Influences of religiousness/spirituality on mental and physical health in OEF/OIF/OND military veterans varies by sex and race/ethnicity

Park, Crystal L.; Sacco, Shane J.; Kraus, Shane W.; Mazure, Carolyn M.; Hoff, Rani A.

doi:10.1016/j.jpsychires.2021.03.034

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…In addition to partnering with VSOs as a complementary intervention or referring veterans who do not respond favorably to clinical interventions, these organizations may also strengthen resilience in ways that decrease the risk for relapse of posttraumatic symptoms or maladaptive behaviors. For example, when considering the erosion of meaningful relationships (Cox et al, 2019; Sippel et al, 2019) and spiritual struggles (Currier et al, 2014, 2015; Currier, Foster, & Isaak, 2019; Park et al, 2021) that often occur with moral injury and/or PTSD, the intervention in this study appeared to strengthen social connectivity and spiritual resources in veterans’ lives. By helping veterans to cultivate healthy friendships and/or restore a vital engagement with their R/S, they seemed less likely to misuse alcohol or drugs, become socially isolated, or engage in other self-destructive behaviors.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

“…Focusing on community samples of war-zone veterans from the Vietnam and post-9/11 eras, one third of those who were experiencing moral injury outcomes endorsed distress related to God or the divine, interpersonal or institutional features of R/S, doubting R/S beliefs, not living up to moral standards, and/or an absence of ultimate meaning in life (Currier, Foster, & Isaak, 2019). When such struggles are present, longitudinal studies found veterans, on average, have poorer health-related quality of life, greater mental health symptoms (e.g., PTSD, depression, anxiety) and are at higher risk for engaging in suicidal behavior over time (Currier et al, 2015; Currier, Foster, & Isaak, 2019; Park et al, 2021). In combination, these findings indicate spiritual struggles can add a distinct emotional burden for veterans who are experiencing moral injury and/or PTSD that need to be addressed for healing or recovery to occur.…”

Section: Spirituality Religiousness and Moral Injurymentioning

confidence: 99%

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Examining the outcomes and acceptability of a peer-led spiritual intervention for moral injury in a veteran service organization.

Currier¹,

McDermott²,

Fernandez³

et al. 2024

Psychological Services

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The purpose of this proof-of-concept study was to examine the outcomes and acceptability of a spiritual intervention for moral injury led by veteran peers in a Veteran Service Organization (VSO), called "Heroes to Heroes." From baseline to 1-year follow-up, 101 veterans who participated in the intervention completed the evaluation surveys at four time points assessing psychological outcomes (moral injury, posttraumatic stress disorder [PTSD] symptoms, and life satisfaction), spiritual outcomes (spiritual struggles and spiritual transcendence), and their perceived helpfulness of the program. In addition, we conducted four focus groups with six to eight alumni to more fully understand veterans' views and experiences of the program. Focusing on the longitudinal surveys, latent growth modeling analyses revealed veterans generally improved across the psychological and spiritual outcomes in the study. Specifically, veterans reported steady decreases in moral injury outcomes, PTSD symptoms, and spiritual struggles along with increased life satisfaction and spiritual transcendence over the 1-year period. An inductive content analysis of veterans' responses to open-ended items in the surveys and focus group interviews revealed four possible mechanisms or facilitators of these outcomes: (a) social connectivity and belonging (e.g., shared vulnerability and camaraderie); (b) behavioral engagement in core aspects of their spirituality (e.g., sacred practices and visiting sacred places); (c) spiritual transformation and growth (e.g., closeness with God and divine forgiveness); and (d) appreciation for diversity (e.g., religious and military). Overall, these findings affirm the potential effectiveness and acceptability of the VSO's peer-led spiritual intervention for promoting the holistic healing among veterans who are contending with emotional and spiritual wounds of war. Impact StatementMilitary veterans who participated in the peer-led spiritual intervention, on average, improved on psychological and spiritual outcomes assessed over the 1-year period. In addition, qualitative findings suggested that these improvements might be attributed to increased social connectivity and belonging, behavioral engagement in core aspects of spirituality, spiritual transformation and growth, and appreciation for cultural diversity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 92%

Section: Spirituality Religiousness and Moral Injurymentioning

confidence: 99%

Examining the outcomes and acceptability of a peer-led spiritual intervention for moral injury in a veteran service organization.

Currier¹,

McDermott²,

Fernandez³

et al. 2024

Psychological Services

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Based from the results of the literature study above, it was found that the benefits of using spiritual coping used by families were: Increasing mental or physical wellbeing (Health Status) ( Park et al, 2021 ); Giving comfort to the mind, find hope ( Gojer et al, 2017 ); Build meaning, greater religious support and positive caregiving experience ( Guo et al, 2017 ); Coping was associated with a positive caregiving experience and greater religious support. Religious coping methods that used by family caregiver may be particularly relevant and adaptive for dealing with the stress of caring for a person with a mental illness ( Guo et al, 2017 ); Decreasing burden and stress of family ( Casaleiro et al, 2022a ); Increasing spiritual wellness ( Budiarto & Hamid, 2019 ); Better patient outcomes and lower levels of morbidity or psychological distress ( Rao et al, 2020 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Religious coping is defined as “an attempt to understand and deal with the existence of a stressor or life event in a way that is related to the sacred being” ( Pargament et al, 2011 , p. 12). Higher levels of spirituality and religion (R/S) have been linked to better mental health ( Park et al, 2021 ). Spiritual intelligence can be employed as a coping mechanism to control and deal with the stressor in stressful situations ( Moafi et al, 2021 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Benefits Might a Family Expect From Using Spiritual Coping Mechanisms When Providing Care for People With Schizophrenia? Literature Review

Rohmi,

Yusuf,

Fitriasari

et al. 2023

SAGE Open Nursing

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Introduction Caring for people with schizophrenia has consequences, one of which is stressors during care. Families as caregivers often using coping strategies that involve relationships with self, others, or the transcendent/God or nature and also may include religious/spiritual practices. Objectives This literature review aims to identify the benefit of using spiritual coping as used by a family schizophrenia caregiver. The variable is spiritual coping. Methods This literature review method used PRISMA methodology for systematic reviews. Search was conducted in March 2017, updated in August 2022 and submitted in April 2023 for the publication process, limited to English by using electronic databases: Scopus, ScienceDirect, Sage, ProQuest, and PubMed. Results Fifteen studies were included in this review. Two synthesized findings emerged: spiritual coping strategies used by family caregivers give positive effects for family. Conclusion When the stress or crisis phase is experienced while caring for people with schizophrenia, the family who acts as a caregiver reveals the meaning of life they have and that they feel hopelessness and helplessness. In an effort to overcome the family's burden as caregivers, they often use spiritual coping, which is important to increase the caregiver's wellbeing.

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“…Authors such as Jones [ 33 ] have exposed this difficulty derived from the interaction between the physical and the mental. For this reason, numerous studies have been conducted involving mental health and physical health variables [ 34 , 35 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Aspects of Religion and Spirituality Affect the Physical Health of Cancer Patients? A Systematic Review

et al. 2022

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In recent years, the literature on the relationship between religion and spirituality (R/S) and the health of cancer patients has been flourishing. Although most studies focus on mental health, many study the physical health of these individuals. In order to summarize the findings of these studies, we reviewed the most recent research on this subject using the PubMed and PsycInfo databases. The objective of this systematic review was to recognize the primary R/S variables studied in research on physical health in cancer contexts. We found that spiritual well-being was the most-researched variable in studies of these characteristics, followed by R/S struggles and other variables such as religious coping; religious commitment or practice; or self-rated R/S. In general, R/S seems to have a positive association with the physical health of cancer patients, although the results are quite heterogeneous, and occasionally there are no relationships or the association is negative. Our results may assist in improving interventions that include spirituality in clinical settings as well as the development of holistic approaches, which may have a positive impact on the quality of life and well-being of cancer patients.

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Influences of religiousness/spirituality on mental and physical health in OEF/OIF/OND military veterans varies by sex and race/ethnicity

Cited by 7 publications

References 42 publications

Examining the outcomes and acceptability of a peer-led spiritual intervention for moral injury in a veteran service organization.

Examining the outcomes and acceptability of a peer-led spiritual intervention for moral injury in a veteran service organization.

What Benefits Might a Family Expect From Using Spiritual Coping Mechanisms When Providing Care for People With Schizophrenia? Literature Review

What Aspects of Religion and Spirituality Affect the Physical Health of Cancer Patients? A Systematic Review

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