Mental health professionals’ perspectives on the relevance of religion and spirituality to mental health care

Abstract

Background A large body of evidence indicates that spiritual and religious backgrounds, beliefs, and practices (SRBBPs) are related to better psychological health. Spirituality and religion (R/S) are also important aspects of multicultural diversity. There is evidence that clients would like to talk about their spirituality, and that including it in assessment and treatment planning can be beneficial. However, the extent to which practicing mental health professionals view SRBBPs as relevant to mental health and clinical practice is unclear. Methods A survey examining several aspects of addressing SRBBPs in clinical practice was distributed to 894 professionals across mental health disciplines, including psychiatry, psychology, social work, marriage family therapy, licensed professional counselors, certified chemical dependency counselors, and psychiatric mental health nurses. Results 89% of mental health professionals agreed that clinicians should receive training in R/S competencies. There were no differences between mental health disciplines in ratings of importance of such training. Younger individuals and those who identify as more spiritual were more likely to consider R/S training as important. Although 47.1% of professionals had not received much R/S training, many perceived themselves to be highly competent in R/S clinical integration practices (57.8% considered themselves able to display them very much or completely). In addition, respondents with more R/S training evaluated themselves as more proficient in R/S clinical integration. Nearly two-thirds (65.2%) of respondents reported encountering few to no barriers to engaging in R/S competent mental health care. Conclusions There is a growing consensus among mental health care professionals that mental health professionals should be trained in R/S competencies. Strong agreement exists that basic R/S competencies include respect, empathy, examination of bias, and routine assessment of R/S in mental health care. Four in five of those surveyed agree that more active competencies, such as identifying and addressing religious and spiritual struggles and problems and helping clients explore and access R/S strengths and resources should be included, whereas one in five report less comfort with these competencies.