Religion, Spirituality and Well-Being

Religion, Spirituality, and Well-Being

Religion vs. Spirituality

• Spirituality: A personal or group search for the sacred in life.

• Religion/Religiosity: A search for the sacred within a traditional context, such as a formal religious institution.

Age and Religious Importance

Younger adults are less likely than older adults to consider religion very important in 46 countries.

• In Georgia and Ghana, older adults (ages 40+) are less likely to say religion is very important in their daily lives.

• 40% of Americans aged 18-29 vs. 65% of Americans aged 65+ consider religion to be very important

Religiousness vs. Spirituality

• Self-transcendence: Relating to something greater than oneself.

  • Vertical transcendence: Example - God.

    • Vertical transcendence refers to a connection or relationship with something greater than oneself, often exemplified through the concept of God or a higher divine power.

  • Horizontal transcendence: Example - Tao.

    • horizontal transcendence involves relating to broader, interconnected aspects of existence, such as the Tao, and emphasizes connections within the universe rather than a singular higher being.

Belief in Higher Power

• One-third of U.S. adults believe in a higher power of some kind, but not in God as described in the Bible.

• Do you believe in God or not?

  • Yes: 80%

    • 56% Believe in God as described in the Bible

    • 23% Believe in some other higher power/spiritual force

  • No: 19%

    • 9% But do believe in some higher power/spiritual force

    • 10% Do not believe in any higher power/spiritual force

Spirituality and Quality of Life

• There is a linear relationship: $Linear = 0.442$ between Spirituality total score and Quality of life total score .

Religion and Mental Well-Being

• Better emotional well-being and lower rates of delinquency, alcoholism, drug abuse (Donahue and Benson, 1995).

• Life Satisfaction across all ages (Peacock and Paloma, 1999).

• Increased positive emotions and virtues.

• People with spiritual/self-transcendent strivings/GOALS experience positive emotions, higher SWB, better physical health, and more concern for others (empathy) (Ciarrocchi, Dy-Liacco & Deneke, 2008; Matlby, Lewis & Day, 1999; Oman & Thoesen, 2005).

Religion and Culture

Size of Major Religious Groups, 2010 (Percentage of the global population):

• Christians: 31.5%

• Muslims: 23.2%

• Unaffiliated: 16.3%

• Hindus: 15.0%

• Buddhists: 7.1%

• Folk Religionists: 5.9%

• Jews: 0.2%

• Other Religions**: 0.8%

Wong’s Noetic Happiness

• Noetic Happiness: A spiritual or transcendent kind of good life understanding the finitude of life the humility of letting go repentance and forgiveness loving-kindness to all bearing the fruit of righteousness

• Noetic Happiness vs. Eudaimonic Happiness

Learning About Culture, Religion, or Spiritual Practice

• What is the most effective way to learn about a culture, religion, or spiritual practice?

  • Observation?

  • Language Study?

  • Research?

  • Immersion?

  • Or something else?…

Religious Participation and Health

• Religious participation and self -assessed health by country (Zimmer, Rojo, Osfetedal, Chiu and Saito, 2019)

Religion and Physical Well-Being

• Importance of God and self-assessed health by country (Zimmer, Rojo, Osfetedal, Chiu and Saito, 2019)

Religion and Physical Health

• Greater Religiosity is associated with:

  • Fewer illnesses

  • Lower rates of cancer and heart attacks

  • Recover more quickly

  • Greater pain tolerance

  • Live longer - Stavrova’s research indicates by 7 Years!

  • Learned “hardiness”

  • Positive emotions

  • Generativity

  • Religious music

  • Better social support

• Religion dispels meaninglessness

Religious Tenets that Promote Well-being

• The “Golden Rule”

• Better to give

• Gratitude

• Forgiveness

• Helping others

• Meditation

• Prayer

• Meaning and purpose

• Ultimate meaning

Religion and Meaning

• What does it mean to have meaning?

• Imagine the following scenario… life has inherent value and is worth living

• Have you discovered ultimate meaning?

Faith vs. Knowledge

• "Faith without knowledge can be dangerous?"

• OR…

• "Faith is everything and knowledge is irrelevant?"

Religion and Meaning

• Personal/Situational Meaning vs. Cosmic/Global Meaning

• Meaning and Subjective Well-Being

  • Positive emotions

  • Buffer against stress

  • Having vs. Searching

• Personal/Situational Meaning (Pinquart, 2002)

Creating Meaning

• Personality Traits?

  • Extraversion

  • Conscientiousness

• Social Support and purpose

• Spiritual commitment

• Self-enhanced meaning

• Personal/individual process?

Meaning-making in the Face of Tragedy

• Connection

• Significance

• Adapting

• Park (2011)

  • “After…(tragic event)…I lost faith in…(source of meaning).”

  • “I was devastated by…(tragedy)…but I came to realize that…(reappraisal of tragedy)…”

Creating Meaning

• Living in harmony with yourself and the world: Religion/spirituality providing answers, a sense of control/predictability; hope

• Serving others

• Creativity

• Live deeply

• Suffering

• Why suffering? (Park & Folkman, 1997; Yalom, 1980; Frankl, 1963; Emmons, 1999; Lillan, 2015; Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1995)

Suffering

• Tedeschi and Calhoun (1995):

  • Confidence

  • Enhanced relationships

  • Opportunity to enhance or alter one’s meaning philosophy

• Have you grown from your Suffering? (Tedeschi & Calhoun, 1995)

Religion/Life Philosophy and Coping

• James: Prayer is the “essence of religion.”

• Forgiveness, support, compassion and hope

• 77% report pray at least occasionally; 55% report praying daily.

• Prayer types

• Whittington and Scher (2010)

  • Less ego-focused prayer

• Do you have a spiritual or religious practice/activity?

• Lambert, et al (2010)

  • Daily colloquial prayer

Prayer and Physical Health

• Better post-op emotional health in cardiac patients

• Greater vitality and mental health

• Greater psychological WB,

• Decreased depression after cardiac surgery.

• Benson’s research

Religious Experiences

• Epiphany

• Sacred emotions?

  • Elation

  • Awe

• Moral acts of beauty

• Mother Teresa Study

• Help others

• Affiliation

• Love, compassion

• Well-being (Haidt, 2000)

Religious Experiences and Spiritual Awakenings

• Have you witnessed an act of compassion?

  • When?

  • What was that like?

Religious Experiences

• Awe: a deep appreciative wonder

  • A sense of perceived vastness

  • An inability to conceive of the experience in a way that makes sense.

• Reflection

  • Slow down

  • Savor the moment

  • Loves Big picture. (Schneider)

Religious Experiences

• Wonder

• Imagination

• Joy

• Gratitude

• Love

• Stolberg

  • Experiences personal physical metaphysical

• How can wonder be induced? (Stolberg)

  • Mindfulness