaptation of the FICA tool for spirituality research. The belief in the importance of deepening the knowledge and providing tools to research spirituality of human existence results from a long practice of the authors in palliative and hospital care. Understanding a difficulty in operationalizing the category of spirituality, they attempted at searching for a method that would be applicable to persons at the end of their lives as well as to all the suffering. Having analyzed the research tools built by Polish science as well as available ones on religiosity and spirituality the following paper aims at presenting the unknown FICA tool (F – Faith and Believe, I – Importance, C – Community, A – Address in Care in Poland by Prof. Dr. Christina M. Puchalski, USA, being adapted to Polish practice. The tool presented allows for the evaluation of spiritual experience of persons taken medical and social care of by every member of multidisciplinary team of professionals. Since the FICA tool is a qualitative scale it does not need a normalization and standardization methodology. However, a cultural adaptation is crucial in order to make the practical tool become help in answering spiritual and existential questions posed by patients to workers and voluntaries engaged in the process of Care.

Study of Association between Spiritual Well-Being and Happiness in Male Students in Firouzabad County, Iran

OpenAIRE

Parvaneh Doodman; Hajar Safari

2017-01-01

Background and Objectives: Currently, People worldwide are increasingly turning to spirituality and spiritual issues. Religion and spirituality are considered one of the determinants of happiness in psychology. This study was conducted to investigate the association between spiritual well-being and happiness in male students of Firouzabad County. Methods: Study samples were 200 students in Firouzabad professional schools who were selected by random cluster sampling. Research instruments we...

Spiritual Dryness in Non-Ordained Catholic Pastoral Workers

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Arndt Büssing

2016-12-01

Full Text Available Background: We wondered whether “spiritual dryness” as a specific phase of “spiritual crisis” or insecurity is mostly a matter only of Catholic priests or can also be found in other pastoral professionals. Methods: In a cross-sectional survey, we measured the prevalence of spiritual dryness in non-ordained Catholic pastoral workers, and identified relevant predictors. Results: In a sample of 3.277 pastoral workers, 50% would occasionally experience phases of spiritual dryness, while 13% experience it often or even regularly. There were no significant differences between women and men, professions, or age groups. The best predictors of spiritual dryness were low transcendence perception and a low sense of coherence (both are resources, as well as depressive symptoms and stress perception (both are demands or stressors, which would explain 41% of the variance. Self-efficacy expectation and social support were not among the significant predictors. Conclusion: Both the proportions and the main predictors are similar compared to Catholic priests. It is thus not the underlying profession or vocation and the related life situation or differences in social support, but predominantly specific perceptions, feelings, and attitudes that are related to the phenomenon of spiritual dryness—and these can be found in all pastoral professionals who seriously live their spirituality.

Social history of health psychology: context and textbooks.

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Murray, Michael

2014-01-01

Health psychology as a field of research and practice formally developed 30 years ago but it was prefigured by sustained debate within social and applied psychology about the nature of psychology and its role in society. This article considers this pre-history of health psychology and how the field has subsequently developed. It considers how its character is shaped by dominant ideas within psychology and is also enmeshed in broader social relations. To illustrate the changing character of health psychology it considers how the field is represented in a selection of popular textbooks. It concludes by considering the growth of some critical approaches within health psychology.

Religion, spirituality, and older adults with HIV: critical personal and social resources for an aging epidemic

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Vance D

2011-05-01

Full Text Available David E Vance1, Mark Brennan2, Comfort Enah1, Glenda L Smith1, Jaspreet Kaur31School of Nursing, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB, Birmingham, AL, USA; 2New York University College of Nursing, AIDS Community Research Initiative of America, New York, NY, USA; 3Department of Psychology and Edward R. Roybal Center for Translational Research in Aging and Mobility, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB, Birmingham, AL, USAAbstract: By 2015, approximately half of adults with HIV in the United States will be 50 and older. The demographic changes in this population due to successful treatment represent a unique challenge, not only in assisting these individuals to cope with their illness, but also in helping them to age successfully with this disease. Religious involvement and spirituality have been observed to promote successful aging in the general population and help those with HIV cope with their disease, yet little is known about how these resources may affect aging with HIV. Also, inherent barriers such as HIV stigma and ageism may prevent people from benefitting from religious and spiritual sources of solace as they age with HIV. In this paper, we present a model of barriers to successful aging with HIV, along with a discussion of how spirituality and religiousness may help people overcome these barriers. From this synthesis, implications for practice and research to improve the quality of life of this aging population are provided.Keywords: HIV, aging, spirituality, religion, stigma, coping, successful aging

Teaching Psychological and Social Gerontology to Millennial Undergraduates

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Siegal, Brittany; Kagan, Sarah H.

2012-01-01

Matters of development and generation may create barriers in teaching millennial undergraduates psychological and social gerontology. We introduce strategy to mitigate these barriers by teaching psychological and social gerontology as undergraduate honors courses, augmented with the use of social networking tools. We detail honors programming,…

The relationship between forgiveness, spirituality, traumatic guilt and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) among people with addiction.

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Langman, Louise; Chung, Man Cheung

2013-03-01

Spirituality and forgiveness have been shown to be associated with psychological well-being, while guilt has been associated with poor health. Little is known, however, about the relationship between forgiveness, spirituality, guilt, posttraumatic stress (PTSD) and psychological co-morbidity among people in recovery from addiction. Eighty-one people (F = 36, M = 45) in recovery from drug and alcohol addiction were recruited from two residential units and two drop-in centres in a city in the United Kingdom. They completed the Posttraumatic Stress Diagnostic Scale (PDS), the General Health Questionnaire-28 (GHQ-28), the Spiritual Involvement and Beliefs Scale (SIBS), the Heartland Forgiveness Scale (HFS), the Traumatic Guilt Inventory (TGI), the Michigan Alcoholism Screening Test (MAST-22) and the Drug Abuse Screening Test (DAST-20). The control group comprised of 83 (F = 34, M = 49) individuals who confirmed that they did not have addiction and completed the PDS & GHQ-28. 54 % of the addiction group met the criteria for full PTSD and reported anxiety, somatic problems and depression. They described themselves as spiritual, had strong feelings of guilt associated with their addiction, and had difficulty in forgiving themselves. Controlling for demographics, number of events and medication management, regression analyses showed that spirituality predicted psychological co-morbidity, whilst feelings of guilt predicted PTSD symptoms and psychological co-morbidity. Unexpectedly, forgiveness did not predict outcomes. This study supports existing literature, which shows that people with drug and alcohol addiction tend to have experienced significant past trauma and PTSD symptoms. Their posttraumatic stress reactions and associated psychological difficulties can be better understood in the light of guilt and spirituality. Meanwhile, their ability to forgive themselves or others did not seem to influence health outcomes.

Social Constructionist Psychology and its Application. Possibilities for a Reorientation

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Johannes von Tiling

2008-01-01

Full Text Available Social constructionism currently is understood as a metatheoretical alternative to positivism. It serves many social and cultural scientists as a point of reference. The possibilities to understand it as a psychological program of research that leaves space for agency and subjectivity usually are neglected. Promoting a dialogue with mainstream psychology constitutes one way of fostering social constructionist psychology. In addition, a theoretically productive conception of social constructionist psychology cannot do without reference to cultural psychology. An important advantage of such a conception lies in the increased number of possibilities for practical applications in hospitals, schools and factories. Whereas present applications of social constructionism tend to promote the postmodernization and individualization of the client, applied social constructionist psychology avoids these concomitant effects. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0801446

Spiritual leadership and spiritual care in neonatology.

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Caldeira, Sílvia; Hall, Jenny

2012-12-01

This article aims to explore spiritual care in the neonatal care environment in addition to highlighting the importance of spiritual leadership of a health team in that context. Neonatal care is an ethically demanding and stressful area of practice. Babies and families require spiritual needs to be recognized in the context of holistic care. Literature around spiritual leadership is explored to nurture workplace spirituality. Analysis of a range of sources provides a theoretical reflection on spiritual leadership and spiritual care in neonatal care settings. The literature identifies that the carers should consider carefully on how care given may affect the infant and family. Themes relating to the baby's and family's spiritual needs and those of the staff in this area are identified. Spiritual leadership by the manager will provide support to the staff and help spiritual need to be met in this area of practice. Spiritual needs should be acknowledged within neonatal care whether these are of babies, families or the team itself. Managers have responsibility to ensure that spiritual care is carried out for babies and their families and to care for the team as spiritual leaders. © 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Religious and Spiritual Struggles as Concerns for Health and Well-Being

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Nick Stauner

2016-03-01

Full Text Available People struggle with religion and spirituality in several ways, including challenges in trusting God, confronting supernatural evil, tolerating other perspectives on religion, maintaining moral propriety, finding existential meaning, and managing religious doubt. These religious and spiritual (R/S struggles relate to both physical and mental health independently of other religious and distress factors. Causality in this connection needs further study, but evidence supports many potential causes and moderators of the link between R/S struggle and health. These include personality, social, and environmental influences, including traumatic experiences and subcultural differences. Many theoretical questions remain unresolved, including how change in R/S struggle can predict or be predicted by change in health and other connected constructs, and how one might intervene to aid those who struggle with religious or spiritual challenges. Nonetheless, research momentum has grown, having already produced a wealth of information that underscores the need for greater attention to this domain. R/S struggle poses an important exception to generally positive overall associations between religion and well-being, though even R/S struggle may promote growth. This review offers a brief introduction to emerging psychological theory and research on R/S struggle with an emphasis on its relevance to wellness and illness.

Perspectives on the Social Psychology of Creativity

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Amabile, Teresa M.; Pillemer, Julianna

2012-01-01

Scholars began serious study into the social psychology of creativity about 25 years after the field of creativity research had taken root. Over the past 35 years, examination of social and environmental influences on creativity has become increasingly vigorous, with broad implications for the psychology of human performance, and with applications…

Social Climate Science: A New Vista for Psychological Science.

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Pearson, Adam R; Schuldt, Jonathon P; Romero-Canyas, Rainer

2016-09-01

The recent Paris Agreement to limit greenhouse gas emissions, adopted by 195 nations at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, signaled unprecedented commitment by world leaders to address the human social aspects of climate change. Indeed, climate change increasingly is recognized by scientists and policymakers as a social issue requiring social solutions. However, whereas psychological research on intrapersonal and some group-level processes (e.g., political polarization of climate beliefs) has flourished, research into other social processes-such as an understanding of how nonpartisan social identities, cultural ideologies, and group hierarchies shape public engagement on climate change-has received substantially less attention. In this article, we take stock of current psychological approaches to the study of climate change to explore what is "social" about climate change from the perspective of psychology. Drawing from current interdisciplinary perspectives and emerging empirical findings within psychology, we identify four distinct features of climate change and three sets of psychological processes evoked by these features that are fundamentally social and shape both individual and group responses to climate change. Finally, we consider how a more nuanced understanding of the social underpinnings of climate change can stimulate new questions and advance theory within psychology. © The Author(s) 2016.

Bring about benefit, forestall harm: what communication studies say about spirituality and cancer care.

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Tullis, Jillian A

2010-01-01

Technological advances in medicine allow health care providers to diagnose diseases earlier, diminish suffering, and prolong life. These advances, although widely revered for changing the face of cancer care, come at a cost for patients, families, and even health care providers. One widely cited consequence of better diagnostics and improved treatment regiments is the sense that there is always one more test or therapy available to extend life. Such an approach to cancer care can prove detrimental to patients? healing. In addition, these new tests and treatments further focus attention on the body as the site of healing and cure while downplaying other aspects of health. The absence of psychological, social, and spiritual care from a patient's cancer care plan compromises healing and makes palliative and end of life care more complicated. In this essay, I discuss the tensions that exist between contemporary cancer care and spirituality and use Communication Studies scholarship to navigate the challenges of integrating a patient's religious or spiritual beliefs into their cancer treatment and care. In addition to discussing the challenges of communicating about sensitive topics such as illness, spirituality, and dying, this article uses narrative examples from a comprehensive cancer center and a hospice (both in the United States) to understand how people with cancer and other terminal illnesses communicate their spirituality and how these conversations influence health care choices and provide comfort. By understanding how patients communicate about topics such as the meaning of life, quality of life, dying and death, providers are better equipped to offer care that is consistent with a patient's beliefs and life goals. This approach maintains that communication is more than a means of transferring information, but is constitutive. By understanding that communication creates our lives and shapes our worlds, lay and professional caregivers can meet patients where

Religious and Spiritual Education in Disability Situations in Italy

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Friso, Valeria; Caldin, Roberta

2014-01-01

In this short article, the authors focus on religious and spiritual education's potential to offer social and spiritual inclusion for students with a disability. They take the view that the religious and spiritual education teacher in such situations is positioned better when seeing such teaching as a special vocation. They use Italy as the case…

Towards Religious/Spiritual Competence for Applied Psychologists in NHS Settings in the UK

OpenAIRE

Koce, Precious

2013-01-01

The profession of psychology in the UK is gradually showing signs of renewed interest in the area of religion/spirituality (e.g., Collicut, 2011). The present study aimed to (i) explore applied psychologists‟ accounts of their practice in the NHS, UK, with clients with religious/spiritual issues; and (ii) from these accounts identify participants‟ indications of religious/spiritual competencies. Thematic analysis as outlined by Braun and Clarke (2006) was employed and subscribed to a critical...

Spiritual values of heads of general education institutions as a factor of professional crises’ overcoming

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Алла Степанівна Москальова

2015-12-01

Full Text Available The article is devoted to the important problem of psychology – the research of the spiritual values of heads of general education institutions. The content and indicators of development of spiritual values of managers are determined. The results of empirical research levels of spiritual values of managers are presented. It has been proved correlation between the levels of development of spiritual values of heads of general education institutions and their ability to overcome professional crises

Spiritual Intelligence: Developing Higher Consciousness Revisited

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Sisk, Dorothy A.

2016-01-01

This article will share the intellectual journey E. Paul Torrance and I traveled in 2001, in which we explored psychology, science and ancient wisdom and traditions, including Native American and indigenous traditions, to establish a foundation for spiritual intelligence. This section will be followed by ways to develop and nurture spiritual…

Nature meets nurture in religious and spiritual development.

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Granqvist, Pehr; Nkara, Frances

2017-03-01

We consider nurture's (including culture's) sculpting influences on the evolved psychological predispositions that are expressed in religious and spiritual (R&S) development. An integrated understanding of R&S development requires a move away from the largely one-sided (nature-or-nurture) and additive (nature + nurture) accounts provided in the extant literature. R&S development has been understood as an expression of evolved cognitive modules (nature) on the one hand, and of socialization and social learning (nurture) on the other, or in similar albeit additive terms (e.g., nature produces the brain/mind, culture fills in the details). We argue that humans' evolved psychological predispositions are substantially co-shaped by environmental/cultural input, such as relational experiences and modelling at the microlevel through belief and value systems at the macrolevel. Nurture's sculpting of nature is, then, expressed in R&S development. Finally, for heuristic purposes, we illustrate a fully integrated nature-nurture model with attachment theory and its application to R&S development. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Development unfolds as a function of nature-nurture interaction. R&S development has mostly been understood from the point of view of separate nature or nurture models. What does this study add? A collected consideration of the intricate interactions between nature and nurture in development. A sketch, examples, and a conceptual toolbox of how nature and nurture interact in R&S development. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.

Social psychological-pedagogical support of singleparent family

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Ruslana Kazhuk

2018-01-01

Full Text Available The article deals with the definition of the concept of "incomplete family", describes the typology of single-parent families, the necessity of special social psychological and pedagogical support for children from such families and their parents has been proved. The analysis of various concepts of ―support‖has been made. The idea of psychological and pedagogical support of modern incomplete families has been determined. Key words: incomplete family, types of single-parent families, support, social support, psychological and pedagogical support of single-parent families.

On the routes of Social Psychology in Brazil Sobre os rumos da Psicologia Social no Brasil

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Celso Pereira de Sá

2013-03-01

Full Text Available Considering the different paths of knowledge production that Social psychologists have run in Brazil, the text makes a distinction between a stricto sensu Social Psychology and the lato sensu one. The stricto sensu Social Psychologycomprises the trends found in the historical development of the discipline and in scientific modernity: the mainstream "psychological" Social Psychology; the European "sociological" Social Psychology; the "micro-sociological" perspectives, since Mead. The lato sensu Social Psychology comprises the trends that emerged aside the subject's history or very recently, following other epistemological guidelines: the Marxist Social Psychology, institutional analysis, socio-historical Psychology, socio-constructionism, and the philosophical Social Psychology. The eight trends listed are then submitted to evaluations regarding the two basic dimensions of Social Psychology: societal and psychological. A comparative picture of those evaluations discloses differences between the stricto and lato sensu sets of Social Psychology, as well as between the several trends in the scope of each set.Considerando os variados rumos de produção de conhecimento trilhados no Brasil pelos psicólogos sociais, o texto faz distinção entre uma Psicologia Social stricto sensu e outra lato sensu. À Psicologia Social stricto sensu correspondem as correntes que se situam no desenvolvimento histórico da disciplina e na modernidade científica: a Psicologia Social "psicológica" mainstream; a Psicologia Social "sociológica" europeia; as perspectivas "microssociológicas", desde Mead. À Psicologia Social lato sensu correspondem as correntes surgidas à margem da história da disciplina ou muito recentemente, com outras diretrizes epistemológicas: Psicologia Social marxista, análise institucional, Psicologia sócio-histórica, sócio-construcionismo e Psicologia Social filosófica. As oito correntes listadas são em seguida submetidas a avalia

A Qur’anic Framework for Spiritual Intelligence

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Benaouda Bensaid

2014-02-01

Full Text Available This paper examines the perspective of the Qur’an on spiritual intelligence in an attempt to understand its foundations, meaning and nature, as well as derive its indicators, in an effort to develop a competency-based criterion for it. This paper draws on some illustrations that effectively highlight the Qur’anic perspective on the subject of spiritual intelligence. The paper concludes that spiritual intelligence developed in accordance with a Qur’anic framework that incorporates spiritual consciousness into a system of belief, worship, morality and social responsibility. The understanding of the Qur’anic perspective helps uncover some of the broad underlying theoretical principles and values of Islamic spiritual intelligence which shapes much of Muslim spiritual undertaking with relation to a wider spectrum of interaction with faith-groups and society; effectively developing more inclusive models of evaluation and capacity-building in contemporary multi-religious societies.

Spiritual Medicine in The Multi Perspective of Religion

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Minhas, Marwa; Akhmad, Syaefudin Ali; Afzal, Nadeem

2017-01-01

Spiritual healing, also known as healing through prayer and meditation, has been widely studied by various scholars from different religions including Islam, Hindu, Buddhism and Christianity. The term spiritual medicine is increasingly popular with increasing mental disorders, degenerative diseases, metabolic, cancer and social illness such as drug abuse. Religions of Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism and Christianity have almost the same tradition in the spiritual aspect to create purity of self and...

The Spiritually-Based Organization: A Theoretical Review and its Potential Role in the Third Millennium

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Anselmo Ferreira Vasconcelos

Full Text Available This paper examines whether the spiritually-based organization (SBO can be regarded as an imperative for the third millennium. As a result, it draws on the literature review of organizational spirituality, psychology of religion, positive psychology, and spirituality leadership theory in order to support its conclusions, as well as it offers some research propositions. Overall, the evidence gathered throughout this paper suggests that the spiritual paradigm starts to play a key role alongside with the concept of SBOs. Rather, it concludes that these topics can be regarded as authentic imperatives for this millennium. Nonetheless, it argues that is likely to take some time until the spirituality topic may mold, so to speak, organizations' character regarding that spiritual theme is starting to become a noteworthy topic. Furthermore, it argues that the logic that has prevailed on business enterprises has been largely economic, except some honorable initiatives. The findings also indicate that the material paradigm is not suited to deal with germane problems that shape our today's world. Finally, it suggests that the concept of SBO embraces positive changes and, as such, it may be potentially conducive to improving people lives and the planet's health and equilibrium.

When does spiritual intelligence particularly predict job engagement? The mediating role of psychological empowerment

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Mohsen Torabi

2016-01-01

Conclusions: This paper indicates that spiritual intelligence might affect different organizational parameters, directly or indirectly. Therefore, it is recommended that the researchers evaluate probable relationships between spiritual intelligence and other variables.

Psychiatric care in Asia: spirituality and religious connotations.

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Chaudhry, Haroon Rashid

2008-10-01

Throughout the history of humanity it has been said that the individual ego, is a very limited form of identity. Spirituality is shaped by larger social circumstances and by the beliefs and values present in the wider culture. In Asia, as compared to other regions, people fall back on spiritualism. Mental health professionals, laymen and patients have great interest in spirituality and religious activities but still it is one of the most neglected fields of life. Spirituality and religion often are used interchangeably and it has also been described as an individual search for meaning. In psychiatry, religion and spirituality play a vital role in an individual's personal and social life. They are part of a very powerful medium to help in the healing process. Spiritual people know the meaning and goal of their life, have strong belief and firm faith in God or themselves, they can easily cope with stress and have the ability to adjust in every situation. They have satisfaction and contentment. They are less anxious and depressed and if they feel so, they try to overcome it through religious activities or rituals. Patients who depend heavily on their religious faith are significantly less depressed than those who don't. Spiritual practices foster an awareness that serves to identify and promote values such as creativity, patience, perseverance, honesty, kindness, compassion, wisdom, equanimity, hope and joy, all of which support good healthcare practice. Spirituality and religion form a bridge of contact between human, a composite of body and soul, and the Creator. Realizing this need, mental health professionals working in this field need to understand the spiritual values of patients and incorporate them in assessment and treatment.

AIDS, religious enthusiasm and spiritual insecurity in Africa.

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Ashforth, Adam

2011-01-01

The connection between the AIDS epidemic and the efflorescence of religious 'enthusiasm' (construed in both classical and contemporary senses) in Africa in recent decades is best understood, this paper argues, by reference to a concept of 'spiritual insecurity'. The article offers a general description of the condition of spiritual insecurity and argues that it is best studied within a relational realist paradigm. The article presents a critique of the concept of 'belief' as commonly used in the social science of religion, arguing instead for an opening of the study of social relations to include the universe of relations within which people experience the world, including their relations with entities such as spiritual beings that might otherwise be considered virtual.

Relationship between mental health and spiritual wellbeing among hemodialysis patients: a correlation study.

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Martínez, Beatriz Bertolaccini; Custódio, Rodrigo Pereira

2014-01-01

The stress of living with a terminal disease has a negative impact on the mental health of hemodialysis (HD) patients. Spirituality is a potential coping mechanism for stressful experiences. Studies on the relationship between spirituality and mental health among HD patients are scarce. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between mental health and spiritual well-being among HD patients. Cross-sectional observational study on hemodialysis patients at a single center in Brazil, between January and December 2011. Mental health was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire and spiritual wellbeing was assessed using the Spiritual Wellbeing Scale; 150 HD patients participated in the study. A significant correlation was found between mental health and spiritual wellbeing (P = 0.001). Spiritual wellbeing was the strongest predictor of mental health, psychological distress, sleep disturbance and psychosomatic complaints. Poor mental health was associated with lower spiritual wellbeing. This has important implications for delivery of palliative care to HD patients.

The spiritual meanning of illness-theological and psychological perspective

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PhD. Claudia Vlaicu

2015-06-01

Full Text Available Definying illness is not an easy process, nor from medical perspective nor from theological one or individual perspective. However, the most important and truely significant seems to be the latter; how the contemporary man defines illnesses and how he uses this process to redefine his true being. Nowadays we face an obvious spiritual crisis meant to urge each of us to start a new process of redefining our spiritual identity. This paper is intented to remind us of the essence of our being on the one hand and of the Christian duty to fight against illness on the other hand, to bear permanently with us the model of Jesus, of the Holly Parents, who were subject to deseases also out of reasons that are related to God’s iconomy. The limits of medicine are visible there where miracles start to reveal themselves and the healing of the body symbolizes and announces the healing of the entire Being.

corporate social responsibility and psychological contract

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Global Journal

2017-07-04

Jul 4, 2017 ... KEYWORDS: Corporate social responsibilities, Psychological contract, Nigeria, Niger delta, ... The concept of Corporate Social ... CSR initiatives rather than mere financial ..... fundamental idea in such a contract (PC) is the.

Beyond folk psychology? : toward an enriched account of social understanding

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Herschbach, Mitchell Albert

2010-01-01

Folk psychology is the ability to interpret people's mental states (beliefs, desires, etc.) and use this information to explain and predict their behavior. While folk psychology has traditionally been seen as fundamental to human social understanding, philosophers drawing on the phenomenological tradition have recently argued that most of our everyday social interactions do not involve folk psychology. I defend the role of folk psychology in human social understanding against these phenomenol...

Social-Psychological Aspects of Professional Learning Motivation

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Markov D.O.,

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The article contains a theoretical review of both Russian (T.O. Gordeeva A.G. Bugrimenko, O.A. Tchadenkova etc. and foreign (R. Rayan, and E. Dasy, A. Elliot and H. Makgregor, etc approaches, classifications and researches of motivation of educational-professional activity, and special attention is paid to the socially-psychological features of this motivation: external conditionality of structural components, including achievement motivation, the mechanism of its formation in changing conditions of social environment, as well as nature of correlation of socially-psychological features of personality, in particular, processes of its socially-psychological adaptation, with characteristics of its motivational sphere. The article considers researches of external educational environment, (M. Bokarts, etc. and inner personality settings (К. Dvak, А. Bandura on becoming and development of motivation training are considered. Also there are researches of dynamics of motivation of educational-professional activity on various phases of educational process are described.

Investigation of Mathematics Teachers Conceptualisation of the Spiritual, Moral, Social and Cultural Role of Mathematics

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Agashi, Pius P.; Enemali, I. A.

2015-01-01

The study sought to investigate mathematics teachers' conceptualization of the spiritual, moral social and cultural (SMSC) role of mathematics in Ankpa Education Zone of Kogi State. It used a purposive sample of all the 82 mathematics teachers in the zone comprising of 64 male and 18 female. The instrument used for the study was SMSC Role of…

The Relationship of Physiopsychosocial Factors and Spiritual Well-Being in Elderly Residents: Implications for Evidence-Based Practice.

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Chen, Yi-Heng; Lin, Li-Chan; Chuang, Li-Lan; Chen, Mei-Li

2017-12-01

Older adults in residential settings frequently suffer from functional decline, mental illness, and social isolation, which make them more vulnerable to spiritual distress. However, empirical evidence of the interrelationships between physiopsychosocial variables and spiritual well-being are still lacking, limiting the application of the biopsychosocial-spiritual model in institutional healthcare practice. To explain the mechanisms by which these variables are linked, this cross-sectional study tested a causal model of predictors of spiritual well-being among 377 institutionalized older adults with disability using a structural equation modeling approach. The primary variables in the hypothesized model were measured using the Barthel Index for functional ability, the Geriatric Depression Scale-short form for depression, the Personal Resources Questionnaire 85-Part 2 for perceived social support, and the Spiritual Well-Being Scale for spiritual well-being. The model fit indices suggest that the hypothesized model had a reasonably adequate model fit (χ 2 = 12.18, df = 6, p = .07, goodness-of-fitness index [GFI] = 0.99, adjusted GIF index [AGFI] = 0.93, nonnormed fit index [NFI] = 0.99, comparative fit index [CFI] = 0.99). In this study, perceived social support and depression directly affected spiritual well-being, and functional ability indirectly affected spiritual well-being via perceived social support or depression. In addition, functional ability influenced perceived social support directly, which in turn influenced depression and ultimately influenced spiritual well-being. This study results confirm the effect of physiopsychosocial factors on institutionalized older adults' spiritual well-being. However, the presence and level of functional disability do not necessarily influence spiritual well-being in late life unless it is disruptive to social relationships and is thus bound to lead to low perceived social support and the onset of depression. The findings

Psilocybin-occasioned mystical-type experience in combination with meditation and other spiritual practices produces enduring positive changes in psychological functioning and in trait measures of prosocial attitudes and behaviors.

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Griffiths, Roland R; Johnson, Matthew W; Richards, William A; Richards, Brian D; Jesse, Robert; MacLean, Katherine A; Barrett, Frederick S; Cosimano, Mary P; Klinedinst, Maggie A

2018-01-01

Psilocybin can occasion mystical-type experiences with participant-attributed increases in well-being. However, little research has examined enduring changes in traits. This study administered psilocybin to participants who undertook a program of meditation/spiritual practices. Healthy participants were randomized to three groups (25 each): (1) very low-dose (1 mg/70 kg on sessions 1 and 2) with moderate-level ("standard") support for spiritual-practice (LD-SS); (2) high-dose (20 and 30 mg/70 kg on sessions 1 and 2, respectively) with standard support (HD-SS); and (3) high-dose (20 and 30 mg/70kg on sessions 1 and 2, respectively) with high support for spiritual practice (HD-HS). Psilocybin was administered double-blind and instructions to participants/staff minimized expectancy confounds. Psilocybin was administered 1 and 2 months after spiritual-practice initiation. Outcomes at 6 months included rates of spiritual practice and persisting effects of psilocybin. Compared with low-dose, high-dose psilocybin produced greater acute and persisting effects. At 6 months, compared with LD-SS, both high-dose groups showed large significant positive changes on longitudinal measures of interpersonal closeness, gratitude, life meaning/purpose, forgiveness, death transcendence, daily spiritual experiences, religious faith and coping, and community observer ratings. Determinants of enduring effects were psilocybin-occasioned mystical-type experience and rates of meditation/spiritual practices. Psilocybin can occasion enduring trait-level increases in prosocial attitudes/behaviors and in healthy psychological functioning. Trial Registration ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT00802282.

Marañón and historical social psychology: some theoretical questions.

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Almagro González, Andrés

2008-11-01

Full Text Available If one takes a multidisciplinary, integrative perspective on historical social psychology, one sees that it is a vital thread not only in the theoretical weave of social psychology as such, but in any social science which studies the social being. The multidisciplinary character of historical social psychology is friendly to authors and ideas from other domains of knowledge. Marañón's insights suggest interesting ways of answering the main questions that arise in historical social psychology. The application of his method, as I shall try to show, can orient to us towards a social psychology concerned not only with the here and now of its object of study, but also with the way in which it has evolved through history.

Spiritual needs in health care settings: a qualitative meta-synthesis of clients' perspectives.

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Hodge, David R; Horvath, Violet E

2011-10-01

Spiritual needs often emerge in the context of receiving health or behavioral health services. Yet, despite the prevalence and salience of spiritual needs in service provision, clients often report their spiritual needs are inadequately addressed. In light of research suggesting that most social workers have received minimal training in identifying spiritual needs, this study uses a qualitative meta-synthesis (N=11 studies) to identify and describe clients'perceptions of their spiritual needs in health care settings. The results revealed six interrelated themes: (1) meaning, purpose, and hope; (2) relationship with God; (3) spiritual practices; (4) religious obligations; (5) interpersonal connection; and (6) professional staff interactions. The implications of the findings are discussed as they intersect social work practice and education.

Effects of integral breath consciousness workshops on spirituality ...

African Journals Online (AJOL)

Although not quite reaching quantitative significant levels, qualitatively improved health was reported. The results are discussed in relation to previous and future research with regard to the influence of breath consciousness on perceptions of spirituality, health, psychological skills, stress and related phenomena.

The ethical challenge of working with spiritual difference: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of practitioners' accounts

OpenAIRE

Jackson, J; Coyle, A

2009-01-01

Addressing spirituality in therapy is not only important for a substantial number of clients but many therapists also regard it as potentially valuable.However, practitioners report difficulties and confusion regarding how to work with spiritual difference, especially when clients’ spiritual beliefs are perceived as undermining their psychological well-being. The current study aimed to explore this challenge through the use of a qualitative design. Semistructured interviews were conducted wit...

Spiritual care of cancer patients by integrated medicine in urban green space: a pilot study.

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Nakau, Maiko; Imanishi, Jiro; Imanishi, Junichi; Watanabe, Satoko; Imanishi, Ayumi; Baba, Takeshi; Hirai, Kei; Ito, Toshinori; Chiba, Wataru; Morimoto, Yukihiro

2013-01-01

Psycho-oncological care, including spiritual care, is essential for cancer patients. Integrated medicine, a therapy combining modern western medicine with various kinds of complementary and alternative medicine, can be appropriate for the spiritual care of cancer because of the multidimensional characteristics of the spirituality. In particular, therapies that enable patients to establish a deeper contact with nature, inspire feelings of life and growth of plants, and involve meditation may be useful for spiritual care as well as related aspects such as emotion. The purpose of the present study was to examine the effect of spiritual care of cancer patients by integrated medicine in a green environment. The present study involved 22 cancer patients. Integrated medicine consisted of forest therapy, horticultural therapy, yoga meditation, and support group therapy, and sessions were conducted once a week for 12 weeks. The spirituality (the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual well-being), quality of life (Short Form-36 Health Survey Questionnaire), fatigue (Cancer Fatigue Scale), psychological state (Profile of Mood States, short form, and State-Trait Anxiety Inventory) and natural killer cell activity were assessed before and after intervention. In Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual well-being, there were significant differences in functional well-being and spiritual well-being pre- and postintervention. This program improved quality of life and reduced cancer-associated fatigue. Furthermore, some aspects of psychological state were improved and natural killer cell activity was increased. It is indicated that integrated medicine performed in a green environment is potentially useful for the emotional and spiritual well-being of cancer patients. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Toward a Psychological Study of Class Consciousness: Development and Validation of a Social Psychological Model

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Lucas A. Keefer

2015-12-01

Full Text Available While social class has recently become a prominent topic in social psychological research, much of this effort has focused on the psychological consequences of objective and subjective indices of class (e.g., income, perceived status. This approach sheds light on the consequences of social class itself, but overlooks a construct of central importance in earlier theorizing on class: class consciousness, or the extent to which individuals acknowledge and situate themselves within class relations. The current paper offers a psychological model of class consciousness comprised of five elements: awareness of social class, perceptions of class conflict, beliefs about the permeability of class groups, identification with a class group, and personal experience of being treated as a member of one’s class. We offer a measure assessing those central dimensions and assess differences in these dimensions by age, gender, indices of social class, political ideology, and among different class groups. Finally, we offer suggestions for how an awareness of class consciousness may enrich social psychology and ultimately foster political change.

Social Isolation, Depression, and Psychological Distress Among Older Adults.

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Taylor, Harry Owen; Taylor, Robert Joseph; Nguyen, Ann W; Chatters, Linda

2018-02-01

To investigate the impact of objective and subjective social isolation from extended family members and friends on depressive symptoms and psychological distress among a national sample of older adults. Data for older adults (55 years and above) from the National Survey of American Life ( N = 1,439) were used to assess level of objective social isolation and subjective social isolation and to test regression models examining their impact on depressive symptoms (Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression [CES-D] Scale) and psychological distress (Kessler 6 [K6] Scale). The majority of respondents were not socially isolated from family or friends; 5% were objectively isolated from family and friends, and less than 1% were subjectively isolated from family and friends. Regression analyses using both social isolation measures indicated that objective social isolation was unrelated to depressive symptoms and psychological distress. However, subjective social isolation from both family and friends and from friends only was associated with more depressive symptoms, and subjective social isolation from friends only was associated with higher levels of psychological distress. Assessments of social isolation among older populations should account for both subjective and objective dimensions, as well as both family and friend social networks. Social isolation from friends is an important, but understudied, issue that has significant consequences for older adult mental health.

Spirituality and Quality of Life in Black Patients with Cancer Pain.

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Bai, Jinbing; Brubaker, Andrea; Meghani, Salimah H; Bruner, Deborah W; Yeager, Katherine A

2018-05-29

The objective of this study was to examine the associations between spirituality and overall quality of life (QOL) and individual QOL domains in Black patients with cancer pain. A secondary data analysis of a parent study exploring pain medication adherence in Black patients receiving around-the-clock opioids with cancer pain was performed. All the participating patients completed Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being Scale (spirituality), Brief Pain Inventory (pain severity and interference), Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (symptoms), and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General (QOL). Pearson correlation and multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to examine the associations between spirituality and overall QOL and QOL domains and to identify the predictors of overall QOL and QOL domains. Black patients treated for cancer pain (n = 102) completed the study. Pearson correlation showed significant positive associations between spirituality and overall QOL (p < 0.001) and individual QOL domains (physical, social, emotional, functional). Higher spirituality was associated with lower pain severity (p = 0.01), pain interference (p = 0.001) and total symptoms score (p < 0.001). In multiple regression analysis, the best model for the overall QOL explained 67% of the variance (p < 0.001) and included total symptoms score, pain interference, spirituality and age. Spirituality significantly predicted QOL domains of social (p < 0.0001), emotional (p = 0.002) and functional well-being (p = 0.001) rather than physical well-being. Spirituality is associated with decreased pain and lower symptom burden and may serve as a protective factor against diminished overall QOL, specifically social, emotional and functional domains in back patients with cancer pain. There is a need to develop spirituality-based interventions along with symptom management interventions to improve QOL for this population. Copyright © 2018. Published by

Spiritual Therapy to Improve the Spiritual Well-Being of Iranian Women with Breast Cancer: A Randomized Controlled Trial

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Najmeh Jafari

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Purpose. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of spiritual therapy intervention in improving the spiritual well-being and quality of life (QOL of Iranian women with breast cancer. Methods. This randomized controlled clinical trial (RCT recruited 65 women with breast cancer, randomly assigned to a 6-week spirituality-based intervention (n=34 or control group (n=31. Before and after six-week spiritual therapy intervention, spiritual well-being and quality of life (QOL were assessed using Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy Spiritual Well-being scale (FACIT-Sp12 and cancer quality-of-life questionnaire (QLQ-C30, respectively. t-test, Paired t-test, pearson's correlation, and hierarchical regression analyses were used for analysis using Predictive Analytic software (PASW, version 18 for Windows. Results. After six spiritual therapy sessions, the mean spiritual well-being score from 29.76 (SD=6.63 to 37.24 (SD=3.52 in the intervention group (P<0.001. There was a significant difference between arms of study (F=22.91, P<0.001. A significant positive correlation was detected between meaning and peace with all subscales of functional subscales on European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer quality of Life (EORTC QLQ-C30 (P<0.05. Hierarchical regression analyses of participants indicated that the study arm, pain, and financial impact were significant predictors of spiritual well-being and overall QOL. Social functioning was another significant predictor of spiritual well-being. Conclusion. The results of this randomized controlled trial study suggest that participation in spiritual therapy program is associated with improvements in spiritual well-being and QOL. Targeted interventions to acknowledge and incorporate spiritual needs into conventional treatment should be considered in caring of Iranian patients with breast cancer.

SOCIAL COMPETENCE AND PSYCHOLOGICAL VULNERABILITY: THE MEDIATING ROLE OF FLOURISHING.

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Uysal, Recep

2015-10-01

This study examined whether flourishing mediated the social competence and psychological vulnerability. Participants were 259 university students (147 women, 112 men; M age = 21.3 yr., SD = 1.7) who completed the Turkish versions of the Perceived Social Competence Scale, the Flourishing Scale, and the Psychological Vulnerability Scale. Mediation models were tested using the bootstrapping method to examine indirect effects. Consistent with the hypotheses, the results indicated a positive relationship between social competence and flourishing, and a negative relationship between social competence and psychological vulnerability. Results of the bootstrapping method revealed that flourishing significantly mediated the relationship between social competence and psychological vulnerability. The significance and limitations of the results were discussed.

The Evaluation of Significant Figures in the History of Social Psychology: A Class Exercise in the Teaching of Introductory Social Psychology

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Innes, John Michael; Chambers, Timothy Peter

2017-01-01

In teaching social psychology, the process of identifying a particular theorist can lead to an enhanced understanding of the theories associated with that individual. Employing this process into a summative assessment, this article outlines an exercise that facilitated the teaching of introductory social psychology to 147 undergraduate students.…

Evolutionary Theory's Increasing Role in Personality and Social Psychology

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Gregory D. Webster

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Has the emergence of evolutionary psychology had an increasing impact on personality and social psychological research published over the past two decades? If so, is its growing influence substantially different from that of other emerging psychological areas? These questions were addressed in the present study by conducting a content analysis of the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology (JPSP from 1985 to 2004 using the PsycINFO online abstract database. Specifically, keyword searches for “evol*” or “Darwin*” revealed that the percentage of JPSP articles drawing on evolutionary theory was modest, but increased significantly between 1985 and 2004. To compare the growing impact of evolutionary psychology with other psychological areas, similar keywords searches were performed in JPSP for emotion and motivation, judgment and decision making, neuroscience and psychophysiology, stereotyping and prejudice, and terror management theory. The increase in evolutionary theory in JPSP over time was practically equal to the mean increase over time for the other five areas. Thus, evolutionary psychology has played an increasing role in shaping personality and social psychological research over the past 20 years, and is growing at a rate consistent with other emerging psychological areas.

On the history of political diversity in social psychology.

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Binning, Kevin R; Sears, David O

2015-01-01

We argue that the history of political diversity in social psychology may be better characterized by stability than by a large shift toward liberalism. The branch of social psychology that focuses on political issues has defined social problems from a liberal perspective since at least the 1930s. Although a lack of ideological diversity within the discipline can pose many of the problems noted by Duarte et al., we suggest that these problems (a) are less apparent when the insights of social psychology are pitted against the insights from other social science disciplines, and (b) are less pressing than the need for other types of diversity in the field, especially ethnic and racial diversity.

Assessment of Teachers from a Social Psychological Perspective

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Madni, Ayesha; Baker, Eva L.; Chow, Kirby A.; Delacruz, Girlie C.; Griffin, Noelle C.

2015-01-01

The focus of this chapter is on the description and assessment of teachers' social psychological factors, using the scientific literature as a base. Research on teachers' social psychological domains has an ultimate goal of populating classrooms with competent people who can model and incite behaviors that assist students in their own learning.…

How cultural evolutionary theory can inform social psychology and vice versa.

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Mesoudi, Alex

2009-10-01

Cultural evolutionary theory is an interdisciplinary field in which human culture is viewed as a Darwinian process of variation, competition, and inheritance, and the tools, methods, and theories developed by evolutionary biologists to study genetic evolution are adapted to study cultural change. It is argued here that an integration of the theories and findings of mainstream social psychology and of cultural evolutionary theory can be mutually beneficial. Social psychology provides cultural evolution with a set of empirically verified microevolutionary cultural processes, such as conformity, model-based biases, and content biases, that are responsible for specific patterns of cultural change. Cultural evolutionary theory provides social psychology with ultimate explanations for, and an understanding of the population-level consequences of, many social psychological phenomena, such as social learning, conformity, social comparison, and intergroup processes, as well as linking social psychology with other social science disciplines such as cultural anthropology, archaeology, and sociology.

Relationship between mental health and spiritual wellbeing among hemodialysis patients: a correlation study

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Beatriz Bertolaccini Martinez

Full Text Available CONTEXT AND OBJECTIVE: The stress of living with a terminal disease has a negative impact on the mental health of hemodialysis (HD patients. Spirituality is a potential coping mechanism for stressful experiences. Studies on the relationship between spirituality and mental health among HD patients are scarce. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the relationship between mental health and spiritual well-being among HD patients. DESIGN AND SETTING: Cross-sectional observational study on hemodialysis patients at a single center in Brazil, between January and December 2011. METHODS : Mental health was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire and spiritual wellbeing was assessed using the Spiritual Wellbeing Scale; 150 HD patients participated in the study. RESULTS : A significant correlation was found between mental health and spiritual wellbeing (P = 0.001. Spiritual wellbeing was the strongest predictor of mental health, psychological distress, sleep disturbance and psychosomatic complaints. CONCLUSION: Poor mental health was associated with lower spiritual wellbeing. This has important implications for delivery of palliative care to HD patients.

Bridging history and social psychology: what, how and why.

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Glăveanu, Vlad; Yamamoto, Koji

2012-12-01

This special issue aims to bridge history and social psychology by bringing together historians and social psychologists in an exercise of reading and learning from each other's work. This interdisciplinary exercise is not only timely but of great importance for both disciplines. Social psychologists can benefit from engaging with historical sources by being able to contextualise their findings and enrich their theoretical models. It is not only that all social and psychological phenomena have a history but this history is very much part of present-day and future developments. On the other hand historians can enhance their analysis of historical sources by drawing upon the conceptual tools developed in social psychology. They can "test" these tools and contribute to their validation and enrichment from completely different perspectives. Most important, as contributions to this special issue amply demonstrate, psychology's "historical turn" has the potential to shed a new light on striking, yet underexplored, similarities between contemporary public spheres and their pre-modern counterparts. This issue thereby calls into question the dichotomy between traditional and de-traditionalized societies-a distinction that lies at the heart of many social psychology accounts of the world we live in. The present editorial will introduce and consider this act of bridging history and social psychology by focusing on three main questions: What is the bridge made of? How can the two disciplines be bridged? and Why we cross this interdisciplinary bridge? In the end a reflection on the future of this collaboration will be offered.

Social psychology and energy attitude consumer change

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Karimi, Y.; Saffarinia, M.

2005-01-01

One of the most issues in social Psychology is study of attitude. Attitudes are causes of human behavior. If we regard energy consumption as a behavior for changing behavior in field of energy we must to study attitude and attitude change.In social psychology attitude define as positive and negative affective state to a matter of object. In this paper try it describe approaches and theories about attitudes and attitude change such as classical conditioning operant conditioning, social learning and cognitive. We hope this paper will be useful for planners and expert that work in this field

Spiritual needs of cancer patients: A qualitative study

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Khadijeh Hatamipour

2015-01-01

Full Text Available Introduction: Diagnosis of cancer can cause huge spiritual crisis in a person and affect different aspects of life. At this stage, patients have certain spiritual needs. Aim: This study was conducted to explain spiritual needs of cancer patients in Iran. Materials and Methods: In this qualitative study, 18 cancer patients, referred to the Cancer Institute of Imam Khomeini Hospital in Tehran were selected using purposive sampling method, and their spiritual needs emerged out of conventional content analysis of interviews conducted with them. Results: From 1850 initial codes, 4 themes (connection, peace, meaning and purpose, and transcendence were identified that contained categories of social support, normal behavior, inner peace, seeking forgiveness, hope, acceptance of reality, seeking meaning, ending well, change of life meaning, strengthening spiritual belief, communication with God, and prayer. Conclusions: Spiritual needs of cancer patients should be recognized, realized, and considered in care of patients by the medical team. An all-out support of health system policy makers to meet patients′ spiritual needs is particularly important.

Athlete social support, negative social interactions and psychological health across a competitive sport season.

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DeFreese, J D; Smith, Alan L

2014-12-01

Social support and negative social interactions have implications for athlete psychological health, with potential to influence the links of stress-related experiences with burnout and well-being over time. Using a longitudinal design, perceived social support and negative social interactions were examined as potential moderators of the temporal stress-burnout and burnout-well-being relationships. American collegiate athletes (N = 465) completed reliable and valid online assessments of study variables at four time points during the competitive season. After controlling for dispositional and conceptually important variables, social support and negative social interactions did not moderate the stress-burnout or burnout-well-being relationships, respectively, but did simultaneously contribute to burnout and well-being across the competitive season. The results showcase the importance of sport-related social perceptions to athlete psychological outcomes over time and inform development of socially driven interventions to improve the psychological health of competitive athletes.

Spiritually Integrated Cognitive Processing Therapy: A New Treatment for Post-traumatic Stress Disorder That Targets Moral Injury

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Pearce, Michelle; Haynes, Kerry; Rivera, Natalia R; Koenig, Harold G.

2018-01-01

Background Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating disorder, and current treatments leave the majority of patients with unresolved symptoms. Moral injury (MI) may be one of the barriers that interfere with recovery from PTSD, particularly among current or former military service members. Objective Given the psychological and spiritual aspects of MI, an intervention that addresses MI using spiritual resources in addition to psychological resources may be particularly effective in treating PTSD. To date, there are no existing empirically based individual treatments for PTSD and MI that make explicit use of a patient’s spiritual resources, despite the evidence that spiritual beliefs/activities predict faster recovery from PTSD. Method To address this gap, we adapted Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), an empirically validated treatment for PTSD, to integrate clients’ spiritual beliefs, practices, values, and motivations. We call this treatment Spiritually Integrated CPT (SICPT). Results This article describes this novel manualized therapeutic approach for treating MI in the setting of PTSD for spiritual/religious clients. We provide a description of SICPT and a brief summary of the 12 sessions. Then, we describe a case study in which the therapist helps a client use his spiritual resources to resolve MI and assist in the recovery from PTSD. Conclusion SICPT may be a helpful way to reduce PTSD by targeting MI, addressing spiritual distress, and using a client’s spiritual resources. In addition to the spiritual version (applicable for those of any religion and those who do not identify as religious), we have also developed 5 religion-specific manuals (Christianity, Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, and Hinduism) for clients who desire a more religion-specific approach. PMID:29497585

Enhancing Placebo Effects: Insights From Social Psychology

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SLIWINSKI, JIM; ELKINS, GARY R.

2012-01-01

Placebo effects are widely recognized as having a potent impact upon treatment outcomes in both medical and psychological interventions, including hypnosis. In research utilizing randomized clinical trials, there is usually an effort to minimize or control placebo effects. However, in clinical practice there may be significant benefits in enhancing placebo effects. Prior research from the field of social psychology has identified three factors that may enhance placebo effects, namely: priming, client perceptions, and the theory of planned behavior. These factors are reviewed and illustrated via a case example. The consideration of social-psychological factors to enhance positive expectancies and beliefs has implications for clinical practice as well as future research into hypnotic interventions. PMID:23488251

Why Conduct a Spiritual Assessment? A Theoretical Foundation for Assessment

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David R. Hodge

2004-12-01

Full Text Available In spite of increased interest in spirituality, the concept of a spiritual assessment remains a questionable practice in the eyes of many social workers. This paper develops five rationales to underscore the importance of including spirituality in assessment. These reasons can be summarized as follows: spiritual assessment provides insight into clients’ world views, serves as a vehicle to identify strengths, and demonstrates respect for client autonomy. In addition, the profession’s ethics implicitly recommend the administration of a spiritual assessment and, for a growing number of accrediting organizations and agencies, it is explicitly recommended.This paper concludes by discussing the implications for practitioners and educators.

Developing a Medical School Curriculum for Psychological, Moral, and Spiritual Wellness: Student and Faculty Perspectives.

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Mitchell, Christine M; Epstein-Peterson, Zachary D; Bandini, Julia; Amobi, Ada; Cahill, Jonathan; Enzinger, Andrea; Noveroske, Sarah; Peteet, John; Balboni, Tracy; Balboni, Michael J

2016-11-01

Although many studies have addressed the integration of a religion and/or spirituality curriculum into medical school training, few describe the process of curriculum development based on qualitative data from students and faculty. The aim of this study is to explore the perspectives of medical students and chaplaincy trainees regarding the development of a curriculum to facilitate reflection on moral and spiritual dimensions of caring for the critically ill and to train students in self-care practices that promote professionalism. Research staff conducted semiscripted and one-on-one interviews and focus groups. Respondents also completed a short and self-reported demographic questionnaire. Participants included 44 students and faculty members from Harvard Medical School and Harvard Divinity School, specifically senior medical students and divinity school students who have undergone chaplaincy training. Two major qualitative themes emerged: curriculum format and curriculum content. Inter-rater reliability was high (kappa = 0.75). With regard to curriculum format, most participants supported the curriculum being longitudinal, elective, and experiential. With regard to curriculum content, five subthemes emerged: personal religious and/or spiritual (R/S) growth, professional integration of R/S values, addressing patient needs, structural and/or institutional dynamics within the health care system, and controversial social issues. Qualitative findings of this study suggest that development of a future medical school curriculum on R/S and wellness should be elective, longitudinal, and experiential and should focus on the impact and integration of R/S values and self-care practices within self, care for patients, and the medical team. Future research is necessary to study the efficacy of these curricula once implemented. Copyright © 2016 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Quality of life and religious-spiritual coping in palliative cancer care patients

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Ticiane Dionizio de Sousa Matos

Full Text Available ABSTRACT Objectives: to compare the quality of life and religious-spiritual coping of palliative cancer care patients with a group of healthy participants; assess whether the perceived quality of life is associated with the religious-spiritual coping strategies; identify the clinical and sociodemographic variables related to quality of life and religious-spiritual coping. Method: cross-sectional study involving 96 palliative outpatient care patient at a public hospital in the interior of the state of São Paulo and 96 healthy volunteers, using a sociodemographic questionnaire, the McGill Quality of Life Questionnaire and the Brief Religious-Spiritual Coping scale. Results: 192 participants were interviewed who presented good quality of life and high use of Religious-Spiritual Coping. Greater use of negative Religious-Spiritual Coping was found in Group A, as well as lesser physical and psychological wellbeing and quality of life. An association was observed between quality of life scores and Religious-Spiritual Coping (p<0.01 in both groups. Male sex, Catholic religion and the Brief Religious-Spiritual Coping score independently influenced the quality of life scores (p<0.01. Conclusion: both groups presented high quality of life and Religious-Spiritual Coping scores. Male participants who were active Catholics with higher Religious-Spiritual Coping scores presented a better perceived quality of life, suggesting that this coping strategy can be stimulated in palliative care patients.

Using "12 Angry Men" as an Integrative Review of Social Psychology.

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Fried, Carrie B.

The use of the feature film "12 Angry Men" (1957) as an integrative review of social psychology is described. Students view the film, and then discuss the many aspects of social psychology represented in the interactions among the jurors. Discussion involves tying the movie examples back to social psychological research and theory as…

Pengembangan Model Bimbingan Perkembangan terhadap Kecerdasan Spiritual Anak Melalui Pendidikan yang Mencerahkan

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Rifda Elfiah

2017-08-01

Full Text Available Entering the third millennium, the development of intelligence in humans at least there has been a spectacular change. When the first term of intelligence as though only monopolized sense or reason (intellectual, but a series of the recent discovery in the field of modern psychology, legend IQ as the sole parameter intelligence fell. Currently, it is believed that the intelligence turned out to be complex (compound, which is referred to as Gardner's multiple intelligences.                If during intelligence interpreted as if reason or logic, though now encroaching upon the emotional and spiritual. Goleman has popularized the emotional intelligence as breakthrough new ways to measure the extent of human intelligence in controlling emotions, bring a sense of empathy, understand the feelings of self and others, as well as how to control him. But people are still faced with the problem of "spiritual problem" that is causing people to not only stutter live in a more meaningful, but also their own dark about themselves. Is the development of guidance and counseling services, one of the methods to help children discover they're own potential hidden. But in reality, many teachers and parents have not been able to optimize the potential of the spirituality owned subsidiary. The impact, the development of spiritual intelligence of the child to be blocked and the hidden potency he already has too precipitate. Herein lies the urgency of integrated education and guidance in order to develop the spirituality aspect and potential of children so that it can be done on an ongoing basis. In this case, the guidance is directed to develop the whole child's development capabilities that include physical-motor abilities, intelligence, social, emotional, and spiritual. Guidance is done on children's education needs to be oriented in all aspects of child development, not only focused on one aspect of development alone. Delays in the development of one

New Horizon of Spiritual Well-Being and Hope among Cancer Patients: A Psychological Aspect

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Liaquat, Sidra; Sultan, Sarwat; Hussain, Irshad

2013-01-01

The purpose of this study was to address the importance of spiritual well-being and hope among cancer patients diagnosed with its different stages. Through stratified sampling techniques, 120 cancer patients from four stages evenly divided into male and female participated in this study. Spiritual Well-being Scale (Paloutzian & Ellison, 1982)…

Social class, income, education, area of residence and psychological distress: does social class have an independent effect on psychological distress in Antalya, Turkey?

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Belek, I

2000-02-01

The aim of this study is to determine the separate effects of social class, income, education and area of residence on psychological distress. The study also assesses whether the association between prevalence of high score on the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ 12) and social class is independent of other variables. Psychological distress was assessed by means of the GHQ 12. The study covered 1,092 adults aged 15 years or more living in two different quarters of Antalya. Social class status was defined by occupational position, with income, education and area of residence treated as confounders. Chi-square and logistic regression analyses were used to evaluate the data. Large inequalities in psychological distress by all variables were observed. Psychological distress was significantly associated with class status, after adjusting for income, education, area of residence and other potential confounders (age, sex and marital status). Class inequalities in psychological distress were observed between blue-collar workers/unqualified employees and bourgeoisie. These findings support the view that the recent widening of inequalities among social classes in Turkey pose a substantial threat to health.

Spirituality and spiritual care in Iran: nurses' perceptions and barriers.

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Zakaria Kiaei, M; Salehi, A; Moosazadeh Nasrabadi, A; Whitehead, D; Azmal, M; Kalhor, R; Shah Bahrami, E

2015-12-01

This study aimed to explore the perception of Iranian nurses concerning spiritual care and to reveal any confronted barriers. Although the context of spiritual care is a substantial aspect of holistic care, the delivery of spiritual care has been problematic due to lack of nurses' understanding of this concept. Nurses' perceptions of spirituality and spiritual care directly influence their performance as well as their relationships with patients. This cross-sectional survey was conducted in 2013 with 259 nurses working in hospitals affiliated with Qazvin University of Medical Sciences, Iran. Data were collected using the Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale alongside qualitative open-ended questions. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used for the quantitative data and content analysis for the qualitative data. The overall average for spirituality and spiritual care was 2.84 (score range: 1-4), indicating a moderate mean score. A significant relationship was found between education level and spiritual care. The majority of participants believed that they did not receive enough training in this aspect of care. The main obstacles regarding delivering spiritual care included busy working schedules, insufficient knowledge regarding spiritual care, low motivation, diversity of patients' spiritual needs and feeling 'unqualified' to provide spiritual cares. Consistent with the previous studies, this study has demonstrated that nurses had low confidence to meet the spiritual needs of patients due to lack of knowledge and training in this regard. Iranian nurses' perception of spirituality and spiritual care is moderate, reflecting that they do not receive sufficient training regarding spiritual care. Despite the attention focused on spiritual care in clinical settings in Iran, there remains a significant gap in terms of meeting the spiritual needs of patients in nursing practice. This finding assists nursing clinicians, educators and policy makers to more

Filipino Nurses' Spirituality and Provision of Spiritual Nursing Care.

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Labrague, Leodoro J; McEnroe-Petitte, Denise M; Achaso, Romeo H; Cachero, Geifsonne S; Mohammad, Mary Rose A

2016-12-01

This study was to explore the perceptions of Filipino nurses' spirituality and the provision of spiritual nursing care. A descriptive, cross-sectional, and quantitative study was adopted for this study. The study was conducted in the Philippines utilizing a convenience sample of 245 nurses. Nurses' Spirituality and Delivery of Spiritual Care (NSDSC) was used as the main instrument. The items on NSDSC with higher mean scores related to nurses' perception of spirituality were Item 7, "I believe that God loves me and cares for me," and Item 8, "Prayer is an important part of my life," with mean scores of 4.87 (SD = 1.36) and 4.88 (SD = 1.34), respectively. Items on NSDSC with higher mean scores related to the practice of spiritual care were Item 26, "I usually comfort clients spiritually (e.g., reading books, prayers, music, etc.)," and Item 25, "I refer the client to his/her spiritual counselor (e.g., hospital chaplain) if needed," with mean scores of 3.16 (SD = 1.54) and 2.92 (SD = 1.59). Nurse's spirituality correlated significantly with their understanding of spiritual nursing care (r = .3376, p ≤ .05) and delivery of spiritual nursing care (r = .3980, p ≤ .05). Positive significant correlations were found between understanding of spiritual nursing care and delivery of spiritual nursing care (r = .3289, p ≤ .05). For nurses to better provide spiritual nursing care, they must care for themselves through self-awareness, self-reflection, and developing a sense of satisfaction and contentment. © The Author(s) 2015.

Social Isolation, Psychological Health, and Protective Factors in Adolescence

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Hall-Lande, Jennifer A.; Eisenberg, Marla E.; Christenson, Sandra L.; Neumark-Sztainer, Dianne

2007-01-01

This study investigates the relationships among social isolation, psychological health, and protective factors in adolescents. Feelings of social isolation may influence psychological health in adolescents, but protective factors such as family connectedness, school connectedness, and academic achievement may also play a key role. The sample…

TITIK TEMU TRANSPERSONAL PSYCHOLOGY DAN TASAWUF

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Khadijah Khadijah

2015-09-01

Full Text Available This article aims to introduce transpersonal psychology approach, especially its meeting point with the world of Sufism in Islam. The article tries to answer the following questions, are: 1 what is the difference between transpersonal psychology and other psycho-logical theories, and; 2 in what aspect transpersonal psychology shares a common ground with Sufism? The writer finds that there is a significant difference between transpersonal psychology and other psychological theories, especially psychoanalysis and behaviorism. Psychoanalysis emphasizes the deepest meaning of human behavior with a tendency to override the meaning of physical aspect. Behaviorism has been strongly influenced by pure science. In fact, research on the human psyche aspect cannot be done simply by applying pure science. Meanwhile, transpersonal psychology tries to fundamentally reinforce and develop human potential, both physical and mental aspects. Moreover, this approach reaches supernatural and spiritual aspects of human beings. The writer tends to argue that the common ground shared by the mystical aspects of the Western world, in the perspective of transpersonal psychology, and Sufism in Islam lays in the fact that each entity puts great emphasis on managing and increasing the spiritual aspect of human.Keywords: transpersonal psychology, tasawuf, common ground.

Kesejahteraan Spiritual pada Mahasiswa Penghafal Al-Qur’an

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Widwi Mukhabibah

2017-11-01

Full Text Available Nowadays, memorizing the Qur'an is growing and interested in children to adults, including college students. The activity is interesting because in the perspective of Islamic Shari'ah, memorizing the Qur'an is not an obligation. Therefore, in psychological science, it will be useful to find any factors that encourage students to do so. An initial survey found that students had belief associated with the spiritual domain of divinity and felt calm when memorizing the Qur’an. Those factors will be studied in the concept of spiritual well-being by Ellison (1983. This quantitative study was conducted on students at Universitas Padjadjaran. There were 40 students selected with snowball sampling. The result showed that as many as 85% of students had high spiritual well-being. It showed that the majority of students have a harmonious and stable life indicated by the closeness with Allah SWT and life satisfaction.

Food Choice and Nutrition: A Social Psychological Perspective.

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Hardcastle, Sarah J; Thøgersen-Ntoumani, Cecilie; Chatzisarantis, Nikos L D

2015-10-01

In this Special Issue, entitled "Food choice and Nutrition: A Social Psychological Perspective", three broad themes have been identified: (1) social and environmental influences on food choice; (2) psychological influences on eating behaviour; and (3) eating behaviour profiling.The studies that addressed the social and environmental influences indicated that further research would do well to promote positive food choices rather than reduce negative food choices; promote the reading and interpretation of food labels and find ways to effectively market healthy food choices through accessibility, availability and presentation. The studies on psychological influences found that intentions, perceived behavioural control, and confidence were predictors of healthy eating. Given the importance of psychological factors, such as perceived behavioural control and self-efficacy, healthy eating interventions should reduce barriers to healthy eating and foster perceptions of confidence to consume a healthy diet. The final theme focused on the clustering of individuals according to eating behaviour. Some "types" of individuals reported more frequent consumption of fast foods, ready meals or convenience meals or greater levels of disinhibitiona nd less control over food cravings. Intervention designs which make use of multi-level strategies as advocated by the Ecological Model of Behaviour change that proposes multi-level (combining psychological, social and environmental) strategies are likely to be more effective in reaching and engaging individuals susceptible to unhealthy eating habits than interventions operating on a single level.

Developments in spiritual care education in German--speaking countries.

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Paal, Piret; Roser, Traugott; Frick, Eckhard

2014-06-05

This article examines spiritual care training provided to healthcare professionals in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. The paper reveals the current extent of available training while defining the target group(s) and teaching aims. In addition to those, we will provide an analysis of delivered competencies, applied teaching and performance assessment methods. In 2013, an anonymous online survey was conducted among the members of the International Society for Health and Spiritual Care. The survey consisted of 10 questions and an open field for best practice advice. SPSS21 was used for statistical data analysis and the MAXQDA2007 for thematic content analysis. 33 participants participated in the survey. The main providers of spiritual care training are hospitals (36%, n = 18). 57% (n = 17) of spiritual care training forms part of palliative care education. 43% (n = 13) of spiritual care education is primarily bound to the Christian tradition. 36% (n = 11) of provided trainings have no direct association with any religious conviction. 64% (n = 19) of respondents admitted that they do not use any specific definition for spiritual care. 22% (n = 14) of available spiritual care education leads to some academic degree. 30% (n = 19) of training form part of an education programme leading to a formal qualification. Content analysis revealed that spiritual training for medical students, physicians in paediatrics, and chaplains take place only in the context of palliative care education. Courses provided for multidisciplinary team education may be part of palliative care training. Other themes, such as deep listening, compassionate presence, bedside spirituality or biographical work on the basis of logo-therapy, are discussed within the framework of spiritual care. Spiritual care is often approached as an integral part of grief management, communication/interaction training, palliative care, (medical) ethics, psychological or religious counselling

NIDA-Drug Addiction Treatment Outcome Study (DATOS) Relapse as a Function of Spirituality/Religiosity.

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Schoenthaler, Stephen J; Blum, Kenneth; Braverman, Eric R; Giordano, John; Thompson, Ben; Oscar-Berman, Marlene; Badgaiyan, Rajendra D; Madigan, Margaret A; Dushaj, Kristina; Li, Mona; Demotrovics, Zsolt; Waite, Roger L; Gold, Mark S

The connection between religion/spirituality and deviance, like substance abuse, was first made by Durkheim who defined socially expected behaviors as norms. He explained that deviance is due in large part to their absence (called anomie), and concluded that spirituality lowers deviance by preserving norms and social bonds. Impairments in brain reward circuitry, as observed in Reward Deficiency Syndrome (RDS), may also result in deviance and as such we wondered if stronger belief in spirituality practice and religious belief could lower relapse from drugs of abuse. The NIDA Drug Addiction Treatment Outcome Study data set was used to examine post hoc relapse rates among 2,947 clients who were interviewed at 12 months after intake broken down by five spirituality measures. Our main findings strongly indicate, that those with low spirituality have higher relapse rates and those with high spirituality have higher remission rates with crack use being the sole exception. We found significant differences in terms of cocaine, heroin, alcohol, and marijuana relapse as a function of strength of religious beliefs (x 2 = 15.18, p = 0.028; logistic regression = 10.65, p = 0.006); frequency of attending religious services (x 2 = 40.78, p Durkheim's social bond theory. Stronger spiritual/religious beliefs and practices are directly associated with remission from abused drugs except crack. Much like the value of having a sponsor, for clients who abuse drugs, regular spiritual practice, particularly weekly attendance at the religious services of their choice is associated with significantly higher remission. These results demonstrate the clinically significant role of spirituality and the social bonds it creates in drug treatment programs.

Understanding the Relationship Between State Forgiveness and Psychological Wellbeing: A Qualitative Study.

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Akhtar, Sadaf; Dolan, Alan; Barlow, Jane

2017-04-01

Over the last 20 years, increasing attention has been given to associations between dispositional forgiveness and specific mental health problems. However, few studies have assessed whether forgiving real-life interpersonal hurts may be related to diverse psychological health outcomes. The present study addresses this gap by investigating, in depth, relationships between perceptions about state forgiveness and a variety of mental wellbeing outcomes as well as exploring perceptions about the factors that may modify such effects. Developing an understanding of a forgiveness wellbeing relationship is of relevance to healthcare workers, researchers and policy makers with an interest in improving public health. In-depth semi-structured interviews were conducted, and data were analysed using grounded theory methods. From England and Ireland, eleven adults who were affiliated with religious/spiritual and secular/atheist groups were recruited using purposive and convenience sampling methods. Key themes that appeared to be related to the effects of unforgiveness were: increases in negative affect; reduction in cognitive abilities and barriers to psychological and social growth. For the majority of participants, state forgiveness had strong ties to participants perceived sense of mental wellbeing, including reductions in negative affect, feeling positive emotions, positive relations with others, spiritual growth, a sense of meaning and purpose in life as well as a greater sense of empowerment. The data also revealed a number of factors that may positively or negatively influence a forgiveness-wellbeing link such as: viewing an offender as spiritually similar or different, responsibility/karma, blaming, wanting restitution/apology as well as practices such as meditation and prayer. The findings suggest that forgiving a range of real-life interpersonal offences may be an important determinant of psychological wellbeing, particularly among religious/spiritual populations

Religion, Spirituality, and the Hidden Curriculum: Medical Student and Faculty Reflections.

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Balboni, Michael J; Bandini, Julia; Mitchell, Christine; Epstein-Peterson, Zachary D; Amobi, Ada; Cahill, Jonathan; Enzinger, Andrea C; Peteet, John; Balboni, Tracy

2015-10-01

Religion and spirituality play an important role in physicians' medical practice, but little research has examined their influence within the socialization of medical trainees and the hidden curriculum. The objective is to explore the role of religion and spirituality as they intersect with aspects of medicine's hidden curriculum. Semiscripted, one-on-one interviews and focus groups (n = 33 respondents) were conducted to assess Harvard Medical School student and faculty experiences of religion/spirituality and the professionalization process during medical training. Using grounded theory, theme extraction was performed with interdisciplinary input (medicine, sociology, and theology), yielding a high inter-rater reliability score (kappa = 0.75). Three domains emerged where religion and spirituality appear as a factor in medical training. First, religion/spirituality may present unique challenges and benefits in relation to the hidden curriculum. Religious/spiritual respondents more often reported to struggle with issues of personal identity, increased self-doubt, and perceived medical knowledge inadequacy. However, religious/spiritual participants less often described relationship conflicts within the medical team, work-life imbalance, and emotional stress arising from patient suffering. Second, religion/spirituality may influence coping strategies during encounters with patient suffering. Religious/spiritual trainees described using prayer, faith, and compassion as means for coping whereas nonreligious/nonspiritual trainees discussed compartmentalization and emotional repression. Third, levels of religion/spirituality appear to fluctuate in relation to medical training, with many trainees experiencing an increase in religiousness/spirituality during training. Religion/spirituality has a largely unstudied but possibly influential role in medical student socialization. Future study is needed to characterize its function within the hidden curriculum. Copyright �

Imagine: towards an integrated and applied social psychology.

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Abell, Jackie; Walton, Chris

2010-12-01

This commentary does not aim to engage with the epistemological and ontological technicalities of the discursive psychology maintained by epistemological constructionism and discursive psychology reliant on ontological constructionism approaches that form the basis of the two papers under discussion; other commentators, both in this issue and in the future, are likely to do that. Instead, this commentary aims to situate both papers within a broader frame of contemporary, primarily British social psychology, to ponder the circumstances that gave rise to them and their implications for social psychologists, discursive and non-discursive, alike. We have organized this commentary into two parts. The first part considers two simple questions. First, why does Corcoran critique DPEC for failing to do things that other discursive approaches provide for? And, second, why does Corcoran take DPEC research to task for having too little potential for or made too little contribution to improving the lives and subjectivities of people in general? These two questions are not unrelated, but for clarity's sake we will try to answer them separately. The second part of this commentary will consider the influence of discursive psychology on social psychology more generally.

Psychiatry, religion, positive emotions and spirituality.

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Vaillant, George E

2013-12-01

This paper proposes that eight positive emotions: awe, love/attachment, trust/faith, compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, joy and hope constitute what we mean by spirituality. These emotions have been grossly ignored by psychiatry. The two sciences that I shall employ to demonstrate this definition of spirituality will be ethology and neuroscience. They are both very new. I will argue that spirituality is not about ideas, sacred texts and theology. Rather, spirituality is all about emotion and social connection that are more dependent on the limbic system than the cortex. Specific religions, for all their limitations, are often the portal through which positive emotions are brought into conscious attention. Neither Freud nor psychiatric textbooks ever mention emotions like joy and gratitude. Hymns and psalms give these emotions pride of place. Our whole concept of psychotherapy might change, if clinicians set about enhancing positive emotions, rather than focusing only on the negative ones. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Spiritual activities as a resistance resource for women with human immunodeficiency virus.

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Sowell, R; Moneyham, L; Hennessy, M; Guillory, J; Demi, A; Seals, B

2000-01-01

Few studies have investigated the role that spiritual activities play in the adaptational outcomes of women with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) disease. To examine the role of spiritual activities as a resource that may reduce the negative effects of disease-related stressors on the adaptational outcomes in HIV-infected women. A theoretically based causal model was tested to examine the role of spiritual activities as a moderator of the impact of HIV-related stressors (functional impairment, work impairment, and HIV-related symptoms) on two stress-related adaptational outcomes (emotional distress and quality of life), using a clinic-based sample of 184 HIV-positive women. Findings indicated that as spiritual activities increased, emotional distress decreased even when adjustments were made for HIV-related stressors. A positive relationship between spiritual activities and quality of life was found, which approached significance. Findings showed that HIV-related stressors have a significant negative effect on both emotional distress and quality of life. The findings support the hypothesis that spiritual activities are an important psychological resource accounting for individual variability in adjustment to the stressors associated with HIV disease.

Social perception: historic-philosophical and psychological preliminary investigation

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A. O. Pocelujko

2015-01-01

The article investigates the prerequisite analysis of social perception in different epistemological, psychological General (socio­psychological) theories. Epistemology is the philosophy section, which explores the general premise of cognitive activity, the ratio of knowledge and reality, establishing the terms of true and certain knowledge creates a stable foundation for the study of social perception. Depending on a particular epistemological concepts can differentiate different understandi...

Exploring spirituality in Iranian healthy elderly people: A qualitative content analysis.

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Rahimi, Abolfazl; Anoosheh, Monireh; Ahmadi, Fazlollah; Foroughan, Mahshid

2013-03-01

Spirituality is recognized as a personally important matter to the elderly, and there are evidences of its impact on their health. The aim of this study was to explore the concept of spirituality from the perspectives of Iranian healthy elderly individuals. A conventional qualitative content analysis of carried out with 21 healthy elderly people from both male and female genders were chosen using a purposive sampling method in Tehran in 2010-2011. Data collection was done through semi structured interviews. A qualitative content analysis was used to analyze the participants' experiences and perceptions on spirituality, using a central question 'what characterizes the spirituality in the Iranian healthy elderly people?' THE FOLLOWING CATEGORIES EMERGED FROM THE DATA ANALYSIS: (1) Spiritual health, with four sub categories including saying prayer as a calming factor; beneficence as a way to God; loss of psychological and spiritual support; faith as a way to happiness; (2) spiritual beliefs, with three sub categories including seeking help from God in difficulties; God's power over life and death; doing good deeds is the God's will; and (3) religious practice with three sub categories including saying prayer; reading Quran; and going to mosque, religious ceremonies and pilgrimage. In this study was found that spirituality was a fundamental element in elderly individuals' lives that help them to adapt with daily living conditions.

The daily spiritual experiences scale and well-being: demographic comparisons and scale validation with older jewish adults and a diverse internet sample.

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Kalkstein, Solomon; Tower, Roni Beth

2009-12-01

A substantive literature connects spirituality to positive physical, social, and mental health. In this study, the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES) was administered to 410 subjects who participated in a community study and to 87 residents at the Hebrew Home for the Aged at Riverdale (HHAR), the latter sample consisting primarily of older Jewish respondents. Internal consistency of the DSES in both samples was high and exploratory factor analyses revealed one dominant factor and a second factor, which included 14 and 2 items, respectively, consistent with the scale's original validation (Underwood and Teresi 2002). Demographic subgroup comparison among religious groups revealed significantly fewer daily spiritual experiences among Jews, and lowest scores among those respondents endorsing no religious affiliation. Women exhibited more frequent daily experience than men, and attainment of higher levels of education was associated with less frequent daily spiritual experience. All but one of the outcome measures of physical and psychologic well-being were found to be positively associated with the DSES so that more frequent daily spiritual experience correlated with less psychopathology, more close friendships, and better self-rated health. Directions for future research, study interpretation and limitations, and clinical implications for use of the DSES are discussed.

African Journal for the Psychological Study of Social Issues

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The African Journal for the Psychological Study of Social Issues is dedicated to the Scientific investigation of psychological and social issues and related phenomenon in Africa. The journal does not undertake to specify rigidly an appropriate domain of context, but intends rather to reflect current significant research of ...

Spirituality Phenomenon and the Ideal-Realism Method in Modern Education

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A. P. Vetoshkin

2012-01-01

Full Text Available The paper is devoted to the spiritual revival of modern Russia. In the author’s view, the Russian Idea with its basic principles, moral, spiritual and semantic concepts should provide the guidelines for education, upbringing and the youth policy, guaranteeing the spiritual transformation and mobilization of the moral power for the benefit of the motherland, local society and family, as well as the personal growth. The theoretical and methodological bases for developing and implementing the above idea could be found in Russian national religious and philosophic thinking with its balanced dialectics of spiritual and social aspects. The experience of the ideal-realism, as the leading trend of the national spiritual culture, is being analyzed and summarized. The correlation between the ideal and material in social and individual life is demonstrated along with the dialectics and wholeness of the divine and human, religious and secular, ecclesiastical and civil.The author addresses the philosophic heritage of I. A. Ilyin, V. S. Solovyev, S. N. Trubetskoy, S. N. Bulgakov, N. A. Berdyayev, N. O. Losskiy etc, and regards spirituality as the basic defining, systematic and leading origin of the whole socio-historical process including human being formation and development, education and upbringing. 

Do spiritual patients want spiritual interventions?: A qualitative exploration of underserved cancer patients' perspectives on religion and spirituality.

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Stein, Emma M; Kolidas, Evelyn; Moadel, Alyson

2015-02-01

This study examines religion and spirituality among advanced cancer patients from an underserved, ethnically-diverse population by exploring patient conceptualizations of religion and spirituality, the role of religion and spirituality in coping with cancer, and patient interest in spiritual support. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with patients who had participated in a study of a "mind-body" support group for patients with all cancer types. Analysis based on grounded theory was utilized to identify themes and theoretical constructs. With regard to patient conceptualizations of religion and spirituality, three categories emerged: (1) Spirituality is intertwined with organized religion; (2) Religion is one manifestation of the broader construct of spirituality; (3) Religion and spirituality are completely independent, with spirituality being desirable and religion not. Religion and spirituality played a central role in patients' coping with cancer, providing comfort, hope, and meaning. Patients diverged when it came to spiritual support, with some enthusiastic about interventions incorporating their spiritual values and others stating that they already get this support through religious communities. Spirituality plays a central role in the cancer experience of this underserved ethnically-diverse population. While spirituality seems to be a universal concern in advanced cancer patients, the meaning of spirituality differs across individuals, with some equating it with organized religion and others taking a more individualized approach. It is important that psychosocial interventions are developed to address this concern. Future research is needed to further explore the different ways that patients conceptualize spirituality and to develop spiritually-based treatments that are not "one size fits all."

Recovery Spirituality

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Ernest Kurtz

2015-01-01

Full Text Available There is growing interest in Alcoholics Anonymous (A.A. and other secular, spiritual, and religious frameworks of long-term addiction recovery. The present paper explores the varieties of spiritual experience within A.A., with particular reference to the growth of a wing of recovery spirituality promoted within A.A. It is suggested that the essence of secular spirituality is reflected in the experience of beyond (horizontal and vertical transcendence and between (connection and mutuality and in six facets of spirituality (Release, Gratitude, Humility, Tolerance, Forgiveness, and a Sense of Being-at-home shared across religious, spiritual, and secular pathways of addiction recovery. The growing varieties of A.A. spirituality (spanning the “Christianizers” and “Seculizers” reflect A.A.’s adaptation to the larger diversification of religious experience and the growing secularization of spirituality across the cultural contexts within which A.A. is nested.

Spiritual Health in Nursing From the Viewpoint of Islam.

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Heydari, Abbas; Khorashadizadeh, Fatemeh; Heshmati Nabavi, Fatemeh; Mazlom, Seyed Reza; Ebrahimi, Mahdi

2016-06-01

In order to gain a more detailed insight into the concept of spiritual health, a hybrid model of concept analysis was used to remove some of the ambiguity surrounding the conceptual meaning of spiritual health in Islamic and Iranian contexts. The purpose of this study was to clarify the meaning and nature of the spiritual health concept in the context of the practice of Islam among Iranian patients. The current concept analysis was undertaken according to the modified traditional hybrid model, which consists of five phases: theoretical phase, initial fieldwork phase, initial analytical phase, and final fieldwork and final analytical phase. In the theoretical phases of the study, the concept of spiritual health was described based on a literature review of publications dealing with the Islamic viewpoint (years: from 2013 to 2014, Databases and search engines: Pubmed, SID, Magiran, Noormax, Google Scholar, Google and IranMex, Languages: English and Persian, Keywords: spiritual health AND (Islam OR Quran), spirituality AND (Islam OR Quran), complete human AND Islam, healthy heart (Galb Salim) AND Islam, healthy life (Hayat tayebeh) AND Islam, calm soul (Nafse motmaeneh) And Islam and healthy wisdom (Aghle Salim) AND Islam). Purposive sampling was conducted and nine participants were selected. Semi-structured interviews and observations were conducted periodically for data collection after obtaining informed consent. Observational, theoretical, and methodological notes were made. Then, using MAXQUDA 7 software, the data were analyzed using qualitative content analysis. The relevant literature in the theoretical phase uncovered the attributes of the concept of spiritual health, including love of the Creator, duty-based life, religious rationality, psychological balance, and attention to afterlife. These attributes were explored in depth in later stages. Finally, the definition of spiritual health was developed. Islam has a unique perspective on spiritual health as it

Burden experience of caregivers of acute lymphoblastic leukemia: Impact of coping and spirituality

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Usha Chivukula

2018-01-01

Full Text Available Background: When a child is diagnosed with cancer the parents as caregivers experience severe anxiety, trauma, ambiguity, and grief. Caregivers of cancer patients thus deal with the management of their own psychological distress along with the child's illness.Aim: Coping plays a crucial role in improving the caregivers' physical and emotional well-being. Spirituality is an important means of consolation, strength, and emotional support during this phase. The present study aims to investigate the impact of coping and spirituality on caregiver burden.Methods: A total of 100 caregivers of children between the age group of 3–11 years, diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia were the participants of the study. The participants were recruited from cancer hospitals in Hyderabad. The study adopted a between-group design to find out if mothers and fathers differed in their coping strategies, spirituality, and caregiver burden. The study also adopted a correlation design to find the relationship between coping, spirituality, and caregiver burden. Descriptive statistics and multiple linear regression analysis were conducted to identify if coping and spirituality predict caregiver burden.Results: The results showed no significant difference in the burden experienced by both mothers and fathers; however, mothers and fathers used different coping strategies and differed on the dimensions of spirituality. The results of multiple linear regression indicated that dimensions of coping and spirituality were significant predictors of caregiver burden.Conclusion: Cancer in the child impacts the parent's burden but providing sufficient support and implementing effective coping strategies, will help in mitigating the intensity of caregiver burden. It is essential that the hospital authorities and policymakers understand that a professional health psychologist could be a liaison between the doctor, patient, and the caregiver in bringing down the levels of burden

Distinguishing Between Spiritual Distress, General Distress, Spiritual Well-Being, and Spiritual Pain Among Cancer Patients During Oncology Treatment.

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Schultz, Michael; Meged-Book, Tehilah; Mashiach, Tanya; Bar-Sela, Gil

2017-07-01

Spiritual distress is present in approximately 25% of oncology patients. We examined the extent to which this measure is identical to a variety of other measures, such as spiritual well-being, spiritual injury, spiritual pain, and general distress. Structured interview of oncology outpatients over 12 months, approached nonselectively. The presence or absence of spiritual distress was compared against spiritual pain and two spiritual well-being tools: Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spiritual Well-Being 12-Item Scale (FACIT-Sp-12) and the Spiritual Injury Scale (SIS). We also examined whether a general distress visual analogue scale sufficed to identify spiritual distress. Other questions concerned demographic and clinical data. Of 416 patients approached, 202 completed the interview, of whom 23% reported spiritual distress. All measures showed significant correlation (receiver operating characteristic, area under the curve: SIS 0.79; distress thermometer [DT] 0.68; FACIT-Sp-12 0.67), yet none were identical with spiritual distress (sensitivity/specificity: SIS 64%/79%; spiritual pain 72%/76%; DT 41%/76%; FACIT-Sp-12 57%/72%). Of the FACIT-Sp-12 subscales, only peace correlated with spiritual distress. A significant predictor of spiritual distress was patients' self-evaluation of grave clinical condition (odds ratio 3.3; 95% CI 1.1-9.5). Multivariable analysis of individual measure items suggests an alternative three-parameter model for spiritual distress: not feeling peaceful, feeling unable to accept that this is happening, and perceived severity of one's illness. The DT is not sufficient to identify spiritual distress. The peace subscale of FACIT-Sp-12 is a better match than the measure as a whole. The SIS is the best match for spiritual distress, although an imperfect one. Copyright © 2017 American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Optimisation to Transformation - My Path to the Well-spring of Rationality, Morality and Spirituality

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Peter Pruzan

2003-01-01

The author summarises his intellectual and personal journey from rationality and morality to spirituality. As internationally renowned expert in operation research and multi-objective optimisation, he developed a strong interest in organisational ethics, social and ethical accounting, values-based leadership and corporate social responsibility. Influenced by Eastern (especially Indian) spirituality he went further to explore the well-spring of rationality, morality and spirituality. In this w...

Screening Patient Spirituality and Spiritual Needs in Oncology Nursing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van Leeuwen, René; Schep-Akkerman, Annemiek; van Laarhoven, Hanneke W. M.

2013-01-01

Aim. To select 2 appropriate spiritual assessment tools and evaluate these by involving oncology nurses. Background. Spirituality is recognized as an important domain of cancer care. At admission, integration of spiritual assessment seems necessary. It is unclear what kind of spiritual assessment

Screening patient spirituality and spiritual needs in oncology nursing

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Leeuwen, R. van; Schep-Akkerman, A.E.; Laarhoven, H.W.M. van

2013-01-01

AIM.: To select 2 appropriate spiritual assessment tools and evaluate these by involving oncology nurses. BACKGROUND.: Spirituality is recognized as an important domain of cancer care. At admission, integration of spiritual assessment seems necessary. It is unclear what kind of spiritual assessment

Food Choice and Nutrition: A Social Psychological Perspective

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Sarah J. Hardcastle

2015-10-01

Full Text Available In this Special Issue, entitled “Food choice and Nutrition: A Social Psychological Perspective”, three broad themes have been identified: (1 social and environmental influences on food choice; (2 psychological influences on eating behaviour; and (3 eating behaviour profiling. The studies that addressed the social and environmental influences indicated that further research would do well to promote positive food choices rather than reduce negative food choices; promote the reading and interpretation of food labels and find ways to effectively market healthy food choices through accessibility, availability and presentation. The studies on psychological influences found that intentions, perceived behavioural control, and confidence were predictors of healthy eating. Given the importance of psychological factors, such as perceived behavioural control and self-efficacy, healthy eating interventions should reduce barriers to healthy eating and foster perceptions of confidence to consume a healthy diet. The final theme focused on the clustering of individuals according to eating behaviour. Some “types” of individuals reported more frequent consumption of fast foods, ready meals or convenience meals or greater levels of disinhibition and less control over food cravings. Intervention designs which make use of multi-level strategies as advocated by the Ecological Model of Behaviour change that proposes multi-level (combining psychological, social and environmental strategies are likely to be more effective in reaching and engaging individuals susceptible to unhealthy eating habits than interventions operating on a single level.

The social constructionist movement in modern psychology

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Kenneth J. Gergen

2009-01-01

Full Text Available Social constructionism views discourse about the world not as a reflection or map of the world but as an artifact of communal interchange. Both as an orientation to knowledge and to the character of psychological constructs, constructionism forms a significant challenge to conventional understandings. Although the roots of constructionist thought may be traced to long-standing debates between empiricist and rationalist schools of thought, constructionism attempts to move beyond the dualism to which both of these traditions are committed and to place knowledge within the process of social interchange. Although the role of psychological explanation is rendered problematic, a fully developed constructionism could furnish a means for understanding the process of science and invites the development of alternative criteria for the evaluation of psychological inquiry.

Religious and spiritual development are determined 100% by nature, and 100% by nurture: A playful response to Boyatzis.

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Granqvist, Pehr; Nkara, Frances

2017-03-01

In this response, we respond to Boyatzis' commentary to our paper 'Nature meets nurture in religious and spiritual development'. We also provide additional elaborations on how nurture might co-sculpt nature in the context of religious and spiritual development. © 2017 The British Psychological Society.

Notas para uma genealogia da Psicologia Social Notes for a genealogy of Social Psychology

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Rosane Neves da Silva

2004-08-01

Full Text Available A partir de uma "desnaturalização" do conceito de social, pretende-se situar as condições de possibilidade para a invenção da psicologia social. Utilizando uma estratégia genealógica, nosso objetivo é mostrar que, no lugar da psicologia explicar o social, é o próprio social que deve explicar o surgimento da psicologia moderna. Para tanto, é preciso deixar de considerar o social como sinônimo da noção de sociabilidade e passar a considerá-lo como algo essencialmente construído a partir de determinadas práticas humanas. Tal problematização permite entender como se produzem, no final do século XIX, as primeiras aproximações da psicologia moderna em direção ao social a partir das questões relacionadas ao fenômeno das multidões.The "denaturalization" of the concept "social" allow us to situate the conditions to the invention of social psychology. Using the genealogy strategy, our goal is to show that it is not psychology that explains the "social" but it is the "social" itself that explains the emergence of modern psychology. In order to attain our goal it is necessary to abandon the use of social as a synonym of sociability and to consider the "social" as a product essentially constructed by determinate human practices. This strategy allows us to understand how, at the end of the XIX century, modern psychology's firsts theoretical approaches towards the "social" were produced from matters related to the phenomena of the masses.

Navigating Social Networking and Social Media in School Psychology: Ethical and Professional Considerations in Training Programs

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Pham, Andy V.

2014-01-01

Social networking and social media have undoubtedly proliferated within the past decade, allowing widespread communication and dissemination of user-generated content and information. Some psychology graduate programs, including school psychology, have started to embrace social networking and media for instructional and training purposes; however,…

Mapping out the subject of Brazilian social psychology in the production of the national association of research and post-graduate studies in psychology

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Marcos Adegas de Azambuja

2013-01-01

Full Text Available This paper problematizes the Brazilian Social Psychology and its knowledge production on the registers of the Work Group (WG of symposiums of the National Association of Research and Post-Graduation in Psychology (ANPEPP, during 1988 to 2010. Using Michel Foucault's archeo-genealogical perspective and the contributions by Ian Hacking about the historical ontology of subjects, we analyzed technologies of power and knowledge in the disciplines of Social Psychology. We selected the WG abstracts in which circulate the utterances that make up the discursive field of Brazilian Social Psychology. Using the narrative of WGs we outlined a discursive formation of identities/technologies of the subject. The knowledges of Social Psychology in the history of the ANPEPP's WGs contribute to the constitution of categories and psychological classifications which objectivize subjects. We think Social Psychology, in its criticisms related to psychological and social concepts comprises practices and regimes of truth about the subject of Social Psychology.

The Practice of Psychological Science: Searching for Cronbach's Two Streams in Social-Personality Psychology

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Tracy, JL; Robins, RW; Sherman, JW

2009-01-01

The present research surveyed a group of editors and editorial board members of personality and social psychology journals to examine the practice of psychological science in their field. Findings demonstrate that (a) although personality and social researchers tend to use many of the same approaches, methods, and procedures, they nonetheless show average differences in each of these domains, as well as in their overarching theoretical aims and perspectives; (b) these average differences larg...

Perceived Social Support and Assertiveness as a Predictor of Candidates Psychological Counselors' Psychological Well-Being

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Ates, Bünyamin

2016-01-01

In this research, to what extent the variables of perceived social support (family, friends and special people) and assertiveness predicted the psychological well-being levels of candidate psychological counselors. The research group of this study included totally randomly selected 308 candidate psychological counselors including 174 females…

Race/ethnicity, psychological resilience, and social support among OEF/OIF combat veterans.

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Herbert, Matthew S; Leung, Desmond W; Pittman, James O E; Floto, Elizabeth; Afari, Niloofar

2018-07-01

This study examined the relationship between race/ethnicity and psychological resilience, and the moderating role of social support in this relationship among non-Hispanic White (n = 605), Hispanic (n = 107), African American (n = 141), and Asian American (n = 97) Operation Enduring Freedom/Operation Iraqi Freedom (OEF/OIF) combat veterans. Veterans were primarily male (88%) with a mean age of 31.4 years (SD = 8.35). An analysis of covariance showed that Asian American veterans reported significantly lower psychological resilience than non-Hispanic White veterans. The interaction of race/ethnicity and social support with psychological resilience was examined via linear regression. We found that the relationship between psychological resilience and social support significantly differed by race/ethnicity such that social support was positively associated with psychological resilience among non-Hispanic White veterans, but not among other racial/ethnic groups. Our findings are consistent with previous studies that show Asian American veterans report lower psychological resilience than non-Hispanic White veterans. Cultural differences in how and why individuals use social support may underlie racial/ethnic differences in the relationship between social support and psychological resilience. Future qualitative and quantitative research is encouraged to better understand how social support relates to psychological resilience among minority OEF/OIF combat veterans. Copyright © 2018. Published by Elsevier B.V.

Spirituality, hope, and self-sufficiency among low-income job seekers.

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2015-04-01

Self-sufficiency (SS) is an important social welfare policy goal in the United States, yet little is known about the process that leads to SS. To address this gap in the literature, this study examined the relationship between spirituality, hope, and SS among a sample of low-income job seekers (N = 116). It was hypothesized that spirituality would be related to hope, and that hope, in turn, would be related to SS. Using survey data from two workforce development agencies, this hypothesis was confirmed-hope fully mediated the relationship between spirituality and SS. Of the two factors through which hope is commonly operationalized-agency and pathways-supplemental analysis suggested that spirituality only affects SS through the agency channel. To help foster hope in direct practice settings, it is suggested that social workers might employ spiritually modified cognitive-behavioral therapy protocols. Macrostructural interventions that block the pathway component of hope are also suggested to help reverse exclusion from labor market entry. As such, hope needs to be addressed comprehensively-intrapsychically and macrostructurally-to effect bottom-up change for SS. Engendering hope may assist clients overcome some of the many challenges they encounter on the journey to SS.

The relationship between the spiritual attitude of the family caregivers of older patients with stroke and their burden.

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Torabi Chafjiri, Razieh; Navabi, Nasrin; Shamsalinia, Abbas; Ghaffari, Fatemeh

2017-01-01

Stroke is a chronic condition that necessitates multidimensional and overwhelming care. The caregivers of stroke patients are faced with various stressors that can threaten different aspects of their health, especially their mental health. Spiritual attitude and being spiritually oriented contribute significantly to mental health and can be used as a strategy for adapting to the stressful events that are part of the role of caregiving. This study was therefore conducted to investigate the relationship between the spiritual attitude of the family caregivers of older patients with stroke and their burden. This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in 2016. The study population consisted of all the family caregivers of older patients with stroke presenting to health care centers and nursing service companies of Gilan Province in Iran. The participants were selected through convenience sampling and consisted of 407 participants. Data were collected using the Spiritual Attitude Scale and the Caregiver Burden Inventory and were then analyzed in SPSS-18 using Pearson's correlation coefficient at a significance level of 0.05. The results showed that 88.9% of the caregivers were females. The mean age of the participants was 38.3±8.8 years. The duration of caregiving was relationship was observed in this study between the mean score of spiritual attitude and the total score of burden in all its dimensions, namely, time dependence, as well as the developmental, physical, social and emotional dimensions. Providing strategies for improving spirituality, such as teaching spiritual self-care, can improve their burden. Given that such strategies are psychologically approved and pose no side effects, they can be used as an effective, low-cost and risk-free approach for all caregivers, so that they can acquire the necessary spiritual support for overcoming the stress caused by caring for family members through the reinforcement of their spiritual beliefs in the ultimate

The Four Domains Model: Connecting Spirituality, Health and Well-Being

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John Fisher

2011-01-01

Full Text Available At our core, or coeur, we humans are spiritual beings. Spirituality can be viewed in a variety of ways from a traditional understanding of spirituality as an expression of religiosity, in search of the sacred, through to a humanistic view of spirituality devoid of religion. Health is also multi-faceted, with increasing evidence reporting the relationship of spirituality with physical, mental, emotional, social and vocational well-being. This paper presents spiritual health as a, if not THE, fundamental dimension of people’s overall health and well-being, permeating and integrating all the other dimensions of health. Spiritual health is a dynamic state of being, reflected in the quality of relationships that people have in up to four domains of spiritual well-being: Personal domain where a person intra-relates with self; Communal domain, with in-depth inter-personal relationships; Environmental domain, connecting with nature; Transcendental domain, relating to some-thing or some‑One beyond the human level. The Four Domains Model of Spiritual Health and Well‑Being embraces all extant world-views from the ardently religious to the atheistic rationalist.

Social and Abnormal Psychology Textbooks: An Objective Analysis.

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Christopher, Andrew N.; Griggs, Richard A.; Hagans, Chad L.

2000-01-01

Provides feature and content analyses of 14 social and 17 abnormal psychology full-length textbooks from 1995-98 that are available for undergraduate psychology courses. Provides instructors of these courses a means for more informed text selection. (CMK)

Moral and Spiritual Aspects of Counseling: Recent Developments in the West

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Mumtaz Fatima Jafari

1998-12-01

Full Text Available This paper aims at exploring the moral and spiritual dimension of counseling. Since professional counseling has developed in the West, cultural peculiarities and individualistic orientation of the Occident permeate the profession. Recently a surge of interest in spirituality and religion has been noted with some focused treatment on a new approach of counseling. The new approach suggests that spirituality in life is central to the individual, family, and community. Therapists are increasingly examining the relationship between spirituality and general psychological wellness. Both secular and religious professionals are recognizing the paradigm shift from illness to wellness and individualism to collectivism. Counseling has grown out of the premise that therapists need to be value-free. The emerging perspective of an integrated outlook of counseling with religion and spirituality has resulted in a fundamental conflict with the prevailing value system of the profession. Counselors still wish to avoid the role of a moralist. The controversy is also related to the desired assertiveness of a therapist in attaching a moral and spiritual dimension while advocating certain values. Psychotherapy, as a moralistic enterprise, requires modification in its training programmes. Therapists need to reorient themselves as scientists with a profound moral or spiritual commitment. Clients need and demand this reorientation. This profession has the claim of responding to the needs of its clientele and it cannot ignore the emerging thrust in its practice.

Spiritual Values and Spiritual Practices: Interactive Effects on Leadership Effectiveness

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Zakiyulfikri Ali

2018-02-01

Full Text Available The relationship between spirituality and leadership effectiveness has been discussed over decades. These relations have been separated in two big perspective—first, an esoteric realm of intangible ideas and emotions; and second, a practical area and scientific inquiry. This research tries to integrate these two different perspectives. Specifically, this research examines the effects of spiritual values and spiritual practices on leadership effectiveness. The findings indicate that spiritual values and spiritual practices have positive effects on leadership effectiveness. This research also shows that spiritual values and spiritual practices have interactive effects on leadership effectiveness. This result implies that organizations should enhance the spiritual values and practices. Discussion, practical, and theoretical implications for further researches are offered. DOI: 10.15408/etk.v17i1.6497

Energy sustainable communities - social and psychological aspects

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schweizer-Ries, P.; Baasch, St.; Jagszent, J.

2004-01-01

Besides technical, political and economic aspects of energy sustainability there are several social, behavioural and psychological dimensions of vital importance for a successful implementation of Renewable Energy Systems (RES) and Rational Use of Energy (RUE) within communities. The European Project ''Sustainable Communities-on the energy dimension'' pursues an interdisciplinary approach to detect essential success and facilitating factors. In the last years social and psychological aspects in the process of sustainability came to the fore more and more. Not only as a complementary science to facilitate the technical aims in the change process but also as an essential part for success. (authors)

Role of spirituality in becoming of postnonclassical education: рhilosophical analysis

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V. G. Serednya

2016-04-01

Full Text Available If the classical conditions of rationality spirituality of the individual was associated mainly with interiorizes moral Absolutes, within postneoclassical understanding it is perceived as the expansion of the boundaries of identity, deloge-empatica communication, the assertion of subject-subjective attitude to the world and the like. For philosophy of education it is particularly important that this essentially set the basic coordinates of personal development of man in the form of an extension of the anthropological boundaries on the basis of formation of such a spiritual-socio-cultural qualities as openness, sociability, creativity. One of the main problems that is discussed in modern philosophical and educational studies of spirituality is the need of combining the traditional, research-based foundations for human development in the educational process with postrecessionary ideas about the subjectivity of this process, through a combination of formal and existential reasoning in determining the most appropriate and effective ways of formation of the person as a spiritual being. Postrecession, spirituality relies on the traditional and modern education in the sense that, as she seeks to reveal to man the world in the absence of possibilities for self-knowledge at certain stages of development. However, with the development of its subject-oriented paradigm of education postrecession interpreterpath spirituality as a component of the priority development of education. Postrecession of education proves the possibility of spiritual development of man in the context of social needs, explore phenomenalist of spirituality in education as a set of probabilistic phenomena, which are determined by a variety of meanings, events, meetings of man and the world. To the fore in the post-non-classical education, therefore, out of the spiritual principles, primarily the spiritual and mental picture of the world as the basis of the orientations of individual

Review of empirical studies on impact of religion, religiosity and spirituality as protective factors

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Ana C. Salgado

2014-06-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this article is to review the empirical researches supporting the positive impact of religion, religiosity and spirituality as protective factors in various areas of human life. An analysis of each variable is performed individually and collectively. Among the conclusions of this work, researches show that they help people to have more self-esteem, are a source of strength and hope, are associated with greater satisfaction with life and spiritual well-being and increase the capacity for forgiveness. They provide emotional and social support, promote prosocial values, are associated with less use and abuse of drugs and less tendency to smoke. They help to have better physical and psychological health, contribute to prevention and help to speed recovery and promote tolerance to diseases. They help to decrease depression, anxiety, blood pressure and stress. They contribute to a better adaptation, help to cope with the disease and fear of death. Finally, they help to better deal with disability condition associated with chronic disease.

Psychology and social networks: a dynamic network theory perspective.

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Westaby, James D; Pfaff, Danielle L; Redding, Nicholas

2014-04-01

Research on social networks has grown exponentially in recent years. However, despite its relevance, the field of psychology has been relatively slow to explain the underlying goal pursuit and resistance processes influencing social networks in the first place. In this vein, this article aims to demonstrate how a dynamic network theory perspective explains the way in which social networks influence these processes and related outcomes, such as goal achievement, performance, learning, and emotional contagion at the interpersonal level of analysis. The theory integrates goal pursuit, motivation, and conflict conceptualizations from psychology with social network concepts from sociology and organizational science to provide a taxonomy of social network role behaviors, such as goal striving, system supporting, goal preventing, system negating, and observing. This theoretical perspective provides psychologists with new tools to map social networks (e.g., dynamic network charts), which can help inform the development of change interventions. Implications for social, industrial-organizational, and counseling psychology as well as conflict resolution are discussed, and new opportunities for research are highlighted, such as those related to dynamic network intelligence (also known as cognitive accuracy), levels of analysis, methodological/ethical issues, and the need to theoretically broaden the study of social networking and social media behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved).

Spirituality and low-risk consumption of alcohol in young adults

OpenAIRE

Díaz Heredia, Luz Patricia; Muñoz Sánchez, Alba Idaly

2013-01-01

The relationship between spirituality and health, as well as it effect on adopting healthy behaviors, is a topic of interest for nursing and, in general, for social and life sciences. Spirituality, as a human realm, is a relevant research theme that is often related to the promotion of health in individuals. Studies indicate that spirituality is related to mental and physical health, being a protective and promoting factor of healthy behaviors, among them low-risk consumption of alcohol in yo...

Spirituality and job satisfaction among hospice interdisciplinary team members.

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Clark, Leah; Leedy, Stephen; McDonald, Laurie; Muller, Barbara; Lamb, Cheryl; Mendez, Tracy; Kim, Sehwan; Schonwetter, Ronald

2007-12-01

As a continuing effort to enhance the quality of palliative care for the dying, this study examined (1) the prevalence of spirituality among hospice interdisciplinary team (IDT) members; (2) whether spirituality is related to job satisfaction; and (3) the structural path relationships among four variables: spiritual belief, integration of spirituality at work, self actualization and job satisfaction. The study surveyed 215 hospice IDT members who completed the Jarel Spiritual Well-Being Scale, the Chamiec-Case Spirituality Integration and Job Satisfaction Scales. Multiple regression and structural path modeling methods were applied to explain the path relationships involving all four variables. The IDT members surveyed were: nurses, 46.4%; home health aids, 24.9%; social workers, 17.4%; chaplains, 4.2%; physicians, 2.3%; and other, 4.8%. Ninety-eight percent of the respondents viewed themselves as having spiritual well-being. On a 0-100 scale, IDT staff reported high spiritual belief (mean = 89.4) and they were self-actualizing (mean = 82.6). Most reported high job satisfaction (mean = 79.3) and spiritual integration (mean = 67.9). In multiple regression, spirituality, integration and self-actualization explained 22% of the variation in job satisfaction (R = 0.48; adjusted R(2) = 0.218; df = 3,175; F = 17.2; p = 0.001). Structural path models revealed that job satisfaction is more likely to be realized by a model that transforms one's spirituality into processes of integrating spirituality at work and self actualization (chi(2) = 0.614; df = 1; p = 0.433) than a model that establishes a direct path from spirituality to job satisfaction (chi(2) = 1.65; df = 1; p = 0.199). Hospice IDT member's integration of their spirituality at work and greater self actualization significantly improve job satisfaction.

Meditational spiritual intercession and recovery from disease in palliative care: a literature review.

Science.gov (United States)

Agarwal, Siddharth; Kumar, Vijai; Agarwal, Sapna; Brugnoli, Maria Paola; Agarwal, Ansh

2018-01-01

Human body is a biological, open system and maintains itself in the changing environment. Disease state is cured by many medicinal systems for healing. Esoteric healing (through introspective hypnosis, meditation and spiritual intercession) is the system where its believers regard Supreme Being as Omnipotent, Omnipresent and Omniscient. Such persons take ill health as a boon and pray through meditation that He may by His Mercy grant health or if God wishes otherwise, they happily accept it so that they keep moving ahead on their spiritual path. This study is a review of literature, where results clearly point towards better psychological and spiritual healing in patients who believe in esoteric cures. Modern science in terms of cognitive psychology or neurophysiology has begun to emphasize the role of consciousness but, that is confined only to the physical world. It is only with the advent of Param Purush Puran Dhani Soami Ji Maharaj (200 years ago) that in the religion of Saints, the ultimate consciousness or the Super Consciousness of the highest order has been revealed.

Social Work Counselling for the Children of Botswana: Contemporary Issues and Corresponding Needs

Science.gov (United States)

Ntshwarang, Poloko N.; Malinga-Musamba, Tumani

2016-01-01

Economic development and globalisation have had both positive and negative consequences for many people in Botswana. The changing economic situation has affected their social, economic, spiritual, health, and psychological status. The population most at risk is children. Children face several challenges such as malnutrition, sexual and other forms…

Religion, an obstacle to workplace spirituality and employee wellness?

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Alan Bester

2017-01-01

Full Text Available A desperate need for employee wellness is echoed in work-related stories. Workplace spirituality is presented as an integral part of achieving and maintaining employee wellness. However, there is an observed gap of spirituality in employee wellness programmes and in the absence of the workplace spiritual helper in multidisciplinary wellness teams. Using a postfoundational notion of practical theology, I have explored one of the reasons for this gap, namely workplace spirituality�s association to religion. When spirituality is viewed through the lens of religion, it is overlooked as a vehicle of help. This is a consequence of the obstacles of the taboo of religious discussion, the complexity of religious plurality, the dominant voice of secularism and unhelpful religiosity. A proposal is made for a definition of spirituality that describes the relationship between spirituality and religion that overcomes the religionrelated obstacles to the development of workplace spirituality and so enable spirituality�s contribution in wellness.Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: The research includes an interdisciplinary collaboration with a Human Resource (HR manager, social worker, arts therapist, clinical pastoral counsellor, medical practitioner, psychologist, businessperson and two psychiatrists that underscores the collaborative effort in wellness. There is an intradisciplinary challenge to those who restrict the view of spirituality to the experience of religion.

Particularizing spirituality in points of tension: enriching the discourse.

Science.gov (United States)

Pesut, Barbara; Fowler, Marsha; Reimer-Kirkham, Sheryl; Taylor, Elizabeth Johnston; Sawatzky, Rick

2009-12-01

The tremendous growth in nursing literature about spirituality has garnered proportionately little critique. Part of the reason may be that the broad generalizing claims typical of this literature have not been sufficiently explicated so that their particular implications for a practice discipline could be evaluated. Further, conceptualizations that attempt to encompass all possible views are difficult to challenge outside of a particular location. However, once one assumes a particular location in relation to spirituality, then the question becomes how one resolves the tension between what are essentially theological or philosophical commitments and professional commitments. In this study, we discuss the tension between these perspectives using the idea of a responsible nursing response to spiritual pluralism. We then problematize three claims about spirituality in nursing discourse based upon our location as scholars influenced by Christian theological understandings: (i) the claim that all individuals are spiritual; (ii) the claim that human spirituality can be assessed and evaluated; and (iii) the claim that spirituality is a proper domain of nursing's concern and intervention. We conclude by suggesting that the widely shared values of social justice, compassion and human dignity may well serve as a grounding for the critique of spiritual discourses in nursing across particularized positions.

Use of Social Desirability Scales in Clinical Psychology: A Systematic Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Perinelli, Enrico; Gremigni, Paola

2016-06-01

There is still an open debate about the utility of social desirability indicators. This report systematically reviewed the use of social desirability scales in studies addressing social desirability in clinical psychology. A systematic review (January 2010-March 2015) was conducted, including 35 studies meeting the inclusion criteria of being published in peer-reviewed journals and describing quantitative findings about an association of social desirability with clinical psychology variables using a cross-sectional or longitudinal design. Social desirability was associated with self-reports of various clinical-psychological dimensions. Most of the included studies treated social desirability as a 1-dimensional variable and only 10 of 35 disentangled the impression management and self-deception components. Although theoretical literature does not consider social desirability a mere response bias, only 4 of the reviewed articles controlled for the possible suppressor effect of personality variables on social desirability, while the majority focused upon the stylistic (response bias) rather than the substantive (personality) nature of this construct. The present review highlighted some limitations in the use of social desirability scales in recent clinical psychology research and tried to offer a few suggestions for handling this issue. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The religious-spiritual self-image and behaviours among adolescent street children in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Science.gov (United States)

Mhizha, Samson

2015-02-01

. The negative religious-spiritual self-image among the street children had important negative implications on psychological functioning, moral behaviours, and social relations for the street-living children.

Broadening Participation in the Life Sciences with Social-Psychological Interventions

Science.gov (United States)

Tibbetts, Yoi; Harackiewicz, Judith M.; Priniski, Stacy J.; Canning, Elizabeth A.

2016-01-01

Randomized controlled trials (RCTs) have recently documented the positive effects of social-psychological interventions on the performance and retention of underrepresented students in the life sciences. We review two types of social-psychological interventions that address either students' well-being in college science courses or students'…

Positive emotions, spirituality and the practice of psychiatry.

Science.gov (United States)

Vaillant, George E

2008-01-01

THIS PAPER PROPOSES THAT EIGHT POSITIVE EMOTIONS: awe, love (attachment), trust (faith), compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, joy and hope constitute what we mean by spirituality. These emotions have been grossly ignored by psychiatry. The two sciences that I shall employ to demonstrate this definition of spirituality will be ethology and neuroscience. They are both very new. I will argue that spirituality is not about ideas, sacred texts and theology; rather, spirituality is all about emotion and social connection.Specific religions, for all their limitations, are often the portal through which positive emotions are brought into conscious attention. Neither Freud nor psychiatric textbooks ever mention emotions like joy and gratitude. Hymns and psalms give these emotions pride of place. Our whole concept of psychotherapy might change if clinicians set about enhancing positive emotions rather than focusing only on negative emotions.

Emotional intelligence and spiritual well-being: implications for spiritual care.

Science.gov (United States)

Beauvais, Audrey; Stewart, Julie G; DeNisco, Susan

2014-01-01

Understanding factors that influence spiritual well-being may improve nurses' spiritual caregiving. This study examined relationships between emotional intelligence (EI) and spiritual well-being (SWB) in undergraduate and graduate nursing students. Using the Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test (MSCEIT) and the spiritual well-being scale (SWBS) relationships were found between managing emotion and spiritual well-being, and managing emotion and existential well-being. Implications for education and practice are discussed.

Fibromyalgia, Spirituality, Coping and Quality of Life.

Science.gov (United States)

Biccheri, Eliane; Roussiau, Nicolas; Mambet-Doué, Constance

2016-08-01

The aim of this study is to identify the impact of spirituality on coping strategies and on the quality of life of fibromyalgia patients. The study was carried out on 590 people suffering from fibromyalgia. The data were collected with the French version of the WCC-R (The Ways of Coping Checklist: Cousson et al. 1996), the questionnaire of spirituality (Evaluation de La Spiritualité: Renard and Roussiau, 2016) and Diener's Satisfaction with Life Scale questionnaire, translated into French (Blais et al. 1989). An analysis carried out with the software SPSS and Hayes' models showed that both problem-focused coping and coping through social support seeking are mediating variables that enable an indirect link between spirituality and quality of life.

An Analysis of Social Justice Research in School Psychology

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Graybill, Emily; Baker, Courtney N.; Cloth, Allison H.; Fisher, Sycarah; Nastasi, Bonnie K.

2018-01-01

The purpose of the current content analysis was to build upon previous empirical research both within school psychology and in other subdisciplines of psychology to refine the operationalized definition of social justice within school psychology research. Operationalizing the definition and substantiating it within the empirical literature is a…

Wundt, Völkerpsychologie, and experimental social psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Greenwood, John D

2003-02-01

Wilhelm Wundt distinguished between "experimental psychology" and Volkerpsychologie. It is often claimed that Wundt maintained that social psychological phenomena, the subject matter of Völkerpsychologie, could not be investigated experimentally but must be explored via comparative-historical methods. In this article it is argued that it is doubtful if many of the passages usually cited as evidence that Wundt held such a view actually such such a view. It is also argued that if Wundt did hold such a view, it was inconsistent with his own general theoretical position and methodological practice. It is suggested that it is anachronistic to attribute such a view to Wundt, because he appears to have had little interest in the experimental analysis of the synchronic social dynamics of psychological processes. Most of Wundt's arguments about the inappropriateness of experimentation were directed against the introspective analysis of diachronic historical processes.

Social Change: Toward an Informed and Critical Understanding of Social Justice and the Capabilities Approach in Community Psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Munger, Felix; MacLeod, Tim; Loomis, Colleen

2016-03-01

Community psychology has long been concerned with social justice. However, deployments of this term are often vague and undertheorized. To address this weakness in the field's knowledge body we explored John Rawls's theory of social justice and Amartya Sen's economic theory of the capabilities approach and evaluated each for its applicability to community psychology theory, research, and action. Our unpacking of the philosophical and political underpinnings of Rawlsian theory of social justice resulted in identifying characteristics that limit the theory's utility in community psychology, particularly in its implications for action. Our analysis of the capability approach proposed by Amartya Sen revealed a framework that operationalizes social justice in both research and action, and we elaborate on this point. Going beyond benefits to community psychology in adopting the capabilities approach, we posit a bi-directional relationship and discuss how community psychology might also contribute to the capabilities approach. We conclude by suggesting that community psychology could benefit from a manifesto or proclamation that provides a historical background of social justice and critiques the focus on the economic, sociological, and philosophical theories that inform present-day conceptualizations (and lack thereof) of social justice for community psychology. © Society for Community Research and Action 2016.

Cesium-137: psychological and social consequences of the Goiania's accident

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Helou, Suzana; Costa Neto, Sebastiao Benicio da

1995-01-01

The book care for radioactive accident occurred in 1987 in Goiania - brazilian city. The accident had origin by the hospitable equipment incorrect handling which contained a stainless steel capsule, in which interior there was cesium-137 chloride. The main boarded aspects are: psychological and social aspects verified after the accident; psychological and social analysis of population of Goiania three years after the accident; essay on the pertinence of Luscher's abbreviate test in psychological evaluation of the radioactive accident victims of Goiania; and psychological and mobile evaluation of intra-uterus children exposed to the radiation with cesium-137

Handbook of Research Methods in Social and Personality Psychology

Science.gov (United States)

Reis, Harry T.; Judd, Charles M.

2000-03-01

This volume provides an overview of research methods in contemporary social psychology. Coverage includes conceptual issues in research design, methods of research, and statistical approaches. Because the range of research methods available for social psychology have expanded extensively in the past decade, both traditional and innovative methods are presented. The goal is to introduce new and established researchers alike to new methodological developments in the field.

The Army’s Use of Spirituality in the Prevention of Suicide

Science.gov (United States)

2013-03-01

of Religion/Spirituality in the Prevention of Suicide Psychological and Psychiatric Studies Sigmund Freud , a critic of religion, believed religion...might help people with behavioral health issues. In his writings, Freud affirmed, “If only religion can answer the question of the purpose of life one...youth ministry. 47 Sigmund Freud , Civilization and its Discontents (1930) trans. James Strachey, Standard Addition of the Psychological Works of

The Spiritual Well-Being Scale: Portuguese Translation and Suggestions for Use

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Raymond F. Paloutzian

2016-03-01

Full Text Available In recent years the study of the relationships between religion and health has expanded to include the study of the relationships between spirituality and health. “Spirituality” is typically thought of as the more inclusive of the two terms. Meanwhile, the concept of spiritual well-being (SWB has been invoked to reflect someone’s self-perception of well-being in terms that the person understands “spiritual” to mean – whether religious or existential in connotation. Thus, spirituality and SWB should not be confused with each other. Measures of each construct differ in psychological dimensions they are trying to tap and in the kind of assessments they are intended to yield. This paper explains each construct, presents the Portuguese translation of the SWBS, and notes suggestions for its use.

Sport psychology group consultation using social networking web sites.

Science.gov (United States)

Dietrich, Frederick; Shipherd, Amber M; Gershgoren, Lael; Filho, Edson Medeiros; Basevitch, Itay

2012-08-01

A social networking Web site, Facebook, was used to deliver long-term sport psychology consultation services to student-athletes (i.e., soccer players) in 30- to 60-min weekly sessions. Additional short-term team building, group cohesion, communication, anger management, injury rehabilitation, mental toughness, commitment, and leadership workshops were provided. Cohesion and overall relationships between both the student-athletes and the sport psychology consultants benefited from this process. Social networking Web sites offer a practical way of providing sport psychology consulting services that does not require use of major resources. (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved.

Ethnic heterogeneity, social capital and psychological distress in Sweden.

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Johnson-Singh, Charisse M; Rostila, Mikael; Ponce de Leon, Antonio; Forsell, Yvonne; Engström, Karin

2018-05-25

Ethnic heterogeneity has been linked to both protective and detrimental effects on mental health. Few studies have investigated the role of social capital in this relationship and none have found that it has an explanatory role. The aim of this study is to investigate the relationship between two measures of ethnic heterogeneity and psychological distress in Stockholm County, as well as the explanatory role of social capital for individuals with Swedish-background, foreign-background and those who are foreign-born. This study used data collected from respondents aged 18-64 to the 2002, 2006, 2010 baseline questionnaires of the Stockholm Public Health Cohort and was linked with individual and area-level register information. Ethnic heterogeneity was the main exposure, measured by: 1) ethnic density, defined as the proportion of first and second generation immigrants with 2 foreign-born parents; and 2) ethnic diversity, using the fragmentation index. Social capital measures of individual and contextual-level social support and horizontal trust were the main explanatory factors of interest. The outcome, psychological distress, was assessed using the General Health Questionnaire-12 with a 2/3 cut-off. Prevalence ratios with 95% confidence intervals were estimated using multi-level poisson regression with robust variances. Age and sex adjusted analyses for the whole study population demonstrated that a 10% increase in ethnic density or diversity was associated with a 1.06 (1.05-1.07) times higher prevalence of psychological distress. In the stratified analyses, both foreign-born respondents and those with Swedish-background showed increasing prevalence of psychological distress with increasing ethnic heterogeneity. However, this trend was entirely explained by socioeconomic factors in the Swedish-background respondents and by additional adjustments for individual and contextual social support and horizontal trust for the foreign-born. Further adjustment for contextual

The practice of psychological science: searching for Cronbach's two streams in social-personality psychology.

Science.gov (United States)

Tracy, Jessica L; Robins, Richard W; Sherman, Jeffrey W

2009-06-01

The present research surveyed a group of editors and editorial board members of personality and social psychology journals to examine the practice of psychological science in their field. Findings demonstrate that (a) although personality and social researchers tend to use many of the same approaches, methods, and procedures, they nonetheless show average differences in each of these domains, as well as in their overarching theoretical aims and perspectives; (b) these average differences largely conform to social and personality researchers' stereotypes about each subgroup; (c) despite their methodological and philosophical differences, the 2 subgroups study many of the same research topics; and (d) the structure of social-personality research practices can be characterized as having 2 independent factors, which closely correspond to L. J. Cronbach's (1957) correlational and experimental "streams of research."

Reclaiming the person: intersectionality and dynamic social categories through a psychological lens.

Science.gov (United States)

Frazier, Kathryn E

2012-09-01

Psychology's conventionally treatment of individuals' engagement with and resistance to the societal processes in which they are embedded has come under scrutiny amid the rise of postmodernist and critical feminist perspectives (among many others) in the social sciences. A sample of social psychology's responses to these critiques is presented in the recently published book, Social Categories in Everyday Experience edited by Shaun Wiley et al. (2011). In this essay, the challenges of seriously addressing the critiques of psychology's conventional treatment of social categories, which implicate fundamental assumptions of the discipline, are discussed. Further, it is argued that in order to effectively construct psychological accounts of political activism and social change amid theories that are increasingly cognizant of the complexities and contingencies of social embeddiness, the person must be reclaimed and revisioned. Notions of agency that complement an intersectional and systemic vision of the social world are discussed.

Effective Application of Psychological Motivators for Social Advertisers.

Science.gov (United States)

Severn, Jessica

Social advertisers--those responsible for public and nonprofit advertising and marketing--must employ many of the major psychological motivations used by commercial advertisers to stimulate desire and action on the part of target audiences. For example, commercial advertisers create psychological stimuli to facilitate motivation of the fulfillment…

Integrating Shamanic Methodology into the Spirituality of Addictions Recovery Work

Science.gov (United States)

Rich, Marcia L.

2012-01-01

Responding to an increased recognition of the importance of spirituality in the aetiology and treatment of addictions, this article provides an overview of the potential contributions of both transpersonal psychology and shamanic methodology for the addictions field. A case study is provided to illustrate the integration of conventional,…

Humanistic aspects of training of social teachers

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

E. L. Karaman

2015-01-01

Full Text Available The article analyzes the most important components of the social teacher training, taking into account the significant changes in the social sphere of Russian society. The authors draw attention to the fact, that ongoing deformation of the social and humanitarian sphere dictates the urgent need for the formation of stable spiritual foundation of human existence. At the same time the modern reinterpretation of classic ideas of national and world pedagogical thought allows E.L. Karaman and A.S. Kurbatova justify the need to strengthen the humanistic aspect of social and educational activities, opposing the formation of a purely pragmatic thinking and promoting the comprehensive development of creative thinking, social relation of the teacher to the child as the supreme value of life. Special attention is paid to the relevance of the study of pedagogical and psychological disciplines and practices in the formation of professional competence - an integrated quality, consisting in an organic combination of knowledge, skills, experience and individual psychological personality characteristics.

Moral functioning: socio-psychological approach.Social intuitionist theory of John Haidt

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Victor A. Zaikin

2017-03-01

Full Text Available The paper studies the methodological aspect of developing social intuitionist approach to moral psychology. The paper reveals the possibility of applying this approach to the study of morality and moral functioning today, emphasizes the representation of issues in moral psychology methodological origins of social psychology, both in Russia and abroad. Social and psychological foundations of social intuitionist approach are described in detail. The research results show that the child perceiving the concept of fairness and variability in the framework of a specific group membership is culturally determined. The matter of special consideration is the theory of the American social psychologist George Haidt. The results of his work and his colleagues’ works are presented herein describing the concept of cultural variable moral intuitions, the findings of empirical studies carried out in the framework of this approach are summarized. The paper reveals the fundamental provisions of the social and intuitionistic theory. The comparative analysis of the social intuitionistic and cognitive approaches in moral psychology is presented. The conclusion that the relativistic understanding of morality is not an obstacle to its study, and the presence of various determinants of moral functioning should be based on further empirical research. The authors conceptualized the current state of social intuitionistic theory of moral functioning, which describes the theoretical and methodological sources of this area (Rawls, 2010; Freud, 2005; Hume, 1996; Hare’s, 1981. As justification for this approach the paper considers the phenomena studied in psychology, social cognition, and those that create the possibility of developing this area, namely affective motivation (Zajonc, 1980, fair-world hypothesis (Lerner, 1965, the objectivity of the illusion (Perkins, Allen, & Hafner , 1983, the phenomenon of «naive realism» (Griffin, & Ross, 1991, group interaction in a

Erich Fromm's Involvement With Zen Buddhism: Psychoanalysts and the Spiritual Quest in Subsequent Decades.

Science.gov (United States)

Roland, Alan

2017-08-01

The first section of this paper covers Erich Fromm's profound involvement with Zen Buddhism, culminating in his co-authoring the book Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis in 1960. It details why this was a groundbreaking endeavor, as it countered the pervasive psychoanalytic denigration of spiritual traditions, practices, and experiences. The second section describes the effect of Fromm's Zen Buddhism and Psychoanalysis on the author of this paper, as he came to clinical psychology and psychoanalysis from involvement in Indian philosophy. The third section is a case study of a spiritually advanced Hindu woman seen in intensive short-term psychoanalytic therapy in Bombay, describing the interface of the spiritual with psychoanalytic therapy. The fourth section explains what eventually led to a sea change in psychoanalytic attitudes toward spiritual traditions and practices, with a small but significant group of psychoanalysts becoming involved in one or another spiritual practice, and working with patients also so involved.

spirituality and contextuality 1. the historiography of spirituality

African Journals Online (AJOL)

The contextuality or historicity of spirituality is not self-evident. Not until modern times, in Europe, did it become more or less normal to look at spirituality from a historical perspective. It is thus not strange that the historiography of spirituality arose from the nineteenth century. In that time, the historical perspective was ...

Spirituality: The Core of Healing and Social Justice from an Indigenous Perspective

Science.gov (United States)

Baskin, Cyndy

2016-01-01

This chapter, based on the literature and interviews with both Indigenous and non-Indigenous participants, explores how land-based spirituality is at the core of Indigenous societies globally. In this chapter, an Indigenous philosophy carries a message that spirituality is not only about one's inward journey but is also about creating a better…

Applying the Team Identification-Social Psychological Health Model to older sport fans.

Science.gov (United States)

Wann, Daniel L; Rogers, Kelly; Dooley, Keith; Foley, Mary

2011-01-01

According to the Team Identification-Social Psychological Health Model (Wann, 2006b), team identification and social psychological health should be positively correlated because identification leads to important social connections which, in turn, facilitate well-being. Although past research substantiates the hypothesized positive relationship between team identification and well-being, earlier studies focused solely on college student populations. The current study extended past work in this area by investigating the team identification/well-being relationship among older sport fans. A sample of older adults (N = 96; M age = 70.82) completed scales assessing demographics, identification with a local college basketball team, and measures of social psychological well-being. As hypothesized, team identification accounted for a significant proportion of unique variance in two measures of social psychological health (collective self-esteem and loneliness).

Socially desirable responding by bariatric surgery candidates during psychological assessment.

Science.gov (United States)

Ambwani, Suman; Boeka, Abbe G; Brown, Joshua D; Byrne, T Karl; Budak, Amanda R; Sarwer, David B; Fabricatore, Anthony N; Morey, Leslie C; O'Neil, Patrick M

2013-01-01

Most bariatric surgery programs in the United States require preoperative psychological evaluations for candidates for surgery. Among those who perform these evaluations is concern that many patients engage in "impression management" or minimizing the symptoms of distress to receive a recommendation to proceed with surgery from the mental health professional. We sought to assess the prevalence of socially desirable responding and its associations with measures of psychological functioning among bariatric surgery candidates at 2 academic medical centers in the United States. The participants were male (n = 66) and female (n = 293) bariatric surgery candidates who presented for psychological evaluation. The participants completed 2 measures of socially desirable response styles (Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale and Personality Assessment Inventory Positive Impression Management scale) and standardized measures of anxiety, depression, and alcohol-related problems. The participants exhibited elevated scores on the social desirability indicators, with 33.3-39.8% scoring above the recommended cut-score on the Personality Assessment Inventory Positive Impression Management scale and 62.3-67% scoring 1 standard deviation above the standardization mean on the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale. Scores on the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale and Personality Assessment Inventory Positive Impression Management scale correlated inversely with the clinical measures of anxiety and depression, and the high/low scorers on the social desirability indices exhibited significant differences in anxiety and depression. Thus, elevated scores on the social desirability indices were associated with underreporting of certain clinical symptoms. A substantial proportion of bariatric surgery candidates appear to present themselves in an overly favorable light during the psychological evaluation. This response style is associated with less reporting of psychological

The Effect of Music on the Spirituality of Patients: A Systematic Review.

Science.gov (United States)

Alvarenga, Willyane de Andrade; Leite, Ana Carolina Andrade Biaggi; Oliveira, Marina Sanches; Nascimento, Lucila Castanheira; Silva-Rodrigues, Fernanda Machado; Nunes, Michelle Darezzo Rodrigues; Carvalho, Emilia Campos de

2018-06-01

Although some studies have suggested that music can positively affect physical and psychological variables, few have evaluated its effects on spirituality. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of musical interventions on the spirituality of patients, regardless of diagnoses. This was a systematic literature review that followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) recommendations conducted through a relevant search of terms in six databases (PubMed, Web of Science, CINAHL, PsycINFO, ScienceDirect, and LILACS) without temporal delimitation. Experimental or quasi-experimental studies were included, involving participants regardless of diagnoses, to assess the effect of music on spirituality, either through musical intervention as music medicine or through music therapy. The methodological quality of included studies was evaluated using the Physiotherapy Evidence Database scale. A total of 147 studies were identified; 7 met the inclusion criteria. Five studies were randomized controlled trials involving six music therapists leading the musical intervention with the active participation of patients. The interventions used were heterogeneous. Three studies were associated with improved spirituality after the intervention. Four studies used measurements to evaluate spiritual well-being. This review did not allow ascertaining the positive impact of music intervention on spirituality in patients, which motivates further research.

Association of social skills with psychological distress among female nurses in Japan.

Science.gov (United States)

Uchiyama, Ayako; Odagiri, Yuko; Ohya, Yumiko; Suzuki, Ayako; Hirohata, Kayoko; Kosugi, Shotaro; Shimomitsu, Teruichi

2011-01-01

Nursing is a highly stressful occupation. Because nursing work involves interaction with patients and colleagues, competence in social skills may be a key issue in stress management among nurses. However, there are very few studies among nurses focused on social skills together with social support, both of which are important aspects of job stress. The aim of this study was to examine the interrelationships between social skills and social support with job stressors, problem-solving coping, and psychological distress among Japanese nurses. Data from a self-administered questionnaire of 1,197 female nurses who worked for 5 general hospitals in Japan were analyzed. Covariance structure analysis with structural equation modeling techniques showed that social skills and social support were positively related to each other, while they were negatively associated with psychological distress and job stressors, and positively associated with problem-solving coping. Furthermore, the direct association between social skills and psychological distress was stronger than the association between social support and psychological distress. These findings suggested that improving not only social support at work but also individual social skills is important for nurses' mental health.

Dimensions of Ideology. A Review of Social-Psychological Literature

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Bojan Todosijević

2014-01-01

Full Text Available In social psychological literature, ideology is typically conceived as a relatively stable and organized set of general orientations that include interrelated attitudes grouped according to various sources of constraint, such as psychological disposition, general values, or ideological traditions. The paper reviews social-psychological literature on the organization of social attitudes. Research on this topic started nearly eight decades ago, inspired by the research on the structure of intellectual abilities. Since then, a large body of literature has been generated, which has not been systematically reviewed. Despite the long tradition, this literature has not resulted in proportional cumulative scientific development. The review should help improving this situation by listing the relevant studies, examining the research methodology and the main findings. The review ends with the critical summary of the man findings and methodological problems, and recommendations for the future research.

Applying the Team Identification-Social Psychological Health Model to Older Sport Fans

Science.gov (United States)

Wann, Daniel L.; Rogers, Kelly; Dooley, Keith; Foley, Mary

2011-01-01

According to the Team Identification-Social Psychological Health Model (Wann, 2006b), team identification and social psychological health should be positively correlated because identification leads to important social connections which, in turn, facilitate well-being. Although past research substantiates the hypothesized positive relationship…

Spiritual Health through Pilgrimage Therapy: A Qualitative Study

OpenAIRE

Zahra Moaven; Majid Movahed; Mohammad Taghi Iman Iman; Mansour Tabiee

2017-01-01

Background and Objectives: Going on a pilgrimage for spiritual and religious purposes is not a new phenomenon and can be considered one of the oldest tourism typologies. This form of travel is related to the task social perception, which is stronger than leisure or pleasure. The purpose of this ethnographic study was to study how spiritual well-being is achieved through pilgrimages trips. Methods: This qualitative research was carried out using ethnographic methodology. Data collection was...

A Meta-analytic Review of Religious or Spiritual Involvement and Social Health among Cancer Patients

Science.gov (United States)

Sherman, Allen C; Merluzzi, Thomas V; Pustejovsky, James E; Park, Crystal L; George, Login; Fitchett, George; Jim, Heather SL; Munoz, Alexis R; Danhauer, Suzanne C; Snyder, Mallory A; Salsman, John M

2015-01-01

Background Religion and spirituality (R/S) play an important role in the daily lives of many cancer patients. There has been great interest in determining whether R/S factors are related to clinically-relevant health outcomes. This meta-analytic review examined associations between dimensions of R/S and social health (e.g., social roles and relationships). Methods A systematic search of PubMed, PsycInfo, Cochrane Library, and CINAHL databases was conducted, and data were extracted by four pairs of investigators. Bivariate associations between specific R/S dimensions and social health outcomes were examined in a meta-analysis using a generalized estimating equation (GEE) approach. Results A total of 78 independent samples encompassing 14,277 patients were included in the meta-analysis. Social health was significantly associated with overall R/S (Fisher z effect size = .20, Pcancer. Further research is needed to examine the temporal nature of these associations and the mechanisms that underlie them. PMID:26258730

A Social Psychological Perspective:

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Singla, Rashmi; Westerling, Allan

2008-01-01

and a longitudinal approach, differences and similarities in practices of care are identified. The care patterns are studied with a focus on young adults age 30-35. Quantitative as well as qualitative methods are employed. By utilising in-depth qualitative interview data the paper explores the interplay between...... of agency with the changing societal structures and the diaspora context is confirmed. Key words: intergenerational care, individualisation, social network analysis, socio-cultural psychology, modernisation...

Spirit in Motion: Developing a Spiritual Practice in Drama Therapy.

Science.gov (United States)

Cyr, Douglas Philip

This document describes the theoretical and experiential process of utilizing a variety of action-oriented approaches for the development of a spiritual practice within the field of drama therapy. It explores the nature of the self from a variety of psychological perspectives, and introduces the concept of an ontologically- and…

Bem-estar espiritual e transtornos psiquiátricos menores em estudantes de psicologia: estudo transversal Bienestar espiritual y trastornos psiquiátricos menores en estudiantes de psicología: estudio transversal Spiritual well-being and minor psychiatric disorders in psychology students: a cross-sectional study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Marina Bento Gastaud

2006-04-01

well-being and psychiatric disorders in psychology students. METHODS: A spiritual well-being scale - the self-reporting questionnaire (SRQ-20 - and sociodemographic information were used to all psychology students (n = 351 from Universidade Católica de Pelotas, RS, Brazil, during the year of 2002. Current scores were compared to those obtained from medical and law students of the same university in 2001 (n = 464. RESULTS: 84.6% of psychology students presented negative spirituality, compared to 68.8% of medical and 68.5% of law students (p DISCUSSION: The findings coincide with the international experience. It is a matter of concern that psychology students define themselves more distant from spiritual/religious issues, considering the association spirituality/health-illness. CONCLUSION: Spirituality-religiosity appeared as a factor inversely associated to minor psychiatric disorders among psychology students.

Writing social psychology: fictional things and unpopulated texts.

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Billig, Michael

2011-03-01

This paper presents the author's position on the question how to write social psychology. It reflects the author's long-term interest in rhetoric and his more recent concerns about the writing of social scientists. The author argues that social psychologists tend to produce unpopulated texts, writing about 'fictional things' rather than people. Social psychologists assume that their technical terms are more precise than ordinary language terms. The author contests this assumption. He suggests that when it comes to describing human actions, ordinary language on the whole tends to be more precise. The paper analyses why this should be the case, drawing on ideas from linguistics and Vaihinger's notion of fictions. The author presents examples to show how psychological writers, by using passives and nominals, can omit information about the agents of action and the nature of the actions that they are performing. Although their texts may appear impressively technical, they can, in fact, be highly imprecise. Moreover, social psychologists, by using this nominal style of writing, tend to write about processes as if they were things and then attribute actions to these things. In so doing, they create 'fictional things', which they treat as if they were real things. The author offers six recommendations for writing in simpler, clearer ways. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Social-psychological specific of individual adaptation

OpenAIRE

Ovsyanik, Olga

2012-01-01

There is analyzing of specific of social-psychological adaptation person by model of adaptation. Structure model of adaptation of women of our age group, which was named “adaptation complex” was made by theoretic analyzes of problem of adaptation adult.

Social and psychological creativity in gay male midlife identity management.

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Hajek, Christopher

2016-06-01

This study utilizes a qualitative thematic analysis methodology and a social identity theory framework to explore ways in which early midlife gay men report enhancing their social identities through social and psychological creativity. Face-to-face, semi-structured interviews were conducted with forty early midlife gay men (aged 40-53) in four US cities. Men discussed the collective and individual essences of their age and gay identities, including attitudes, beliefs, and behaviours that they embraced to self-enhance at midlife. These discussions emphasized differences from the younger gay outgroup, often in the context of intergenerational interaction. Identified were three strategies (and seven substrategies) that summarized the ways that interviewees constructed their identities in the interest of self-enhancement, specifically in the context of intergenerational comparisons with younger gay men. These strategies may be considered as extensions to social creativity strategies presented in Tajfel and Turner's (Psychology of intergroup relations. Chicago, IL: Nelson, 1986: 7) social identity theory. © 2015 The British Psychological Society.

Mischaracterizing social psychology to support the laudable goal of increasing its political diversity.

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Eagly, Alice H

2015-01-01

Duarte et al.'s arguments for increasing political diversity in social psychology are based on mischaracterizations of social psychology as fundamentally flawed in understanding stereotype accuracy and the effects of attitudes on information processing. I correct their misunderstandings while agreeing with their view that political diversity, along with other forms of diversity, stands to benefit social psychology.

Social-Psychological Determinants of Electoral Voting Behavior

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K A Ivanenko

2013-12-01

Full Text Available This article reviews the current models of the voter behavior and proves the need in creating a new overarching conceptual framework, finding the integral social-psychological factor of the voter decision making. The public opinion is regarded as such a factor. The article presents the findings of the latest psychological research, devoted to the analysis of the connection between the different components of public opinion and electoral behavior.

Transcultural spirituality: the spiritual journey of hospitalized patients with schizophrenia in Taiwan.

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Yang, Chun-Tien; Narayanasamy, Aru; Chang, Sung-Ling

2012-02-01

The aim of this study was to explore how hospitalization and the diagnosis of schizophrenia have an impact on Taiwanese patients' spiritual life. Psychiatric nurses tend to construe patients' spiritual issues as pathological problems and consequently are reluctant to address patient's spirituality, which results in spirituality being overlooked in mental illness. An individual's spiritual journey is dependent upon their cultural background and beliefs; however, the professional's preconceived ideas suppress the voice of patients with schizophrenia to share their experiences of their spiritual journey. The lack of research exploring spirituality in mental illness in Taiwan means that spiritual care is overlooked in practice. This study sets out to explore spirituality from the perspectives of patients in two mental hospitals in Taiwan. Using a qualitative approach, 22 long-term hospitalized patients diagnosed with schizophrenia were interviewed. Several themes from the data were identified using Ritchie and Spencer's (1994) five stages analytical framework. The study was carried out from 2006 to 2008. Patients revealed spiritual distress as a consequence of prolonged hospitalization. They used referents consistent with traditional Chinese philosophical perspectives derived from Taoism and Confucianism to describe various features of their spiritual distress and their longing for spiritual revival, transcendence and to be accepted as normal persons. In this age of globalization, nurses need to be fully cognisant of the cultural aspects of patients to respond to a mental health patient's spirituality. Clinical and educational guidelines and policies could be developed for spiritual care in Taiwan. © 2011 The Authors. Journal of Advanced Nursing © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Brazilian Social Psychology in the international setting A Psicologia Social brasileira no cenário internacional

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Ana Raquel Rosas Torres

2013-03-01

Full Text Available The objective of this work was to discuss the Social Psychology that has been developing in Brazil, placing it in the international theoretical-methodological setting. To achieve this goal, we initially present a brief historical account of the founding of the Brazilian Association of Social Psychology and the Latin American Association of Social Psychology, providing insight into the political struggle that surrounded the emergence of these two organizations and that, to a certain degree, is still present today. We then present the results of research conducted with 150 Brazilian social psychologists concerning the definition of social psychology, the academic training perspective, and the theories used in the conduct of research. The results point to the existence of several contradictions, since, among other matters, they highlight the fact that while most participants advocate research practices tied to a more sociological perspective, the definitions given indicate a more psychological view of social psychology.O objetivo deste trabalho foi discutir a psicologia social que vem sendo desenvolvida no Brasil inserindo-a no cenário teórico-metodológico internacional. Para alcançar este objetivo, inicialmente apresentamos um breve relato histórico da fundação da Associação Brasileira de Psicologia Social e da Associação Latino Americana de Psicologia Social, fornecendo subsídios para o entendimento do embate político que envolveu o surgimento dessas duas organizações e que, de certa forma, ainda está presente na atualidade. Em seguida, apresentamos os resultados da pesquisa realizada com 150 psicólogos sociais brasileiros sobre a definição de psicologia social, sobre a perspectiva de formação e sobre as teorias utilizadas na atividade de pesquisa. Os resultados indicam a existência de algumas contradições, pois, dentre outros aspectos, destaca-se o fato que, embora a maioria dos participantes advogue uma prática de

Spirituality of American and Czech students – a cross-cultural comparison

Czech Academy of Sciences Publication Activity Database

Říčan, Pavel; Lukavský, Jiří; Janošová, Pavlína; Štochl, J.

2010-01-01

Roč. 52, č. 3 (2010), s. 243-251 ISSN 0039-3320 R&D Projects: GA AV ČR IAA700250801 Institutional research plan: CEZ:AV0Z70250504 Keywords : spirituality * measurement * factor analysis * cross - cultural differences Subject RIV: AN - Psychology Impact factor: 0.254, year: 2010

Spirituality and religion in patients with HIV/AIDS.

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Cotton, Sian; Puchalski, Christina M; Sherman, Susan N; Mrus, Joseph M; Peterman, Amy H; Feinberg, Judith; Pargament, Kenneth I; Justice, Amy C; Leonard, Anthony C; Tsevat, Joel

2006-12-01

Spirituality and religion are often central issues for patients dealing with chronic illness. The purpose of this study is to characterize spirituality/religion in a large and diverse sample of patients with HIV/AIDS by using several measures of spirituality/religion, to examine associations between spirituality/religion and a number of demographic, clinical, and psychosocial variables, and to assess changes in levels of spirituality over 12 to 18 months. We interviewed 450 patients from 4 clinical sites. Spirituality/religion was assessed by using 8 measures: the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy-Spirituality-Expanded scale (meaning/peace, faith, and overall spirituality); the Duke Religion Index (organized and nonorganized religious activities, and intrinsic religiosity); and the Brief RCOPE scale (positive and negative religious coping). Covariates included demographics and clinical characteristics, HIV symptoms, health status, social support, self-esteem, optimism, and depressive symptoms. The patients' mean (SD) age was 43.3 (8.4) years; 387 (86%) were male; 246 (55%) were minorities; and 358 (80%) indicated a specific religious preference. Ninety-five (23%) participants attended religious services weekly, and 143 (32%) engaged in prayer or meditation at least daily. Three hundred thirty-nine (75%) patients said that their illness had strengthened their faith at least a little, and patients used positive religious coping strategies (e.g., sought God's love and care) more often than negative ones (e.g., wondered whether God has abandoned me; Pself-esteem, greater life satisfaction, and lower overall functioning (R2=.16 to .74). Mean levels of spirituality did not change significantly over 12 to 18 months. Most patients with HIV/AIDS belonged to an organized religion and use their religion to cope with their illness. Patients with greater optimism, greater self-esteem, greater life satisfaction, minorities, and patients who drink less alcohol tend

Choosing Buddhism in Australia: towards a traditional style of reflexive spiritual engagement.

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Phillips, Tim; Aarons, Haydn

2005-06-01

There has been little dedicated sociological research on the appeal Buddhism holds for many individuals in the West. It is suggested that this absence reflects a current tendency within the discipline to highlight a new age approach to spiritual involvement and to overlook other optional styles of engagement. Such a pattern of study is concerning because the propensity to privilege the new age style would seem to be less an outcome of a coherent research agenda than a result of the currency that the idea of postmodern religion has come to assume in theoretical accounts of spiritual transformation in contemporary societies. Using data from a modest quantitative survey, the study investigates spiritual style among a sample of Australians who have developed an interest in Buddhist practice and belief. The results point to the prevalence of a traditional approach to involvement, whereby the individual decides to engage solely with Buddhism for the long duration. Given its possession of these qualities, the research goes on to examine the social patterning of spiritual commitment. The findings suggest that comprehending the social restrictions to any kind of involvement is a more pressing sociological question than explaining social divergences among the engaged.

Spirituality/Religiosity: A Cultural and Psychological Resource among Sub-Saharan African Migrant Women with HIV/AIDS in Belgium.

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Agnes Ebotabe Arrey

Full Text Available Spirituality/religion serves important roles in coping, survival and maintaining overall wellbeing within African cultures and communities, especially when diagnosed with a chronic disease like HIV/AIDS that can have a profound effect on physical and mental health. However, spirituality/religion can be problematic to some patients and cause caregiving difficulties. The objective of this paper was to examine the role of spirituality/religion as a source of strength, resilience and wellbeing among sub-Saharan African (SSA migrant women with HIV/AIDS. A qualitative study of SSA migrant women was conducted between April 2013 and December 2014. Participants were recruited through purposive sampling and snowball techniques from AIDS Reference Centres and AIDS workshops in Belgium, if they were 18 years and older, French or English speaking, and diagnosed HIV positive more than 3 months beforehand. We conducted semi-structured interviews with patients and did observations during consultations and support groups attendances. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. 44 women were interviewed, of whom 42 were Christians and 2 Muslims. None reported religious/spiritual alienation, though at some point in time many had felt the need to question their relationship with God by asking "why me?" A majority reported being more spiritual/religious since being diagnosed HIV positive. Participants believed that prayer, meditation, regular church services and religious activities were the main spiritual/religious resources for achieving connectedness with God. They strongly believed in the power of God in their HIV/AIDS treatment and wellbeing. Spiritual/religious resources including prayer, meditation, church services, religious activities and believing in the power of God helped them cope with HIV/AIDS. These findings highlight the importance of spirituality in physical and mental health and wellbeing among SSA women with HIV/AIDS that should be taken into

Social Network Methods for the Educational and Psychological Sciences

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Sweet, Tracy M.

2016-01-01

Social networks are especially applicable in educational and psychological studies involving social interactions. A social network is defined as a specific relationship among a group of individuals. Social networks arise in a variety of situations such as friendships among children, collaboration and advice seeking among teachers, and coauthorship…

Contemporary environmentalism as a current of spiritual post-secular practice

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Laura Wickström

2012-01-01

Full Text Available Contemporary spirituality often bears the stamp of an eco-discourse. It is characteristic of post-spiritual practices that there is a blurring of the boundaries between the sacred and profane and in this sphere, influenced by the eco-consciousness, nature and the body can be sacralised. In this article the author looks into environmentalism as a current in spirituality. First spirituality as a concept is discussed. Second follows a section on aspects of contemporary environmentalism, dealing with new social movements, new identity and the main directions of environmentalism. After that, the distinction between environmentally motivated spirituality and spir­itually motivated environmentalism is presented. At the end there is a short discussion of post-secular issues concerning environmentalism. Worldviews are no longer necessarily either religious or secular, but may also combine elements of rational secularity with enchanted spirituality. The blurring of the boundaries between secular and religious views and motives occur, as well as the separation of mind and body, rationality and belief, and human and nature.

hiv/aids and feminist christian spirituality

African Journals Online (AJOL)

tion on the personal and social levels, for both the materially rich and the poor. ..... think now, this child, doesn't have a mother, doesn't have a father, doesn't ..... and ego ascent are not alternative spiritualities, but grow into and out of each.

Prediction of the Dimensions of the Spiritual Well-Being of Students at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Iran: The Roles of Demographic Variables.

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Ziapour, Arash; Khatony, Alireza; Jafari, Faranak; Kianipour, Neda

2017-07-01

Spiritual well-being is one of the aspects of well-being which organize the physical, psychological, and social aspects. Given the outstanding and unique roles of students in society, providing spiritual well-being as well as identifying and eliminating the negative factors affecting their mental well-being are of the essence. The present study aimed to predict the dimensions of the spiritual well-being of students at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences and to investigate the roles of demographic variables in this respect. In this descriptive and correlational study, the statistical population was comprised of 346 doctoral students in the for-profit Schools of Medicine, Dentistry and Pharmaceuticals in Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences in 2016. For data collection, an instrument comprising the demographic questions and the 20-item spiritual well-being scale by Paloutzian and Ellison (1982) was utilized. To analyze data, the descriptive (frequency distribution, mean, and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (independent t-test, one-way ANOVA, and chi-squared test) were employed in the SPSS Statistics Software Version 21.0. The results of the present study demonstrated that the spiritual well-being of students was average (71.86±4.84), and of all demographic variables under study, only the variable of gender significantly correlated with the mean score of spiritual well-being. Also, the results revealed that the students' score of religious well-being measured higher than that of their existential well-being. However, a significant correlation was found between spiritual well-being and its dimensions. Also, the religious and existential well-being were found to be significantly related (pspirituality among the students of the for-profit Schools at Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences. Therefore, it is recommended that appropriate plans be laid by the culture and education policy makers to promote the spiritual well-being of university

Examining spiritual support among African American and Caucasian Alzheimer's caregivers: A risk and resilience study.

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Wilks, Scott E; Spurlock, Wanda R; Brown, Sandra C; Teegen, Bettina C; Geiger, Jennifer R

2018-05-25

Research shows African Americans at greater risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD) compared to the Caucasian population, suggesting African American AD caregivers are rising in numbers at a greater rate than Caucasian counterparts. Over a decade ago, an article in Geriatric Nursing revealed spiritual well-being differences among these caregiver groups. The purpose of this study was a quasi-follow-up, utilizing a larger caregiver sample to test spiritual support as a moderator via a risk-and-resilience framework. Secondary data analysis from a sample of 691 AD caregivers examined data on demographics and standardized measures of spiritual support, caregiver burden, and psychological resilience. One-third of the sample reported as African American. Resilience negatively regressed, though not significantly, on caregiving burden among both groups. Spiritual support positively, significantly impacted resilience among both groups, slightly stronger among African Americans. Spiritual support did not significantly moderate risk with either group. Implications for professional healthcare practice are discussed. Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Religious and/or spiritual practices: extending spiritual freedom to people with schizophrenia.

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Smith, Sharon; Suto, Melinda J

2012-04-01

It continues to be a challenge to define and utilize spirituality in client-centred occupational therapy practice. Dialogue about spirituality is especially problematic for occupational therapists working with people with schizophrenia. To explore the meaning of religion and/or spirituality for people living with a diagnosis of schizophrenia. Nine community-based individuals with schizophrenia engaged in interviews about the meaning of religion and/or spirituality and demonstrated self-defined spiritual practices. Phenomenology, hermeneutic theory, and a symbolic interactionism framework provided methodological and analytic guidance. Participants employed religious and/or spiritual practices to cope with schizophrenia symptoms and make meaning of their lives. Individuals used multiple systems of meaning to explain their experiences. Religious and/or spiritual agency, an individual's sense of freedom to choose among the spiritual options, renewed their sense of empowerment. Therapists can engage in spiritual negotiation with clients by using well-worded empowering questions toward a common goal of life enhancement.

SOCIAL AND PSYCHOLOGICAL FEATURES OF HIV-INFECTED INDIVIDUALS

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Liliya Anatolyevna Kudrich

2016-02-01

Full Text Available By 2020 the prevalence of HIV in the Russian Federation may increase by 250%, unless we provide appropriate treatment to as many HIV-infected people as possible (V.I. Skvortsova, 2015. Previous research in this field shows that the psychotraumatic character of the disease lowers the psychological resource of HIV-infected individuals. In most cases, they are not psychologically prepared for the negative life events, unable to find an optimal behavioral pattern when their life stereotypes are being destroyed. In fact, being HIV-infected is an example of an acute event (V.V. Pokrovsky, 1993. The ability to overcome the life crisis and effectiveness of using adaptation and compensatory mechanisms to fight the disease depend on the level of adaptation to the fact of being infected and resistance to stress. The aim of the current study was to determine social and psychological features of HIV-infected individuals and assess their influence on the stress resistance and adaptation abilities of HIV+ patients. We observed men and women aged 21-30 who had been HIV+ for 1-5 years. Investigation methods included the following diagnostic tools: The Cattel Sixteen Personality Factor Questionnaire (Form C, The State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (conducted by Spielberger, adapted for use in Russia by Hanin, The Social Readjustment Rating Scale (The Holmes-Rahe Stress Inventory, The Social and Psychological Adaptation Questionnaire (by C. Rogers and R. Diamond, methods of mathematical statistics. As a result of the study, we have developed comparative factor profiles of individual psychological features of HIV-infected individuals that show their dependence on the social environment and form certain behavioral patterns. We have revealed significant difference in state and trait anxiety between HIV-infected and non-HIV-infected individuals. Self-blame, inadequate self-esteem and level of aspiration indicate low cognitive assessment of the condition by the patients

The potential of spiritual leadership in workplace spirituality

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Marilyn Naidoo

2014-06-01

Full Text Available We live in the transition period between the old definition of work as survival and the new definition of work as livelihood. A new awareness of the value of spirituality can add to the innovation and creative capacity of ‘human capital’, increased authenticity in communication and has the potential for increased ethical and moral behaviour. For organisations wanting greater commitment this means opening up the conversation to include dimensions of soul and spirit that have been traditionally left at the office door. Workplace spirituality has potential for leadership development as it allows employees and leaders to act from personal truth, integrity, values and ethical practice. Spiritual leadership taps into the fundamental needs of both leader and follower for spiritual survival so that they become more organisationally committed and productive. This article focuses on the potential of spiritual leadership to transform and to contribute to the success of an organisation.

Culture and Career Psychology: A Social Constructionist Perspective

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Stead, Graham B.

2004-01-01

This paper reflects on the need to re-examine cultural and cross-cultural psychology with a view to re-invigorating them and placing them at the center of discourse in career psychology. One perspective that can be employed to achieve these goals is social constructionism in that it questions the centrality of post-positivism in cultural and…

The possibilities of performing social-psychological and ethnic mediations in Community Psychology in a Deep America perspective.

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Góis, Cezar Wagner de Lima; de Oliveira, Luciane Alves; Góis, Sara Cavalcante; Silva, Alexsandra Maria Sousa

2016-01-01

In this article, we problematize the approximation between Community Psychology and the idea of Deep America, considering it capable of contributing through mediations and translations in the construction of knowledge and the recreation of social, ethnic, and human life as local diversity. We want to clarify the matter from Liberation and Southern epistemologies' point of views, and to present experiences that confirm this Community Psychology method. We talk about coloniality, connecting it to the Community Psychology method and emphasizing the importance of the social-psychological/ethnic mediation, of view interpretation, and the aspects that constitute mediation: dialogic, experiential, and participant. Finally, we briefly report some facilitation and research experiences performed by us in Ceará, mainly in the capital, Fortaleza, and in Sobral County.

Self-esteem mediates the relationship between spirituality and subjective well-being in Iran.

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Joshanloo, Mohsen; Daemi, Fatemeh

2015-03-01

Self-esteem appears to play a central role in the spiritual life and ethical behaviour of the typical Iranian. For example, for many Iranians, humankind is believed to be the crown of creation, and each person is believed to be individually valued by God. Previous empirical studies also indicate that in Iran spirituality is positively associated with self-esteem. On this basis, it was hypothesised that self-esteem would be one of the mechanisms through which spirituality leads to increased mental well-being. Mediation analysis showed that self-esteem was a partial mediator of the spirituality-well-being relationship. Moreover, results of moderated mediation analysis revealed that this mediation was not significantly moderated by gender, and that the indirect path through self-esteem was significant in both genders. Implications of the results and their relevance to other western and eastern religions (e.g. Christianity and Buddhism) are discussed. © 2014 International Union of Psychological Science.

Evolutionary psychology as a metatheory for the social sciences: How to gather interdisciplinary evidence for a psychological adaptation

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ploeger, A.; van der Hoort, B.

2015-01-01

Evolutionary psychology has been proposed as a new metatheory for the social sciences (Buss, 1995). Evolutionary psychology is an approach that emphasizes the evolutionary background of psychological phenomena (e.g., cognition, motivation, perception), with the expectation that knowledge about this

Kesahan dan Kebolehpercayaan Modul I-Sc (Islamic Spiritual Counseling ke atas Pelajar Bermasalah Tingkah Laku

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MD NOOR SAPER

2016-06-01

Full Text Available The purpose of this study is to develop a counselling module based on Islamic perspective namely ‘Islamic Spiritual Counselling Module”’(i-SCM. This module was based on model of Tazkiyat al-Nafs by Imam Ghazali. Validity test was conducted based on assessments from various experts of psychology, counselling and religious fields. Reliability test was conducted on 46 secondary school students in one school. Results obtained showed that the overall reliability coefficient of this module was very high; Cronbach Alpha 0.927. Feedback from the respondents on the module was positive. This study could help expand further religion-related counseling module to assist counsellors in dealing with adolescents’ social problems.

Sacred spaces in public places: religious and spiritual plurality in health care.

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Reimer-Kirkham, Sheryl; Sharma, Sonya; Pesut, Barb; Sawatzky, Richard; Meyerhoff, Heather; Cochrane, Marie

2012-09-01

Several intriguing developments mark the role and expression of religion and spirituality in society in recent years. In what were deemed secular societies, flows of increased sacralization (variously referred to as 'new', 'alternative', 'emergent' and 'progressive' spiritualities) and resurgent globalizing religions (sometimes with fundamentalist expressions) are resulting in unprecedented plurality. These shifts are occurring in conjunction with increasing ethnic diversity associated with global migration, as well as other axes of difference within contemporary society. Democratic secular nations such as Canada are challenged to achieve social cohesion in the face of growing religious, spiritual and ethnic diversity. These challenges are evident in the high-paced, demanding arena of Health care. Here, religious and spiritual plurality enter in, sometimes resulting in conflict between medical services and patients' beliefs, other times provoking uncertainties on the part of healthcare professionals about what to do with their own religiously or spiritually grounded values and beliefs. In this paper, we present selected findings from a 3-year study that examined the negotiation of religious and spiritual pluralism in Health care. Our focus is on the themes of 'sacred' and 'place', exploring how the sacred - that which is attributed as special and set apart as it pertains to the divine, transcendence, God or higher power - takes form in social and material spaces in hospitals. © 2011 Blackwell Publishing Ltd.

Global trends in research related to social media in psychology: mapping and bibliometric analysis.

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Zyoud, Sa'ed H; Sweileh, Waleed M; Awang, Rahmat; Al-Jabi, Samah W

2018-01-01

Social media, defined as interactive Web applications, have been on the rise globally, particularly among adults. The objective of this study was to investigate the trend of the literature related to the most used social network worldwide (i.e. Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Snapchat, and Instagram) in the field of psychology. Specifically, this study will assess the growth in publications, citation analysis, international collaboration, author productivity, emerging topics and the mapping of frequent terms in publications pertaining to social media in the field of psychology. Publications related to social media in the field of psychology published between 2004 and 2014 were obtained from the Web of Science. The records extracted were analysed for bibliometric characteristics such as the growth in publications, citation analysis, international collaboration, emerging topics and the mapping of frequent terms in publications pertaining to social media in the field of psychology. VOSviewer v.1.6.5 was used to construct scientific maps. Overall, 959 publications were retrieved during the period between 2004 and 2015. The number of research publications in social media in the field of psychology showed a steady upward growth. Publications from the USA accounted for 57.14% of the total publications and the highest h -index (48).The most common document type was research articles (873; 91.03%). Over 99.06% of the publications were published in English. Computers in Human Behavior was the most prolific journal. The University of Wisconsin - Madison ranked first in terms of the total publications (n = 39). A visualisation analysis showed that personality psychology, experimental psychology, psychological risk factors, and developmental psychology were continual concerns of the research. This is the first study reporting the global trends in the research related to social media in the psychology field. Based on the raw data from the Web of Science, publication

Promoting a culture of innovation: BJSP and the emergence of new paradigms in social psychology.

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Reicher, Stephen

2011-09-01

In this paper, I start by describing the role played by British Journal of Social Psychology (BJSP) in nurturing two important new paradigms in social psychology - the social identity approach and discourse psychology. I then consider the forces in contemporary academia, in general, and psychology, in particular, that militate against innovation. I conclude by suggesting some ways in which individual social psychologists and our journals, particularly BJSP, can contribute to the development of an innovative and intellectually dynamic discipline. ©2011 The British Psychological Society.

Psychological and social problems in primary care patients - general practitioners' assessment and classification.

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Rosendal, Marianne; Vedsted, Peter; Christensen, Kaj Sparle; Moth, Grete

2013-03-01

To estimate the frequency of psychological and social classification codes employed by general practitioners (GPs) and to explore the extent to which GPs ascribed health problems to biomedical, psychological, or social factors. A cross-sectional survey based on questionnaire data from GPs. Setting. Danish primary care. 387 GPs and their face-to-face contacts with 5543 patients. GPs registered consecutive patients on registration forms including reason for encounter, diagnostic classification of main problem, and a GP assessment of biomedical, psychological, and social factors' influence on the contact. The GP-stated reasons for encounter largely overlapped with their classification of the managed problem. Using the International Classification of Primary Care (ICPC-2-R), GPs classified 600 (11%) patients with psychological problems and 30 (0.5%) with social problems. Both codes for problems/complaints and specific disorders were used as the GP's diagnostic classification of the main problem. Two problems (depression and acute stress reaction/adjustment disorder) accounted for 51% of all psychological classifications made. GPs generally emphasized biomedical aspects of the contacts. Psychological aspects were given greater importance in follow-up consultations than in first-episode consultations, whereas social factors were rarely seen as essential to the consultation. Psychological problems are frequently seen and managed in primary care and most are classified within a few diagnostic categories. Social matters are rarely considered or classified.

Expressive writing promotes self-reported physical, social and psychological health among Chinese undergraduates.

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Yang, Zhihan; Tang, Xiaoqing; Duan, Wenjie; Zhang, Yonghong

2015-03-01

The present study examines the efficacy of expressive writing among Chinese undergraduates. The sample comprised of 74 undergraduates enrolled in a 9-week intervention (35 in experimental class vs. 39 in control class). The writing exercises were well-embedded in an elective course for the two classes. The 46-item simplified Chinese Self-Rated Health Measurement Scale, which assesses psychological, physical and social health, was adopted to measure the outcome of this study. Baseline (second week) and post-test (ninth week) scores were obtained during the classes. After the intervention on the eighth week, the self-reported psychological, social and physical health of the experimental class improved. Psychological health obtained the maximum degree of improvement, followed by social and physical health. Furthermore, female participants gained more psychological improvement than males. These results demonstrated that the expressive writing approach could improve the physical, social and psychological health of Chinese undergraduates, and the method can be applied in university psychological consulting settings in Mainland China. © 2014 International Union of Psychological Science.

[Schizophrenia or spiritual crisis? On "raising the kundalini" and its diagnostic classification].

Science.gov (United States)

Hansen, G

1995-07-31

Two patients are described who had been diagnosed as schizophrenic, but had actually instead been going through spiritual crises, which in Eastern spiritual tradition are called raising the kundalini. Perhaps this experience is not a disease, but many--especially if not understood by oneself, the nearest relations and the medical profession--cause mental illness. In WHO ICD-10 the experience could be classified as F48.8, disordines neurotici specificati alii. The process falls outside the categories of both normal and psychotic. When allowed to progress to completion this process culminates in deep psychological balance, strength, and maturity.

Social and psychological risks expertise in crisis communities

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Shvalb, Y.

1998-01-01

Emerging and development of crises in the communities leads to considerable increase of individual's risks' quality and quantity. Irrespectively of risk scale - partial or total influence on a community - a number of tendencies of risks increase could be identified. On social level risks result from the tendency of social protection decrease and restriction in free choice of activities' forms and kinds. On group level confrontation and clashes emerge, increase intolerance and decrease tolerance are identified. On interpersonal (micro group) level aggression and abuse intensify. On individual level a complex of negative psychological statuses develops, which is diverse both as for its content and forms. Reasons of crisis development and its dynamics determine the content and concrete forms of risks on all levels. Systematic description of risks and development of psychological support programmes for population in risk presupposes organization and delivering of comprehensive social and psychological expertise of situation. Such an expertise makes it possible to unite in a comprehensive model of the multi-professional descriptions of crisis situations on the above mentioned levels, the subjective concepts of the population (or its separate groups) together with evaluation of various projects and programmes on crisis coping and risks decrease options. (author)

Despite their inevitable conflicts--science, religion and New Age spirituality are essentially compatible and complementary activities.

Science.gov (United States)

Charlton, Bruce G

2006-01-01

Until recently it seemed that the continued expansion of scientific ways of thinking was destined to render religion extinct and spirituality unfeasible. But the example of the United States disproves this, since America is the most successful scientific nation of this era, church-going remains strong and New Age spiritualities are thriving. Therefore, despite the obvious conflicts; science, religion and spirituality are essentially compatible. Future science will continue to win territory from religion since its validation procedures are more objective and reliable. However, churches can survive and grow by dropping those aspects of doctrine which clash with science, and expanding their social functions. The fast-growing US 'mega-church' movement shows the way - since these organizations are minimally dogmatic but instead provide a family-orientated and morally-cohesive social milieu. Like organized religion, New Age spirituality comes into conflict with science when it makes incredible or bizarre factual claims. However, in practice modern spirituality is based on subjective evaluations which do not clash with the procedures of science. Indeed, the reliance upon individual, emotion-based evaluations (e.g., 'my truth', 'whatever works for you') renders New Age spirituality 'science-proof', and has enabled it to expand massively in an age of science. Science, religion and spirituality perform different functions in the modern world, and their relationship is therefore one of mutual-dependence. Borderline disputes will inevitably occur, but as part of a broader context of complementarity. Science, 'social' churches and New Age spirituality all have a bright future.

[Perception of health risks: psychological and social factors].

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Kurzenhäuser, S; Epp, A

2009-12-01

This article reviews central findings and current developments of psychological and sociological research on the perception of health risks. Risk perception is influenced by numerous psychological, social, political, and cultural factors. These factors can be categorized into (a) risk characteristics, (b) characteristics of the risk perceiving person and his/her situation, and (c) characteristics of risk communication. Thus, besides individual cognitive and affective processing of risk information, social processes of risk amplification (e.g., media effects) are also involved in the construction of individual risk perceptions. We discuss the recommendations for health risk communication that follow from these findings with regard to different communication goals.

Hedgehogs, Foxes, Ethics, and the Evolving Social Contract in Psychology.

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Rosnow, Ralph L.

This paper discusses the importance of ethics in psychological research. It defines the social contract between psychological science and society as the responsibility not to do psychological or physical harm to any research participants and to do beneficial research in a way that will produce valid research. Also explored are ways in which…

The Role of Doctors and Other Health Personnel in Promotion of the Community\\'s Islamic Spiritual Health

OpenAIRE

Freidoun Azizi; Akram Heidari

2017-01-01

Human health includes physical, social, mental and spiritual dimensions and medicine is perfect when all aspects of health are considered. There are several reasons for the need for health personnel familiarity with issues related to spiritual health that some of them are: Finding best responds to the spiritual needs of patients, the use of spiritual care to improve health in four levels of prevention, the correct decision when creating a conflict between the spiritual beliefs of the patient ...

Infertility, Psychological Distress, and Coping Strategies among Women in Mali, West Africa: A Mixed-Methods Study.

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Hess, Rosanna F; Ross, Ratchneewan; GilillandJr, John L

2018-03-01

Relatively little is known about infertility and its consequences in Mali, West Africa where the context and culture are different from those of previously studied settings. This study therefore aimed to specifically examine infertility induced psychological distress and coping strategies among women in Mali. A convergent mixed-methods design-correlational cross-sectional and qualitative descriptive-guided the study. Fifty-eight infertile Malian women participated: 52 completed the Psychological Evaluation Test specific for infertility and a question on general health status, and 26 were interviewed in-depth. Over 20% scored above the cut-off point for psychological distress, and 48% described their general health as poor. There was no significant difference between women with primary vs. secondary infertility. The study found that infertile women lived with marital tensions, criticism from relatives, and stigmatization from the community. They experienced sadness, loneliness, and social deprivation. Coping strategies included traditional and biomedical treatments, religious faith and practices, and self-isolation. Health care professionals should provide holistic care for infertile women to meet their physical, spiritual, psychological, and social needs.

ASSESSMENT OF EFFICIENCY OF PSYCHOLOGICAL MECHANISMS OF INFLUENCE IN SOCIAL ADVERTISING

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Tatiyana B. Kolyshkina

2014-12-01

Full Text Available The main aim of the research is to estimate the efficiency of psychological influence mechanisms in social advertising. Numerous psychological, sociological, culturological studies, devoted to this issue, do not answer the question which mechanisms will be efficient and will lead to the expected reaction of a recipient. The correlation between the psychological influence methods and the goals set by the creators is especially important for social advertising, because its efficiency can’t be measured by economic indicators as it occurs in commercial advertising. In addition, it should be remembered that for guaranteeing of efficiency in this kind of advertising one need to take into account such special features of a recipient as their beliefs and sets. The study concentrates on the comparison of psychological influence mechanisms, used in World Wildlife Fund (WWF social advertising. Its creators use a great number of methods. But as practice shows us by no means all of them lead to the planned results. The study justifies, that the efficiency of advertising influence should be estimated by such indicators as the willingness of a recipient to take part in WWF programs (conative component and their emotional response (affective component. Consequently, it has been established that the behaviour of a recipient does not depend on a chosen creative strategy’s type, which is used by the creators. The willingness of a recipient to take part in the programs, advertised by WWF, is estimated by the content of their social and psychological sets (attitudes. The displayed results prove that one need to refuse a cruel and shocking way of advertising, which causes people’s negative emotions. It is corroborated by experiments that social advertising which defends wild nature can be efficient on condition that it gives a recipient an opportunity to actualize their own social and psychological sets.

Nursing and spirituality

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Raphael de Brito Pedrão

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Objectives: To evaluate the spiritual well-being of nurses; to appraise their opinions as to the importance of offering patients spiritual assistance, and to verify whether nurses received any specific type of preparation during their professional training for giving spiritual assistance to patients. Methods: This is an exploratory and descriptive study, carried out with a sample of 30 nurses who worked at the Stepdown Unit and Oncology Unit of Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, using the application of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWS and a questionnaire prepared by the authors. Results: On the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, 76.6% of nurses produced positive scores. On the Existential Well-Being subscale, 80% had positive scores, and on the Religious Well-Being subscale, 76.6% had positive scores. On the SWBS, the general average score was 107.26, and for the Existential and Religious ones, the average scores were 54.4 and 53.2, respectively. Most nurses responded affirmatively as to the importance of offering patients spiritual assistance, and 40% of nurses offered as rationale “to provide well-being and comfort to the patient”. Most nurses reported not having received professional training for giving spiritual assistance to patients in any of the nursing courses they had done. Conclusions: The results indicate the need for professional training and/or continued education courses in nursing to extend the reflection and discussion on spirituality and spiritual assistance to patients.

Spirituality and spiritual care: a descriptive survey of nursing practices in Turkey.

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Akgün Şahin, Zümrüt; Kardaş Özdemir, Funda

2016-08-01

Nurses' spiritual care practices have been shown to affect patients' well-being, therefore understanding nurses' spiritual care perceptions and their practices. The aim of this paper is to investigate the nurses' views to practising spiritual care. A descriptive survey of 193 nurses was conducted at a general hospital in Turkey. Data was collected using a demographic questionnaire and The Spirituality and Spiritual Care Rating Scale (SSCRS). The findings of this study revealed that older nurses (pspiritual care (pspiritual care.

The spiritual experience index: A measure of spiritual maturity.

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Genia, V

1991-12-01

The Spiritual Experience Index was developed to measure spiritual maturity in persons of diverse religious and spiritual beliefs. The scale was constructed from a developmental rather than a multidimensional conceptualization of faith. Initial findings from a religiously heterogeneous college sample indicated good reliability for the SEI and supported its use as a unidimensional measure. Higher scores on the SEI were significantly related to lower dogmatism and intolerance of ambiguity. The SEI was also moderately related to higher religious participation and positively correlated with intrinsicness and quest. However, compared with the intrinsic and quest scales, the SEI emerged as the strongest indicator of adaptive spiritual functioning. Directions for future research are suggested.

Some notes about the relations between Social Psychology and Literature

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Anastasio Ovejero

2008-05-01

Full Text Available In this paper I try to show the value that the study of the relationship between Social Psychology and Literature would have to improve our psychosocial knowledge of the human being. On one hand, the psychosocial analysis of the novel would provide us with the wide and deep knowledge that is contained in the classic literary works. On the other hand, it is also useful to analyze how these literary works have been reflecting both their own time as well as the social changes in the last centuries and, furthermore, its effect on the readers, their mentality, their behaviour and even the way they relate each other. This approach would be of great value for a Social Psychology that pretends to look beyond a positivist perspective, a perspective that is pervasive in Psychology for the last century. 

The first students’ conference in memory of M.Y. Kondratyev “Social Psychology: Theory and Practice”

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Kochetkov N.V.

2016-01-01

This report gives a survey on the First students’ conference in memory of M.Y. Kon- dratyev “Social Psychology: Theory and Practice”. The conference demonstrated a number of best works by students at bachelor and master level, which were done in accordance with classical national tradition in social psychology studies. Thematically the conference spreads to such topics as: psychology of small groups, social psychol- ogy of an individual, ethnic psychology, social psychology of education, psyc...

Correlates of volunteering among aging Texans: the roles of health indicators, spirituality, and social engagement.

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Ahn, SangNam; Phillips, Karon L; Smith, Matthew Lee; Ory, Marcia G

2011-07-01

This study aimed to identify participant characteristics associated with volunteering among older adults. Based on data from the 2008 Aging Texas Well (ATW) Indicators Survey, we examined the degree to which demographic factors, health status, spiritual participation, and community involvement are associated with volunteering among adults aged 60 years or older (n = 525). Rates of volunteering varied by race/ethnicity: non-Hispanic Whites (56.4%), African Americans (51.1%), and Hispanics (43.2%). Bivariate analyses showed that non-Hispanic White older adults were more likely to participate in formal volunteering activities, while their African American and Hispanic counterparts tended to participate in informal volunteering activities. Logistic regression analyses revealed that volunteering was less observed among Hispanics (OR = 0.48, 95% CI 0.29-0.78). Volunteering was more observed among those who reported providing informal care (OR=1.93, 95% CI 1.14-3.28), having very good or excellent mental health (OR = 1.90 and 2.07, 95% CI 1.09-3.32 and 1.20-3.55, respectively), having weekly or daily spiritual participation (OR = 2.15 and 2.35, 95% CI 1.28-3.63 and 1.29-4.28, respectively), perceiving community involvement very important (OR = 2.37, 95% CI 1.55-3.62), and being very satisfied with the community interaction (OR = 1.81, 95% CI 1.15-2.85). Given the positive associations of mental health, spirituality, and social engagement with volunteering among older adults, system-level efforts to increase the sense of community among older adults and recognize their roles as volunteers will be helpful in recruiting and retaining older volunteers. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

Palliative care and spirituality

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Narayanasamy Aru

2007-01-01

Full Text Available Critical junctures in patients′ lives such as chronic illnesses and advanced diseases may leave the persons in a state of imbalance or disharmony of body, mind and spirit. With regard to spirituality and healing, there is a consensus in literature about the influence of spirituality on recovery and the ability to cope with and adjust to the varying and demanding states of health and illness. Empirical evidence suggests that spiritual support may act as an adjunct to the palliative care of those facing advanced diseases and end of life. In this article, the author draws from his empirical work on spirituality and culture to develop a discourse on palliative care and spirituality in both secular and non-secular settings. In doing so, this paper offers some understanding into the concept of spirituality, spiritual needs and spiritual care interventions in palliative care in terms of empirical evidence. Responding to spiritual needs could be challenging, but at the same time it could be rewarding to both healthcare practitioner (HCP and patient in that they may experience spiritual growth and development. Patients may derive great health benefits with improvements in their quality of life, resolutions and meaning and purpose in life. It is hoped that the strategies for spiritual support outlined in this paper serve as practical guidelines to HCPs for development of palliative care in South Asia.

Finding a Moral Homeground: Appropriately Critical Religious Education and Transmission of Spiritual Values

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Thanissaro, Phra Nicholas

2010-01-01

Values-inspired issues remain an important part of the British school curriculum. Avoiding moral relativism while fostering enthusiasm for spiritual values and applying them to non-curricular learning such as school ethos or children's home lives are challenges where spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development might benefit from…

On the Historical and Conceptual Foundations of a Community Psychology of Social Transformation.

Science.gov (United States)

Gokani, Ravi; Walsh, Richard T G

2017-06-01

We examine historical and conceptual literature in community psychology in order to understand the field's potential to be the socially transformative subdiscipline of psychology to which it aspires. By reviewing papers from two prominent journals and other literature, we conclude that the claim that community psychology is well-suited to social transformation, because it is a product of Sixties' radicalism and is theoretically equipped, is untenable. Systematic accounts of the subdiscipline's origins suggest that the transformative aspirations of current community psychologists do not correspond to the subdiscipline's reformist past. Furthermore, in analyzing three related concepts currently employed in the field-social justice, power, and praxis-we show that each suffers from conceptual ambiguity and a restricted political scope. These conceptual flaws, coupled with community psychology's historical inclination toward social reform, inhibit the possibility of contributing to radical social transformation. We conclude that neither questionable historical claims nor ambiguous and politically dubious concepts support a community psychology of social transformation. We offer solutions for the historical and conceptual problems we identify and, as a broader solution to the problem of engaging in socially transformative work, propose that community psychologists should seek direct political engagement in solidarity with other citizens as fellow citizens not as psychologists. © Society for Community Research and Action 2017.

MISSION OF MODERN SCHOOL – SPIRITUAL-MORAL EDUCATION OF YOUTH

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V. A. Malinin

2017-01-01

traditions is proved. The expediency of introduction of administrative-organizational, pedagogical, psychological, technological conditions of introduction of the system of education in school is proved. The development of the personality of the teacher in the spirit of traditional Orthodox values is determined by the fundamental condition for the realization of the tasks of spiritual and moral education of students in school. Features of introduction of innovative forms of the organization of educational process are considered. The criteria for the effectiveness of spiritual and moral education in the educational organization, diagnostic tools are presented.Discussion and Conclusions: the long-term experience of the school proves the readiness of the school to effectively ensure the formation of spiritual, moral, and civil security of the individual in pupils, successful socialization and professional self-determination of students, which ultimately contributes to increasing civil responsibility for the fate of the country, security and sustainable development of the country.

Legal socialization of personality as a phenomenon of legal psychology

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Borisova S.E.

2017-01-01

Full Text Available The relevance of the topic to the continuing importance of legal regulation of human behavior, the necessity of foreseeing the adverse consequences of social disorders and urgency of the prevention of deconditioning and deviant behavioral manifestations. In this regard, it is important to examine the phenomenon of legal socialization, causing interest among the representatives of the human Sciences and specialists in different branches of psychological knowledge. Taking into account the multidimensional nature of this phenomenon, it is an essential consideration of the trajectories of its occurrence in correlation with different interacting with other determinants. Such determinants include age psychological characteristics, experience crises of mental development, socially conditioned factors, and the influence of the professional environment. In article are characterized by individual patterns of legal socialization of a personality, revealing its essence, on the basis of summarizing opinions of scientists based on their own point of view. On the basis of the theoretical analysis made assumptions about the peculiarities of legal socialization of the individual occurring in different age periods of life; formulated likely areas for further study the phenomenon under research legal psychology.

[A psychological content of social phobia syndrome].

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Sagalakova, O A; Truevtsev, D V; Stoyanova, I Ya

2017-01-01

To perform a psychological analysis of social phobia syndrome. The subject area of research is the structure of mental activity and behavior in social activity. The study included 32 patients with symptoms of social phobia (ICD-10 F40.1) and 29 healthy people (controls). A complex of psychological methods (questionnaires; pathopsychological experiment) was used. Early maladaptive schemes and a tendency to mental rigidity can be a premorbid basis of the syndrome. Primary violation is in organizational target component by type of distortion of goal-setting regulation. The mechanism is a reduction in the mediation of emotions and behavior (an influence of emotions on the process of activity, excess metacognitive anxiety control leading to multi-task and exhaustion of resources of voluntary activity). Fear of negative evaluation leads to the fact that a wide class of situations is interpreted as threatening. Secondary are changes in the system of goals and motives of activity (technically performing components of social behavior act as a focus of attention, along with the target, the target replaces the suprasituational meaning). Along with a strong motivation to succeed, the motive of avoiding failure is formed, which leads to a decrease in social activity. Tertiary symptoms of syndrome dynamics (ways to cope with maladaptation) are destructive forms of decompensation (substance abuse, learned helplessness and hopelessness, suicidal behavior, etc.), repeatedly reinforcing the primary and secondary disturbances.

Psychological health and its associates - A comparative study among migrants and non migrants in a rural area of Northern India.

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Bhavna Langer

2017-12-01

Full Text Available Background: Migration, whether voluntary or forced, entails major adaptations. An elaborate insight into the circumstances helps to induce various interventions in migrants. Aims and Objectives: To elicit the psychological health, lifestyle variables, religiosity, spirituality and coping among migrants and compare it with non migrants in a rural locality. Material and Methods: A community based cross-sectional study was undertaken among 404 adults aged 20 years and above. The General Health Questionnaire–12, Religiosity scale by Wilkes, The Daily Spiritual Experience Scale and COPE scale were used as psychometric tools for data collection. Data was analysed using SPSS (ver. 20.0. Results: A sample of 137 migrants and 267 non migrants were analysed. There was a statistically significant difference between the two groups for occupation and education (p=0.002 & 0.000 resp. The mean scores of the psychological health of migrants (10.58± 6.32 were slightly better than that of non migrants (11.49 ±5.69, p= 0.142. Spirituality scores showed migrants being more inclined towards spiritualism (p=0.016. Young age, religious and spiritual propensity showed a statistically significant correlation with better Psychological health (p=0.036, 0.000&0.013resp. Conclusion: Providing psychosocial assistance to migrant populations focussing on educational, occupational & religious-spiritual issues can reduce vulnerabilities especially for psychological health.

Components of social capital and socio-psychological factors that worsen the perceived health of Japanese males and females.

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Tsunoda, Hiroko; Yoshino, Ryozo; Yokoyama, Kazuhito

2008-10-01

Social capital refers to the quantity and quality of social relationships, such as formal and informal social connections as well as norms of reciprocity and trust that exist in a place or a community. This article analyzed the data from Japan 2004 B Survey in order to elucidate the effects of social capital and socio-psychological factors on the health of Japanese males and females. The Survey was a part of a nationwide random study on Japanese national character, which has been conducted by the Institute of Statistical Mathematics since 1953. A total of 785 (372 males and 413 females) valid data from 1,200 adult samples were used. Logistic regression analysis showed that the self-reported symptoms were increased by negative attitude to generalized trust in males, and by negative attitude to norm of reciprocity in females. Moreover, in females, health dissatisfaction was enhanced by low perceptions of support. In both genders, self-reported symptoms and health dissatisfaction were worsened by anxiety. The self-reported symptoms were increased by an adherence to religion and spirituality in males, whereas in females, the health dissatisfaction increased with low income and a concern about superstitions. Thus, from a viewpoint of social capital, perceived health is susceptible to personal relationships in females and to distrust in males. Anxiety seems a key factor affecting perceived health. In addition, females are influenced by economic status and superstitions, whereas males are more concerned about religion or the mind in relation to health. These findings are useful in developing health policies for Japanese.

Application of factor analysis in psychological diagnostics (sample: study of students’ social safety

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Pavel Aleksandrovich Kislyakov

2015-10-01

Our recommendations for the use of factor analysis, with necessary restrictions and clear reasons of a possible ambiguity of solutions, will be useful to everyone interested in mastering an adequate mathematical tool for solving problems pertaining to the humanities, in particular, those of practical psychology. As a practical example is presented the research of the psychological factors which provide students’ social safety. With the help of the factor analysis relevant personal and professional qualities of a teacher were revealed which are the subjective factors of students’ social safety, namely: social anticipation, socio-psychological stress resistance, social tolerance, professional orientation, responsibility, communication skills.

Multiplicative Effects of Social and Psychological Risk Factors on College Students’ Suicidal Behaviors

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Shervin Assari

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Less is known about the multiplicative effects of social and psychological risk and protective factors of suicidality on college campuses. The current study aimed to investigate the multiplicative effects of social (identifying oneself as gay/lesbian, financial difficulty, violence victimization, and religiosity and psychological (anxiety, depression, problem alcohol use, drug use and risk/protective factors on suicidal behaviors among college students in the United States. Using a cross-sectional design, the Healthy Mind Study (HMS; 2016–2017, is a national online survey of college students in the United States. Social (identifying oneself as gay/lesbian, violence victimization, financial difficulty, and religiosity and psychological (anxiety, depression, problem alcohol use, and drug use risk/protective factors were assessed among 27,961 individuals. Three aspects of suicidality, including ideation, plan, and attempt, were also assessed. Logistic regression models were used for data analysis. Financial difficulty, violence victimization, identifying oneself as gay/lesbian, anxiety, depression, and drug use increased, while religiosity reduced the odds of suicidal behaviors. Multiplicative effects were found between the following social and psychological risk factors: (1 financial difficulty and anxiety; (2 financial difficulty and depression; (3 depression and drug use; (4 problem alcohol use and drug use; and (5 depression and problem alcohol use. There is a considerable overlap in the social and psychological processes, such as financial stress, mood disorders, and substance use problems, on risk of suicide in college students. As social and psychological risk factors do not operate independently, comprehensive suicidal risk evaluations that simultaneously address multiple social and psychological risk factors may be superior to programs that only address a single risk factor.

Psychological treatment of social anxiety disorder improves body dysmorphic concerns.

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Fang, Angela; Sawyer, Alice T; Aderka, Idan M; Hofmann, Stefan G

2013-10-01

Social anxiety disorder and body dysmorphic disorder are considered nosologically distinct disorders. In contrast, some cognitive models suggest that social anxiety disorder and body dysmorphic disorder share similar cognitive maintenance factors. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of psychological treatments for social anxiety disorder on body dysmorphic disorder concerns. In Study 1, we found that 12 weekly group sessions of cognitive-behavioral therapy led to significant decreases in body dysmorphic symptom severity. In Study 2, we found that an attention retraining intervention for social anxiety disorder was associated with a reduction in body dysmorphic concerns, compared to a placebo control condition. These findings support the notion that psychological treatments for individuals with primary social anxiety disorder improve co-occurring body dysmorphic disorder symptoms. Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Psychological and social correlates of HIV status disclosure: the significance of stigma visibility.

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Stutterheim, Sarah E; Bos, Arjan E R; Pryor, John B; Brands, Ronald; Liebregts, Maartje; Schaalma, Herman P

2011-08-01

HIV-related stigma, psychological distress, self-esteem, and social support were investigated in a sample comprising people who have concealed their HIV status to all but a selected few (limited disclosers), people who could conceal but chose to be open (full disclosers), and people who had visible symptoms that made concealing difficult (visibly stigmatized). The visibly stigmatized and full disclosers reported significantly more stigma experiences than limited disclosers, but only the visibly stigmatized reported more psychological distress, lower self-esteem, and less social support than limited disclosers. This suggests that having a visible stigma is more detrimental than having a concealable stigma. Differences in psychological distress and self-esteem between the visibly stigmatized and full disclosers were mediated by social support while differences between the visibly stigmatized and limited disclosers were mediated by both social support and stigma. These findings suggest that social support buffers psychological distress in people with HIV.

A checklist to facilitate objective hypothesis testing in social psychology research.