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Tag: Religious & Theological Studies

  • Resilience, spiritual well-being, and self-esteem were positively linked

    What the study found

    Among university students with disabilities in Jordan, higher resilience was associated with higher spiritual well-being and higher self-esteem. The study also found that students with visual disabilities reported higher spiritual well-being and self-esteem than students with other disabilities.

    Why the authors say this matters

    The authors conclude that the positive associations point to a prompt need for psychological support across different types of disabilities. They also suggest that continuous nursing assessment and psycho-social intervention should be considered in university health programs.

    What the researchers tested

    The researchers used a cross-sectional correlational design and recruited university students with visual, hearing, and motor disabilities in Jordan through convenience sampling from February to April 2025. Participants completed an electronic survey with measures of resilience, spiritual well-being, and self-esteem.

    What worked and what didn't

    A total of 110 students participated. Mean scores were 71.29 out of 100 for resilience, 36.30 out of 48 for spiritual well-being, and 29.60 out of 40 for self-esteem. Significant positive correlations were found between resilience and spiritual well-being, resilience and self-esteem, and spiritual well-being and self-esteem; lower self-esteem was also observed among first-year students.

    What to keep in mind

    The study used convenience sampling and a cross-sectional design, so the abstract does not describe causal effects. The summary also does not provide additional limitations beyond the sample size and participant groups described.

    • The study examined university students with visual, hearing, and motor disabilities in Jordan.
    • Resilience was positively correlated with spiritual well-being and self-esteem.
    • Spiritual well-being and self-esteem were also positively correlated.
    • Students with visual disabilities reported higher spiritual well-being and self-esteem.
    • First-year students showed lower self-esteem.
    • The authors call for psychological support and psycho-social intervention in university health programs.

  • Italian FICA tool was clear and reflected patients’ spirituality

    What the study found

    The Italian version of the FICA© Spiritual History Tool was reported as clear, understandable, and focused on exploring spirituality in end-of-life conversations. The findings also indicated that spirituality was an important source of support for many Italian patients with terminal cancer.

    Why the authors say this matters

    The authors conclude that healthcare providers should be informed about and encouraged to use this tool to gather information about patients' spiritual history and perspectives. They suggest this may support personalized care beyond physical illness.

    What the researchers tested

    The researchers translated and culturally adapted the FICA© Spiritual History Tool into Italian using forward-backward translation. They then applied it in in-person conversations with 80 of 95 eligible terminally ill cancer patients and analyzed the responses thematically.

    What worked and what didn't

    The study found that spirituality was most often reflected through the Catholic faith. Some participants reported no specific religious community and said they relied mainly on support from family and friends. The tool appeared suitable for eliciting spirituality-related themes in this sample.

    What to keep in mind

    This was a preliminary assessment in a sample of Italian end-of-life cancer patients, so the abstract does not describe broader generalization. The available summary does not report detailed limitations beyond the study scope.

    • The Italian FICA© Spiritual History Tool was described as clear and understandable.
    • Spirituality was reported as a source of support for many terminal cancer patients in the study.
    • Catholic faith was the most frequently mentioned spiritual reference.
    • Some participants said they did not belong to a religious community and relied on family and friends.
    • The tool was translated, culturally adapted, and used in in-person conversations with 80 patients.

  • Stroke survivors described spirituality as trust and emotional balance

    What the study found

    The study found that survivors of stroke described spiritual wellbeing as trust in a higher power and maintaining emotional balance. Reported practices included mindfulness, prayer, and spending time in nature.

    Why the authors say this matters

    The authors conclude that spiritual wellbeing and its practices are important to survivors of stroke and can serve as a foundation for targeted interventions in poststroke care. They also say future research should examine spiritual wellbeing in diverse populations to develop tailored interventions.

    What the researchers tested

    The researchers used a convergent parallel mixed methods design, combining virtual focus groups with survivors of stroke and caregivers with survey data from the All of Us research database. They analyzed qualitative data with the framework method and summarized responses to a 7-item spirituality survey using descriptive statistics, then integrated the two data sets with joint displays.

    What worked and what didn't

    The focus groups included 41 participants across 6 groups. In the survey data, 70% of respondents endorsed connection with God or a higher power, 51.7% said they did not attend religious services as a practice, and 90.4% felt spiritually touched by nature at least occasionally.

    What to keep in mind

    The study was completed from October 2023 to February 2025 and used virtual focus groups plus survey data from the All of Us research database. The abstract does not describe specific limitations beyond calling for more research in diverse populations.

    • Survivors of stroke described spiritual wellbeing as trust in a higher power and emotional balance.
    • Mindfulness, prayer, and spending time in nature were identified as spiritual wellbeing practices.
    • Survey data from 5,428 respondents showed 70% endorsed connection with God or a higher power.
    • More than half of respondents, 51.7%, reported not attending religious services as a practice.
    • Most respondents, 90.4%, said they were spiritually touched by nature at least occasionally.

  • Saudi oncology nurses framed spiritual care as integrated nursing practice

    What the study found

    The study found that oncology nurses in Saudi Arabia did not treat spiritual care as separate religious tasks. Instead, they described it as an integrated part of everyday nursing, grounded in Islamic moral and spiritual values.

    Why the authors say this matters

    The authors conclude that the findings indicate a need for culturally responsive spiritual care education and institutional frameworks. They say these should recognize spiritual care as a core professional nursing competency within Islamic healthcare settings.

    What the researchers tested

    The researchers used a descriptive phenomenological design, which is a qualitative approach for studying lived experience, and analyzed the interviews with Colaizzi's method. They conducted in-depth interviews with 22 registered oncology nurses in three cancer centers in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

    What worked and what didn't

    Five themes emerged: spiritual care through an Islamic lens; the sacred dimensions of nursing practice; navigating professional and religious boundaries; family-centered spiritual support; and nurses' personal spiritual resources and challenges. Spiritual care was described as compassionate presence, ethical mediation, family facilitation, and meaning-centered communication, often experienced as a form of worship (ibādah).

    What to keep in mind

    The abstract does not describe quantitative measures or comparisons with other settings. It also does not provide detailed limitations beyond the study's focus on oncology nurses in three cancer centers in Riyadh.

    • Oncology nurses in Saudi Arabia described spiritual care as part of ordinary nursing practice, not as a separate set of religious acts.
    • Spiritual care was linked to Islamic moral and spiritual values and sometimes described as worship (ibādah).
    • Five themes were identified, including professional and religious boundaries, family-centered support, and personal spiritual resources and challenges.
    • The authors say the findings support culturally responsive education and institutional frameworks for spiritual care.

  • Religiosity norms linked to fewer child anxiety disorders across countries

    What the study found

    The study found that changes in socialization goals were not globally linked to child and adolescent anxiety disorders when the goal was independence. However, greater emphasis on religious faith, a socialization goal tied to interdependence, was associated with fewer anxiety disorders across time. The authors also reported that the association between independence orientation and more anxiety was stronger in WEIRD countries, meaning Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic countries.

    Why the authors say this matters

    The authors conclude that cultural change may play a role in children's and adolescents' mental health. They also suggest that religiosity may be protective by fostering purpose and social connectedness, and they underscore the need for greater support for young people growing up in increasingly secular societies.

    What the researchers tested

    The researchers examined links between time-period changes from 1989 to 2022 in socialization goal norms and child and adolescent anxiety disorder incidence rates across 70 countries. They used data from the World Value Survey, the Global Burden of Disease study, the Human Development Report, and the Future of Families and Child Wellbeing Study. They also ran country-level cross-temporal regressions, moderation analyses, validation analyses with individual-level U.S. data, and a cross-lagged panel model.

    What worked and what didn't

    No global effect was found for independence-oriented socialization norms. Moderation analyses found no association among non-WEIRD countries, but a significantly stronger link between independence orientation and more anxiety disorders among WEIRD countries. Globally, stronger emphasis on the interdependence-related goal of religious faith was associated with fewer anxiety disorders over time, and U.S. validation analyses replicated this pattern; religiosity norms were also a stronger predictor than maternal religiosity, and the cross-lagged panel model supported a possible direction from religiosity to child and adolescent anxiety.

    What to keep in mind

    The abstract says the effect sizes were small. The available summary does not describe additional limitations beyond the country-group differences and the specific measures used.

    • Independence-oriented socialization norms were not linked to anxiety disorders across all countries.
    • The independence-anxiety link was stronger in WEIRD countries and not seen in non-WEIRD countries.
    • Greater emphasis on religious faith was associated with fewer child and adolescent anxiety disorders globally.
    • U.S. validation analyses replicated the religiosity finding and found religiosity norms were a stronger predictor than maternal religiosity.
    • A cross-lagged panel model suggested a possible direction from religiosity to child and adolescent anxiety.
    • The abstract reports that effect sizes were small.