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The purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of spiritual experiences, spiritually maturity, and the interaction of spiritual experience and maturity above the additive effects of separate effects, on the engagement in health-promoting behaviors (personal development, sense of purpose, self-awareness and satisfaction; health responsibility; participation in regular exercise and meal patterns; close relationships; and stress management). This study was important because there is a deficit in the literature investigating the effects of spiritual experience and maturity on wellness behaviors.The study's sample consisted of 241 volunteers from various religious and nonreligious groups in a medium sized Midwestern town. Participants completed a battery of questionnaires, including the Health-Promoting Lifestyle Profile, Index of Core Spiritual Experiences, the Spiritual Maturity subscale of the Spiritual Experience Index- Revised, and a demographic questionnaire. The combination of spiritual experience and spiritual maturity, with demographic variables held constant, was significant and accounted for 22% of the variance in health-promoting behaviors. Results showed that spiritual experience is a significant predictor of health-promoting behaviors. Spiritual maturity and the interaction between spiritual experience and spiritual maturity were not significantly related to health-promoting behaviors. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Research has shown that religious coping is one of the strongest predictors of psychological adjustment and event-related outcomes to stressful situations among religious individuals. However, little is known about what prompts a person to engage in various coping strategies during stressful situations. This dissertation project aims to increase the understanding of different facets of religious life that may contribute to and influence the coping process. To understand better how intrapersonal and interpersonal aspects of one’s faith predict the coping behaviors he or she uses, this study examined the relationships of religious internalization and church-based social support with both religious and nonreligious coping. In the first phase of the project, 206 adult Christians responded to quantitative questionnaires about religious internalization, church-based social support, and coping. In the second phase, interviews were conducted with 10 individuals who completed the quantitative questionnaires in phase 1. Generally, it was hypothesized that (1) identified vs. introjected religious internalization and (2) church-based social support would predict religious and nonreligious coping among religious individuals. As expected, identified and introjected religious internalization styles were predictive of positive and negative religious coping, respectively. Identified religious internalization also predicted restraint coping (an aspect of nonreligious problem-focused coping) as expected; however, it failed to predict planning coping (an aspect of nonreligious problem-focused coping). Spiritual support predicted positive religious coping as expected; however it failed to predict restraint and planning coping. Contrary to predictions, emotional support from members of one’s congregation and emotional support from one’s pastor did not predict focus on and venting of emotions. Implications are discussed. It is hoped that the findings will provide insights that clinicians, counselors, and religious leaders will find valuable in assessing the needs and strengths of religious individuals and in fostering their care and growth. / text

Relationships between religion and health have received considerable academic attention. Scholars have published hundreds of articles concerning links between religion and mortality and physical, subjective, and psychological well-being. Despite the practical and scholarly importance of these studies, do similar relationships exist in nonChristian, non-Western societies? In this dissertation I employ qualitative and quantitative methods of research to examine connections between common religious beliefs and practices and general, subjective, and psychological well-being in contemporary Japan. Ritual behaviors and beliefs in Japan differ substantially from those of the U.S., and as expected, there are important cultural distinctions concerning these associations. However, there are similarities that are equally noteworthy, and I discuss these findings and describe theoretical rationales that help explain how and why Japanese religiousness is linked positively and negatively to well-being in Japan. The first chapter provides an overview of some of the core aspects of contemporary Japanese religiousness, and I introduce new findings from a large national dataset of Japanese adults concerning religious affiliation. In the second chapter, I use in-depth interview data to support theoretical explanations concerning associations between typical household ritual practices and general well-being. The third chapter reveals strong positive correlations between life satisfaction and happiness (subjective well-being) and religious affiliation and devotion. In the final chapter, I use multivariate analysis again to explore links between psychological distress (measured by the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale) and religiousness. The data for this chapter come from a selfadministered survey I designed to address the lack of valid survey questions concerning religious practices and beliefs in Japan and to assess their ties with mental health. Overall, the results of these separate studies indicate strongly that religiosity is multidimensional and that different dimensions impact Japanese well-being in diverse ways. They also provide substantial evidence for the need to be cautious when conducting cross-cultural research. This dissertation aims to fill a void concerning the study of religion and health in a non-Christian Asian nation, and it is hoped that these findings will encourage further research on this topic in Japan and in other areas of the world. / text

This study identifies the most popular alternative health therapies among Muslims who live in Kwa-Zulu Natal. It then examines the philosophies underlying these therapies with a view to establish whether there is conflict between these therapies and the fundamental teachings of Islam. Finally, it determines the responses of Muslim therapists and patients respectively to potential areas of conflict. / Thesis (M.A.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban, 2007.

Past research has shown that both creativity and religious orientation are related to psychological wellbeing. There has also been some support for the idea that a relationship exists between creativity and religiosity. The present study sought to determine whether the interaction between creativity and religious orientation would be a significant predictor of psychological wellbeing. Psychological wellbeing, in the current study, was defined as the linear composite of life satisfaction, meaning in life, and purpose in life. The independent variables were measured using the Religious Orientation Scale, the Religious Orientation Scale Revised, and the Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking. Dependent variables were assessed via the Satisfaction with Life Scale, the Scales of Psychological Wellbeing Short Forms, and the Life Attitude Profile Revised. Questionnaires were administered to 291 college students at a mid-western university. Individuals were identified as being either high or low in creativity and as either intrinsic or extrinsic with respect to their religious orientation. A final participant sample participant sample of 120 participants was retained for analysis and a two by two factorial MANOVA was performed to determine if creativity and religious orientation would interact. While the results of the study suggested that creativity and religious orientation were both significant predictors of psychological wellbeing, the interaction of these variables was not found to be a significant predictor of psychological wellbeing. The independent factor of creativity was found to be a significant predictor beyond the .05 level for psychological wellbeing, satisfaction with life, purpose in life, and meaning in life. Similarly, religious orientation as an independent factor was found to be a significant predictor beyond the .05 level for psychological wellbeing, purpose in life, and having meaning in life. While this data is consistent with the current literature, religious orientation was not a significant predictor of life satisfaction. It was postulated that the lack of interaction may have been attributed to low variability in test scores, developmental characteristics of the sample, and/or the more precise psychometric properties of the instruments used in the current study. Recommendations for future research were suggested. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Using the qualitative methodology of grounded theory, decision-making about health and illness situations was studied in a sample of six women members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons). The purpose of the study was to identify the process used by Mormon women in deciding when to use available healing alternatives, namely self care, the laying on of hands, biomedical practitioners expertise, and social support networks. The identified process, called the "Mormon Woman's Decision-Making Road-Map to Health," is composed of the categories of Protecting Health, Diagnosing a Problem, Considering Possible Treatment Actions, and Evaluating Treatment Effectiveness. The process described in the Road Map to Health model is helpful to health care professionals who seek to understand and influence the health care decision-making of their clients.

The relationship between an individual's level of spirituality, health locus of control, and participating in wellness activity was investigated. The relationship between spirituality, health locus of control on physical health was also investigated. The research question was based on prior studies that reported people who are more spiritual are healthier. Does their spirituality lead to increased levels of health, or are individual's who are more spiritual more likely to proactively take control of their health and engage in health promoting behaviors? One hundred and fifteen male and female employees completed The Spiritual Involvement and Beliefs Scale (SIBS), a spirituality measure, The Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, a measure of locus of control related to health and healthcare, and The Center for Disease Control's (CDC) Health Risk Appraisal, a self-report measure of participation in health behaviors. Physical measures of health were obtained by obtaining Body Mass Index, blood pressure readings, and a cholesterol screening. The current study looked at level of spirituality (internal, external), level of health locus of control (internal, powerful other, chance) and participation in wellness/health promoting behaviors and health. Correlational analyses were performed on the relationship between spirituality and health locus of control. Hierarchical multiple regressions were performed on the internal spirituality and internal health locus of control to examine the relationship between spirituality, health locus of control and positive health behaviors and level of physical health. Stepwise discriminant function analysis using spirituality and health locus of control as predictor variables for the health-behavior criterion variables were performed. Discussion of the results, limitations of the current study and recommendations for future research were presented.

This study examined the relationship between the religious orientation quest and well-being using the 1998 General Social Survey. In addition to the religious orientation quest the extrinsic and intrinsic religious orientations were also investigated. Analysis of the data indicated that there was a slight negative association between quest and general well-being, while also demonstrating a strong positive association between quest and inner peace. These results underscore the supposition that quest is an orientation that is complex and ultimately deserves further attention.

Mental health in the Tibetan refugee community has been studied extensively; but like most research on political violence, these studies focus almost exclusively on trauma. We know little about those who manage to thrive and what kinds of sociocultural practices enhance their resilience. This dissertation, "Spacious Minds, Empty Selves: Coping and Resilience in the Tibetan Exile Community" investigates how Buddhism and other sociocultural factors support coping and resilience among Tibetan refugees living in Dharamsala, India. In contrast to other work that focuses exclusively on trauma, the aim of this project was to examine the broad range of reactions to political violence, exploring how people thrive in the face of adversity. Drawing on 14 months of extended participant observation and 80 in-depth interviews conducted in the Tibetan language, this project investigates how communities through social processes cope in the context of political violence and resettlement. The study draws upon and aims to extend theory in three distinct but overlapping areas: 1) trauma and resilience; 2) the anthropology of memory and temporality; and 3) the transferability of interventions across cultures. The dissertation argues that the Tibetan concept of resilience is more an active process than a personality attribute. Seeing emotions as impermanent and changing, Tibetans living in exile are reticent to dwell on distress, which seems only to stagnate or prolong suffering. Rather than processing the details of traumatic events, members of this community attempt to transform distress through cultural practices that emphasize compassion and impermanence. Many forms of coping in Dharamsala work to create a greater sense of spaciousness, openness and flexibility within the mind--qualities associated with resilience and wellbeing. In practicing flexibility, the durability of negative emotions is diminished, such that the encoding of trauma is derailed and disrupted. The contribution I make involves using a "resilience imaginary" as a fruitful site for pushing the boundaries of how we understand human freedom and agency.