Satisfaction with Spirituality, Satisfaction with Religion and Personal Well-Being among Spanish Adolescents and Young University Students

Young people in Catalonia are studied in order to better understand differences between satisfaction with spirituality and satisfaction with religion. Results suggest a reactive position on the part of most Spanish youngsters towards traditional religion; they consider it not very important either for their well-being or to give a sense of meaning to their own lives. While the importance given to spirituality is clearly higher, the concept seems to have several very different interpretations among young people. The discussion underlines the importance of discovering young people’s own points of view in order to understand the meaning they give to religion and spirituality in the context of an ever more rapidly changing society. The implications for future research and practice are discussed.     

Correlates of spirituality and well-being in a community sample of people living with HIV disease

While the past several years have witnessed an increase in the amount of research examining the spiritual perspectives of people living with HIV/AIDS, this literature is still insufficient to guide the conceptualization and development of spiritually based interventions to improve the life quality of people living with HIV illness. The present study assessed a community sample of 275 persons living with HIV disease to examine relationships among their spirituality, quality of life, perceptions of social support, and coping and adjustment efforts. This study found relationships between social support, active problem solving, life satisfaction, and gender and race with higher levels of spirituality among people living with HIV/AIDS. Mental health providers may need to routinely include assessments of spirituality and religious practices. Caregivers, faith communities, and mental health providers will need to assist in developing supportive environments that enhance the spiritual life and social well-being of people living with HIV infection. Additionally, caregiver training programs will need to focus on spiritual practices as a means of establishing a support system that increases the psychosocial well-being of people living with HIV/AIDS.     

Mental Health, Depression, and Dimensions of Spirituality and Religion

The author explores the relationship between spirituality and religion and human growth and development, specifically examining emotional well-being during adulthood. Dimensions of spirituality to be explored are meaning in life, a transcendent purpose, intrinsic values, and spiritual community. The argument is made that spirituality is related to emotional well-being during adulthood. Implications for further research and relevant information for counselors, psychologists, and educators are included.     

The Relationship of Religiosity and Spirituality to Quality of Life Among Cancer Patients

Most quality of life (QOL) assessments measure patients’ emotional well-being, functional well-being, interpersonal/social well-being, and satisfaction with treatment. Little attention has been given to patients’ spirituality or religiosity. Further, studies that have examined the impact of spirituality or religiosity on QOL have not differentiated between the constructs. The purpose of this study was to examine religiosity and spirituality as separate variables, and to define their relationship to QOL for 61 persons with cancer. Regression analyses indicated that, while spirituality and religiosity are moderately intercorrelated, spirituality has a stronger relationship with QOL than religiosity. When attempting to understand a person's spiritual life and its impact on QOL, there is a need for clear distinction between and separate assessment of spirituality and religiosity.     

Psychosocial Factors Influencing Individual Well-Being in Chinese Adolescents in Hong Kong: a Six-Year Longitudinal Study

This pioneer study investigated the longitudinal development of adolescent subjective well-being (SWB) in terms of life satisfaction and hopelessness. The concurrent and longitudinal influence of different socio-demographic characteristics (i.e., age, gender, economic disadvantage, and family intactness), individual qualities (i.e., resilience, social competence, positive identity, and spirituality), and familial characteristics (i.e., family functioning, and parent-child relationship) on these two aspects of SWB were examined. A total of 3328 Hong Kong students from 28 secondary schools participated in a 6-year longitudinal study. While adolescent life satisfaction showed a declining trend, hopelessness gradually increased across the six years. Resilience, social competence, family functioning, and father-child relational qualities were significant predictors of life satisfaction at the initial status, whereas gender, mother-child relational qualities, positive identity and spirituality predicted changes in life satisfaction over time. Regarding hopelessness, gender, family intactness, resilience, social competence, father-child relational qualities, and mother-child relational qualities were significant correlates at the initial slope, but spirituality and family functioning were the longitudinal predictors of hopelessness over the adolescence period. While the present study showed that some existing Western findings can be replicated in the Chinese context, there are some novel and puzzling observations deserving further scrutiny.     

The Importance of Religious Orientation and Purpose in Life for Dying Well: Evidence from Three Case Studies

ABSTRACT

As older adults approach the end of their lives, it is not uncommon to find a decrease in subjective well-being. However, a number of studies have indicated that elders with an intrinsic rather than extrinsic religious orientation often are able to keep a high level of subjective well-being even if they are close to death. In a previous quantitative study, only intrinsic religiosity was indirectly and positively related to subjective well-being in a sample of 103 relatively healthy older adults and 19 hospice patients (aged 61 +), mediated by shared spiritual activities and purpose in life. Extrinsic religiosity, by contrast, was indirectly and negatively related to subjective well-being. To explore in greater depth how religious orientation might influence subjective well-being at the end of life, we used the method of objective hermeneutics to examine semi-structured qualitative interviews with three older male hospice patients (aged 79, 80, and 98) on religion/spirituality and attitudes about death and dying. Results of the analyses revealed that the intrinsically religious respondent maintained his sense of cosmic purpose in life, which continued to be a source of satisfaction for him, unaffected by his terminal illness. The two extrinsically religious respondents, however, did not find solace in their religion and, hence, were unable to cope with their physical and emotional dependence and vulnerability. The findings suggest that an intrinsic religious orientation is most likely to be related to a cosmic sense of purpose in life, which facilitates subjective well-being even in the face of death.     

Informing Policy Priorities using Inference from Life Satisfaction Responses in a Large Community Survey

Self-reported, quantitative, subjective measures of well-being, such as satisfaction with life overall, are increasingly looked to as measures of public welfare. While this trend is visible at the international and national government levels, regional initiatives and local communities are particularly important in seeking meaningful measures of the quality of human experience and of the success of local policies. Unlike other approaches in which well-being or progress indices are constructed using arbitrary or expert-generated weights on various domains of life experience, subjective well-being can be used to evaluate empirically the relative importance of specific measurable conditions and experiences in supporting a good life. Using a new, large community well-being survey carried out across the U.S. state of Connecticut, we use this method to evaluate the relationship between life satisfaction and a range of other socioeconomic circumstances and conditions. In support of a broad existing literature, we find enormous effects of security and social engagement as compared with variations in income. We then proceed to consider the prevalence of different socioeconomic conditions, in addition to their relative importance to affected individuals, to make inferences about the benefit-costs of feasible state and local policies. There remain some conditions, like social trust and the perceived responsiveness of local government to the needs of residents, which appear very important to well-being but for which the relationship with targeted resource allocation requires further investigation or policy experimentation.

     

Finding New Language

Abstract

This study examined the role of faith, both religion and spirituality, on the sexual satisfaction of lesbian/queer and bisexual women (n = 318). A hierarchical regression was used to determine the potential influence of religion and spirituality above and beyond the variance explained by three background variables (i.e., age, sexual orientation, living with partner status). While religion did not significantly contribute to women's reports of sexual satisfaction, results indicated that both living with a partner and spirituality had a significant positive relationship with sexual satisfaction. In particular, two aspects of spirituality (spiritual freedom and connectedness) were strong predictors of sexual satisfaction.     

Exploring Predictors of Subjective Well-Being in Ghana: A Micro-Level Study

Subjective well-being has been studied by social scientists for decades mostly in developed countries. Little is known about determinants of subjective well-being in developing countries and more particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). Using 2005–2008 World Values Survey (n = 1,533) this study adds to existing literature on well-being in developing countries focusing on Ghana. The paper explores the predictors of two measures of subjective well-being—happiness and satisfaction in life at micro-level in Ghana. The analyses are divided into two main sections. The first part describes the distribution of happiness and satisfaction in life among Ghanaians. The second section elucidates factors influencing the selected measures of subjective well-being separately. The data reveal that both happiness and life satisfaction among Ghanaians are shaped by multitude of factors including economic, cultural, social capital and health variables. Relatively, perceived health status emerged as the most salient predictor of both measures of well-being. Besides religiosity, all the religion variables emerged as significant predictors of how Ghanaians appraise their own well-being. Equally, income, ethnicity and social capital variables emerged as predictors of happiness and life satisfaction at micro-level in Ghana. Policy implications of the findings are discussed alluding to multidimensional approach to well-being promotion in the country. The outcome of the study also establishes the fact that factors predicting subjective well-being at the micro level vary in SSA context compared to the developed world.     

Religion and Well-Being: The Mediating Role of Positive Emotions

Research has consistently shown that endorsing a religion or spirituality is to some extent related to one’s well-being. Common studied explanations tap into the social and cognitive aspects of religion and spirituality. The present research aims at understanding how religiosity and spirituality exert their impact on well-being and investigates the role of a surprisingly neglected mechanism: positive emotions. Two cross-sectional studies using a quantitative approach are presented. In two different contexts (churchgoers in a European country and US university employees interested in meditation), results showed that the relation between religion (Study 1), spirituality (Study 2) and well-being is mediated by positive emotions. Distinguishing between more and less relevant positive emotions in a religious/spiritual context, it was found that the effect was mediated by self-transcendent positive emotions (awe, gratitude, love, and peace) but not by other positive emotions (amusement and pride).     

The link between religion and spirituality and psychological adjustment: the mediating role of optimism and social support

Although optimism, social support, religiousness, and spirituality are important predictors of adjustment, rarely have studies examined these variables simultaneously. This study investigated whether optimism and social support mediated the relationship between religiousness and adjustment (distress and life satisfaction) and between spirituality and adjustment. Findings indicate that the relationship between intrinsic religiousness and life satisfaction and between prayer fulfillment and life satisfaction was mediated by optimism and social support. Furthermore, the relationship between religiousness and adjustment varied depending on how religiousness was operationalized and whether positive versus negative adjustment indicators were used. That is, intrinsic religiousness and prayer fulfillment were associated with greater life satisfaction, but extrinsic religiousness was not associated with life satisfaction. These findings were significant even after accounting for covariates (age, gender, ethnicity, social desirability). Results suggest religiousness and spirituality are related but distinct constructs and are associated with adjustment through factors such as social support and optimism.     

Motivation for and commitment to social values: The roles of age and gender

The primary aim of this study was to examine how motives and commitment to social values influence well-being in men and women of different ages. College students and older adults in the community reported on their motivational orientation (intrinsic vs. extrinsic), behavioral commitment to idiographic social values, and their current well-being (satisfaction with life, positive and negative affect). We tested a series of path models with motivational orientation mediating the relationship between commitment to values and well-being. Consistent with self-determination theory, we found that behavioral commitment to intrinsically motivating social values was related to greater life satisfaction and positive affect, whereas being committed to extrinsically motivating values was related to greater negative affect. While age and gender did not moderate these relationships, meaningful age and gender differences emerged across value-based motivations, commitment, and indices of well-being. This work adds to our understanding of how values are a guiding influence for successful navigation of one’s social world.     

Linking Religion and Spirituality with Psychological Well-being: Examining Self-actualisation, Meaning in Life, and Personal Growth Initiative

Research largely shows that religion and spirituality have a positive correlation to psychological well-being. However, there has been a great deal of confusion and debate over their operational definitions. This study attempted to delineate the two constructs and categorise participants into different groups based on measured levels of religious involvement and spirituality. The groups were then scored against specific measures of well-being. A total of 205 participants from a wide range of religious affiliations and faith groups were recruited from various religious institutions and spiritual meetings. They were assigned to one of four groups with the following characteristics: (1) a high level of religious involvement and spirituality, (2) a low level of religious involvement with a high level of spirituality, (3) a high level of religious involvement with a low level of spirituality, and (4) a low level of religious involvement and spirituality. Multiple comparisons were made between the groups on three measures of psychological well-being: levels of self-actualisation, meaning in life, and personal growth initiative. As predicted, it was discovered that, aside from a few exceptions, groups (1) and (2) obtained higher scores on all three measures. As such, these results confirm the importance of spirituality on psychological well-being, regardless of whether it is experienced through religious participation.     

Religiousness, spirituality, and psychosocial functioning in late adulthood: findings from a longitudinal study

This study used longitudinal data to examine the relations among religiousness, spirituality, and 3 key domains of psychosocial functioning in late adulthood: (a) sources of well-being, (b) involvement in tasks of everyday life, and (c) generativity and wisdom. Religiousness and spirituality were operationalized as distinct but overlapping dimensions of individual difference. In late adulthood, religiousness was positively related to well-being from positive relations with others, involvement in social and community life tasks, and generativity. Spirituality was positively related to well-being from personal growth, involvement in creative and knowledge-building life tasks, and wisdom. Neither religiousness nor spirituality was associated with narcissism. The relations between religiousness, spirituality, and outcomes in late adulthood were also observed using religiousness scored in early and spirituality scored in late middle adulthood. All analyses were controlled for gender, cohort, social class, and the overlap between religiousness and spirituality.     

Well-Being’s Relation to Religiosity and Spirituality in Children and Adolescents in Zambia

The relations among dimensions of subjective well-being (i.e., happiness and life satisfaction), spirituality and religiousness were assessed in children (aged 7–12, n = 391) and adolescents (aged 13–19, n = 902) in Zambia. These participants were sampled from schools in both urban and rural regions that represented a relatively wide range of affluence. Participants self-reported their happiness using the Faces Scale and the Subjective Happiness Scale, and their life satisfaction using the Student Life Satisfaction Scale. The surveys were available in English as well as two local languages, and were delivered in classroom settings. To assess religiosity, participants were asked about the frequency that they attended church and about the importance of religion in their life. To assess spirituality, participants were asked about whether they considered themselves to be a spiritual person and about the nature domain of spirituality (e.g., “I feel connected to nature”). Results indicated that age, gender, grade and religiosity were not strong predictors of children’s well-being. However, spirituality accounted for 21 % of the variance in life satisfaction beyond these demographic variables and religiosity, but did not account for additional variance in happiness. The results were similar for adolescents except that the demographic variables were weakly predictive of their life satisfaction, and religiosity was a modest predictor of their happiness. Spirituality predicted variance in happiness and life satisfaction more so among adolescents than among children. These results confirm earlier work showing that spirituality, but not necessarily religiosity, is associated with children’s and adolescents’ well-being.     

Existential Beliefs,Social Satisfaction,and Well-Being Among Catholic,Jewish, and Protestant Older Adults

Religiousness, spirituality, and existential beliefs are important sources of well-being yet neither their specific effects nor group variation in them is well understood. In a sample of more than 1,000 older adults, we found that certain existential beliefs or concerns (fear of God, death anxiety, belief in life after death, concerns about being mourned) are correlates of well-being in older adults and differed across religious groups. Protestants reported better well-being than Catholics and Jews. Differences in social satisfaction and existential concerns partially explained these differences, which were not explained by demographics. These results suggest the importance of studying well-being and religion in a way that appreciates the differences among religious groups and further of looking at the specific beliefs of different groups.     

Coping Options: Missing Links between Minority Group Identification and Psychological Well-Being

Using concepts from social identity theory ( Tajfel & Turner, 1979 ) and Lazarus and Folkman's (1984) cognitive theory of stress and coping we tested the capacity for group identification to foster beliefs in one's ability to cope successfully and in turn predict psychological well-being. Black American participants appraised the availability of coping options that varied by level of identity (individual, intragroup, and intergroup) as well as function of coping (problem-focused and emotion-focused). Replicating prior work, participants who were higher in racial group identification reported more positive well-being. Appraisals of individual emotion-focused and intergroup problem-focused options mediated the relationship of group identification with both self-esteem and life satisfaction. Appraisals of intergroup emotion-focused options also partially mediated the relationship between group identification and life satisfaction. Findings suggest that the relationship between minority group identification and well-being may partly be due to its influence over a person's sense that they and their group can respond effectively to disadvantage.     

How Does Residents’ Satisfaction with Community Services Influence Quality of Life (QOL) Outcomes?

Grzeskowiak et al. [Journal of Regional Analysis and Policy 33(2):1–36, 2003] conducted a study that empirically tested a model that integrates the relationships among determinants and outcomes of residents’ satisfaction with community services. We build on their model in attempt to explain how residents’ satisfaction with community services influence satisfaction with the community at large (community well-being) and satisfaction with life (quality of life). Specifically, we hypothesized and empirically demonstrated for the most part that satisfaction with a variety of community services (e.g., services related to housing, education, government, healthcare, employment, religion, public safety, retailing, transportation, and leisure) affect satisfaction with the community and life overall through satisfaction in a variety of life domains (e.g., family, social, leisure, health, financial, cultural, consumer, work, spiritual, and environmental domains).     

Religiosity and life satisfaction across nations

This paper investigates the relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction in 79 nations using World Values Survey data. Extant literature analyzes religiosity and life satisfaction at person level. But religiosity is an attribute of both, persons and societies. To solve methodological problems evident in previous work a random coefficient multilevel model is employed to account for the fact that individuals are nested within countries. This study shows that the relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction is bimodal. Religious people tend to be either very satisfied or dissatisfied with life. The relationship between religiosity and life satisfaction is also two-dimensional. Forms of religiosity that promote social capital predict high life satisfaction. People have so called “need to belong” and religion helps to satisfy it. On the other hand, forms of religiosity that do not promote social capital do not predict high life satisfaction. Religiosity is also context-dependent. Religious people are happier in religious nations. In other words, it is not only religiosity per se that makes people happy, but rather a social setting it offers.     

Political Affiliation,Spirituality, and Religiosity: Links to Emerging Adults’ Life Satisfaction and Optimism

The goal of this study was to extend the existing literature regarding the intersection between belief systems shaping psychological processes and subjective well-being among emerging adults. A nationwide sample of 3966 college students reported on their political affiliation, spirituality, and religiosity in relation to their subjective well-being. Multivariate analyses demonstrated that politically conservative participants were significantly more optimistic and satisfied with life than their liberal counterparts and Republican emerging adults reported significantly higher life satisfaction than Democrats. Republican emerging adults also reported significantly higher rates of religiosity and spirituality than Democratic and Independent politically affiliated emerging adults. Our findings corroborate and expand upon existing literature regarding belief systems and political identity as determinants of subjective well-being in emerging adults.