Dare to Dream: Personal Values,Life Goals,and International Students in New Zealand

It has been well identified and supported in the literature that values and life goals are associated with one’s general well-being. However, there have been few studies on values and life goals among international students in New Zealand. This study addressed this lack of research by focusing on the life goals and personal values among international students in three tertiary institutes in New Zealand. Based on the literature review, the hypothesis of this study is that international students’ intrinsic life goals are positively correlated with their spiritual values. In contrast, extrinsic goals did not have similar effects. The Aspirations Index, which was used to assess life goals, and the Schwartz’ value survey, which measured the students’ personal values, were both distributed to the participants. Follow-up interviews with 24 of the participants were also conducted. Findings revealed that spiritual values were positively correlated with intrinsic goals and that extrinsic goals did not have similar effects. As the research findings showed that spiritual values were positively correlated with intrinsic goals, helping international students to find meaning and purpose in life may promote their well-being, and the learning and growth of international students can be improved by incorporating spiritual values and cultural aspects in college education. The authors also argue that a holistic approach to college education for international students is needed.     

Promoting spiritual well-being among Hindu children in South Asian,Southeast Asian and African Countries: Bala Vihars of Chinmaya Mission

The main objective of the study is to examine whether the Bala Vihars (BVs) of Chinmaya Mission promote spiritual well-being among Hindu children in different cultural contexts. Deploying a comparative survey design, 1194 BV participants aged 11–15 years, across 13 South Asian, African and Southeast Asian cities comprised the sample and an equal number comprised the comparison group. Email questionnaire was used comprising scales to assess spiritual well-being, operationalised through attitudes to Hinduism, hope, happiness, strengths and self-concept. Results of scale scores, ANOVA and logistic regression showed that BV participants scored better on all parameters and their scores, in turn, were contingent on attendance regularity, self-practice, and the consolidated learning of Hindu culture tenets, life skills and moral values. The BV programme significantly promotes child spiritual well-being, corroborating the extant literature on religiosity, spirituality and children’s spiritual well-being. The programme works best for children who attend regularly, undertake self-practice and claim to get a consolidated package of tenets of Hindu culture, life skills and moral values. This has implications for practitioners in designing consolidated forms of religious programmes for children’s spiritual well-being, giving a simultaneous emphasis on regularity of engagement and self-practice.     

The role of music in young adults’ spiritual development

Abstract

This article focuses on the role of spiritual music in Finnish young adults’ spirituality formation. The research data consist of interviews (2013, N = 10) and questionnaire answers (2011, N = 278). Spiritual music refers to music that the young adults themselves experienced supportive for their spirituality. The article indicates that the spiritual music enhanced young adults’ spirituality formation as the music was well related to the young adults’ current life questions and to experiences of early life span. According to the data, music offered tools for constructing personal world view and was experienced to strengthen confidence on higher power or life itself. As a mental resource, music had an important role in coping with life. As entertainment, spiritual music enhanced experiencing life as satisfying. As a part of public spiritual life, music advanced spiritual connection with other people. The role of spiritual music in spirituality formation was related to questions of spiritual well-being.     

Belief and Subjective Well-Being in Outpatients

Background. The purpose of this study was twofold: to test the hypothesis that religious and spiritual beliefs provide medical outpatients with a system of meaning and existential understanding, and to seek to determine some elements that constitute the domain of spiritual and religious beliefs as they relate to subjective well-being. Methods. The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) questionnaire was administered to a convenience sample of adult outpatients. Results. Patients agreed, strongly to moderately, with statements that had a direct reference to God having a significant influence (cares about me, concerned about my problems, contributes to my sense of well-being) on the daily life of the respondent. Conclusion. Religious and spiritual beliefs provide medical outpatients with a system of meaning and existential understanding. Outpatients identified with more cognitive rather than affective perceptions of well-being, in addition to a conceptualization of what a loving God may mean.     

Maternal spiritual health as a predictor of psychological well-being and resilience of her young adult offspring

The unique bond between a mother and her child has drawn the attention of many researchers through the years. Yet, there is a dearth of studies that inquire maternal spiritual health and its potential manifestation through the mother–child bond. Since associations between spiritual health, resilience and psychological well-being have been established through literature, it would be interesting to study how spiritual health of a mother might be a potential source of influence in the life of her child. The current study inquires whether maternal spiritual health can predict psychological well-being and resilience in her young adult. Sample data for the study were collected from 205 families (205 mothers along with their respective young adults, N?=?410). Results indicate maternal spiritual health is a significant predictor of psychological well-being (p?p?相似文献   

Spiritual Inquiry and Well-Being in Life-Limiting Illness

ABSTRACT

Introduction: End of life, as a developmental phase, is accompanied by inner resources as well as losses. Spirituality is a potential inner resource for integrating illness that often occurs during this time. Despite the increase in spirituality research, how spiritual perspectives are used in life-limiting illness remains under-investigated. Better knowledge about this process may be useful for health care providers, family caregivers and patients themselves to enhance well-being at end of life. This study describes the process of how patients and family care-givers use their spiritual resources to facilitate well-being at the end of life.

Method: A qualitative study was designed, based upon the grounded theory method, that entails theoretical sampling of concepts (not sampling of people as in quantitative designs), and the analytic technique of constant comparison of the data until conceptual categories are saturated with supporting data and a theory can be identified. The sample consisted of 12 respondents: 6 dyads of elderly patients with a life-limiting illness and family caregivers. Interviews occurred over a 2-year period.

Results: Data analysis generated a theory about a process called “transcending life-limiting illness,” which derived from two related themes: spiritual inquiry and end-of-life dimensions.

Conclusion: The results expand existing knowledge about how people, either as patients or as family caregivers of persons facing end of life, live with life-limiting illness. The process of transcending life-limiting illness goes beyond merely coping to tap resources for well-being. This resource is expressed through an ongoing dialectic process of spiritual inquiry about life and death as supported by six critical life dimensions.     

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.     

Spirituality and Optimism: A Holistic Approach to Component-Based,Self-management Treatment for HIV

For people living with HIV (PLWH), spirituality and optimism have a positive influence on their health, can slow HIV disease progression, and can improve quality of life. Our aim was to describe longitudinal changes in spirituality and optimism after participation in the SystemCHANGE?-HIV intervention. Upon completion of the intervention, participants experienced an 11.5 point increase in overall spiritual well-being (p = 0.036), a 6.3 point increase in religious well-being (p = 0.030), a 4.8 point increase in existential well-being (p = 0.125), and a 0.8 point increase in total optimism (p = 0.268) relative to controls. Our data suggest a group-based self-management intervention increases spiritual well-being in PLWH.     

The Spiritual Well-Being of Elderly People: A Study of a French Sample

The aim of our research was to identify predictors of the spiritual well-being of elderly people. More specifically, we postulated that subjective well-being and its components would be predictors of spiritual well-being, and more so than age and health status. We invited 133 people aged 60–95 to complete a questionnaire that included the French adaptation (Velasco and Rioux in Revue Canadienne des Sciences du Comportement 41(2):102–128, 2009) of Paloutzian and Ellison’s (Loneliness: A sourcebook of current theory, research and therapy, Wiley-Interscience, New York, 1982) Spiritual Well-Being Scale, Ryff and Essex’s (Psychol Aging 7:507–517, 1992) Psychological Well-Being Scale (translated by Lapierre and Desrochers 1997), Salamon and Conte’s (Meas Eval Guid 15(3):194–200, 1982) Life Satisfaction in the Elderly Scale (validated by Rousseau and Dubé in 1993), and the French version (Blais et al. in Can J Behav Sci 21:210–223, 1989) of Diener et al. (J Pers Assess 49:71–75, 1985) Satisfaction with Life Scale. The results only partially confirm our hypothesis, because only satisfaction with life as a whole and two items in “Life Satisfaction in the Elderly Scale” make it possible to predict the spiritual well-being of elderly people. Moreover, neither health status nor age was found to be a significant predictor of spiritual well-being. This research helps understand better the links between the concept of spiritual well-being and that of subjective well-being of elderly people and could contribute to the development of a tool that could take into account the spiritual well-being of elderly people, whether they be believers, agnostic, or atheist.     

Meaning as perceived and experienced by an African student group

This qualitative study explored what a Batswana group of African students (N?=?73) find most meaningful in their life and why those sources of meaning are important to them. Findings showed that, in line with previous Western studies, the most important source of meaning is relationships, and in particular family which provides support, but is also intrinsically valuable. Relatedness in this African group is also different from Western conceptualisations and previous empirical findings in the sense that horizontal (interpersonal) and vertical (spiritual) relationships are deeply intertwined. Education as a domain of life is also an important source of meaning to this cohort of students. The reported perceived meanings and experienced reasons bring forth a picture that resonates with values and expectations from the specific cultural and life phase contexts in which these African students are embedded. The meaning of these meanings for the enhancement of well-being in students merits exploration.     

An Integrated Conceptual Model of Quality of Life for Older Adults Based on a Synthesis of the Literature

Quality of life is fast becoming a standard of measure of long-term care and gerontological service outcomes. Although the issue of quality of life has been of increasing interest in the field of aging, there has been little agreement as to the clarity and definition of the concept and how to measure it, especially as it relates to older adults. Presented here is a comprehensive, integrated model of quality of life that was developed by synthesizing existing constructs within the literature into six major life domains—(1) social well-being, (2) physical well-being, (3) psychological well-being, (4) cognitive well-being, (5) spiritual well-being, and (6) environmental well-being. Consistent with a general systems framework, this holistic model expands the predominant Health-Related Quality of Life constructs to incorporate non-physical aspects of well-being. Each of these domains was broken down into several dimensions in an effort to operationalize the concept of quality of life so that it can have some common standard of useful measurement. These major life domains and indicators are important factors in determining the perceptions of quality of life of older adults. Understanding what constitutes quality of life and how to measure it comprehensively has significant implications for social policy and practice in the field of aging.     

Longitudinal analyses of religious and spiritual development among seminary students

We conducted a longitudinal study of spiritual development among a sample of graduate-level seminary students (N = 119) at a religiously affiliated university in the Midwest. Seven longitudinal hypotheses were tested based on a relational model of spirituality (Shults & Sandage, 2006). Over time, we expected that the seminary context would facilitate increases in students’ questing, intrinsic religiosity, spiritual well-being, spiritual openness, and spiritual activity. Furthermore, increases in intrinsic religiosity were hypothesised to lead to improvements in spiritual well-being, spiritual openness, realistic acceptance, and spiritual activity. Finally, we proposed that increases in spiritual questing would lead to greater spiritual openness and activity but decreased spiritual well-being. The results provide general support for these hypotheses and an empirical picture that differentiates intrinsic religiosity from questing.     

The Influence of Leader’s Spiritual Values of Servant Leadership on Employee Motivational Autonomy and Eudaemonic Well-Being

This research examined the role of leader’s spiritual values in terms of the “servant leadership” in the process of promoting employee’s autonomous motivation and eudaemonic well-being. Sample consists of 265 Chinese supervisor-subordinate dyads recruited from a variety of industries in Taiwan. Spiritual values perceived by the subordinates, as well as the discrepancy between leader-subordinate perceptions, but not the leader’s self-perceptions of spiritual values, were found to contribute significantly beyond transactional leadership in predicting subordinate motivational autonomy and eudaemonic well-being, and subordinate autonomous motivations fully mediates the relationship between spiritual values and eudaemonic well-being.     

Effects of Spiritual Well-Being on Subsequent Happiness,Psychological Well-Being,and Stress

Recently, Gomez and Fisher (Gomez R and Fisher JW (2003) Pers Individ Dif 35: 1975–1991) proposed that four facets of spiritual well-being exist, namely, personal, communal, environmental, and transcendental spiritual well-being. Based on data from three independent studies, the present research effort tested the validity of a German version of (Gomez R and Fisher JW (2003) Pers Individ Dif 35: 1975–1991) of the Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire (SWBQ-G). It was found that the SWBQ-G was factorially valid and that each of the four SWBQ-G scales was discriminant to mental, physical, and emotional well-being. Also, it was found that the SWBQ-G predicted levels of subsequent happiness, psychological well-being (positive relationship), and stress (negative relationship). These results add to our knowledge about the validity of the construct of spiritual well-being.     

Promoting spiritual well-being: a quasi-experimental test of an element of Hay and Nye’s theory of children’s spirituality

This study is one of the first tests of key implicit claims of Hay and Nye’s theory of children’s spirituality and spiritual development. Two quasi-experimental studies tested two claims: that exposure to six conditions posited as fostering relational consciousness in a programme of spiritual formation promotes spiritual well-being; that the effect of the conditions continues after exposure ends. The results for Study One revealed that length of exposure to any of the six conditions was not a significant predictor of spiritual well-being, F(3, 179)?=?1.49, p = 0.22. Study Two results indicated that as the length of time since exposure increased so did spiritual well-being, r(38)?=?0.39, p = 0.01 at the bivariate level, and F(4, 35)?=?2.4, p = 0.06 in the regression. These results reveal a possible relationship between exposure to the six conditions and spiritual well-being.     

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 contributions of religious practice,existential certainty,and raising grandchildren to well-being in older adults

ABSTRACT

Religious beliefs and practices are believed to foster well-being across the life course. This study examines whether religious practice, spiritual development, and existential certainty are positively linked to well-being in grandparents (N = 2,503) and whether these factors buffer grandparents from risks associated with raising grandchildren and adjusting to changing roles. Data were collected from individuals attending Protestant churches. Spiritual development and existential certainty were positively associated with well-being. We found no evidence for buffering effects of religious practice on grandparent well-being. Grandparents raising grandchildren reported more challenges in adjusting to changes in roles compared to their peers.     

Depression for college students in a traditional Christian culture context: the role of attachment,spirituality and social support

The role of attachment, perceived social support, and perceived discrepancy from spiritual ideal were assessed in their association with depression in college students in a Christian culture environment. Participants (N?=?155) at a small Christian university completed the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale, the Experiences in Close Relationships questionnaire, and questions about satisfaction with social support and discrepancy of their spiritual well-being to an ideal spiritual well-being. Results showed that social support, insecure attachment and discrepancy from spiritual ideal were all significant predictors of depression. Attachment was found to moderate the association between perceived spiritual well-being and depression, with insecurely attached individuals more at risk for depression if they evaluate their spiritual development as lacking. Implications are discussed.     

Locus-of-hope and life satisfaction: The mediating roles of personal self-esteem and relational self-esteem

Research has demonstrated that hope is linked to better psychological well-being; however, little research has been conducted to examine the mechanisms underlying the link between hope and psychological well-being. The current study examined whether two types of self-esteem (personal and relational) would mediate the relationship between four loci-of-hope (internal, family, peers, and spiritual) and life satisfaction among Hong Kong and Macau college students (n = 1008). Structural equation modelling was used to test the hypotheses. Consistent with the hypotheses, both personal self-esteem and relational self-esteem partially mediated the effects of internal hope on life satisfaction. Moreover, relational self-esteem mediated the effect of external-family locus-of-hope on life satisfaction. Interestingly, a suppressing effect of personal self-esteem on the relationship between external-peers locus-of-hope and life satisfaction was found. Implications and directions for future research are discussed.     

The Factor Structure of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale in Veterans Experienced Chemical Weapon Exposure

This study aimed to determine the factor structure of the spiritual well-being among a sample of the Iranian veterans. In this methodological research, 211 male veterans of Iran–Iraq warfare completed the Paloutzian and Ellison spiritual well-being scale. Maximum likelihood (ML) with oblique rotation was used to assess domain structure of the spiritual well-being. The construct validity of the scale was assessed using confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), convergent validity, and discriminant validity. Reliability was evaluated with Cronbach’s alpha, Theta (θ), and McDonald Omega (Ω) coefficients, intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC), and construct reliability (CR). Results of ML and CFA suggested three factors which were labeled “relationship with God,” “belief in fate and destiny,” and “life optimism.” The ICC, coefficients of the internal consistency, and CR were >.7 for the factors of the scale. Convergent validity and discriminant validity did not fulfill the requirements. The Persian version of spiritual well-being scale demonstrated suitable validity and reliability among the veterans of Iran–Iraq warfare.