Strong beliefs and coping in old age: a case-based comparison of atheism and religious faith

2009 ◽  
Vol 30 (2) ◽  
pp. 337-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
PETER J. WILKINSON ◽  
PETER G. COLEMAN
Keyword(s):  
Religious Coping ◽  
Old Age ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Religious Faith ◽  
Specific Nature ◽  
And Coping ◽  
Study Participants

ABSTRACTAlthough a variety of research projects have been conducted on the benefits of religious coping in older adults, no direct comparison between atheism and religious faith has been published. The study reported in this paper tackled this issue by interviewing two matched groups of people aged over 60 years living in southern England, one of 11 informants with strong atheistic beliefs, and the other of eight informants with strong religious beliefs. Five paired comparisons were undertaken to examine the role of the content of the belief system itself in coping with different negative stresses and losses commonly associated with ageing and old age. The pairs were matched for the nature of the loss or stress that the two people had experienced, but the two individuals had opposed atheistic and religious beliefs. The analyses showed that all the study participants – regardless of their beliefs – were coping well, and suggested that a strong atheistic belief system can fulfil the same role as a strong religious belief system in providing support, explanation, consolation and inspiration. It is postulated that the strength of people's beliefs and how those beliefs are used might have more influence on the efficacy of coping than the specific nature of the beliefs. Further research into the strength of belief systems, including atheism, is required to test and elaborate this hypothesis.

scholarly journals Syncretic Heritage of Bawakng Tradition for Salako Dayak (Bawakng as a Supreme Shrine)

2016 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 42-49
Author(s):  
Albertus
Keyword(s):  
Southeast Asia ◽  
Ethnic Group ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Local Community ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Belief System ◽  
West Kalimantan ◽  
Nation States

Salako is the ethnonym denominating the ethnic group which straddles the border of two nation-states, Sarawak, Malaysia and West Kalimantan, Indonesia. The belief system of this community including to Bawakng traditions have been syncretized through inter-mingling with Hindu’s beliefs during the Indianization of Southeast Asia. Bawakng is a mountain which is mythologized as the homeland of supreme dieties of Dayak Salako. Meanwhile, in Hindu’s belief, Himalaya is a mountain as a supreme shrine. Both of these belief systems highly considered the big highest mountains as the homeland of supreme dieties. This syncretism can be seen in Salako religious beliefs, livelihood, customs and traditions. Local community believes that Bawakng Mountain is the shrine of the supreme deities. It also represents how Salakos construe themselves based on their Bawakng cosmogony. Salako and Hinduism have a belief in multiple deities, which are assembled into a pantheon, Bawakng for Salako and Himalaya for Hindu.

Guide to giving during the COVID-19 pandemic: the moderating role of religious belief on donor attitude

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Adel Sarea ◽  
Saeed Awadh Bin-Nashwan
Keyword(s):  
Structural Equation ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Religious Faith ◽  
Sampling Technique ◽  
Moderating Effect ◽  
Social Solidarity ◽  
Equation Modeling ◽  
Public Confidence ◽  
Content Type

Purpose This study aims to empirically explore donors’ responses to fundraising appeals to mitigate the socio-economic impact of the COVID-19 crisis. Some governments worldwide have launched fundraising campaigns to support the pandemic relief efforts, such as the Feena Khair* campaign in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Specifically, the study examines how the internal and external aspects can fuel beliefs in the inclination of donors to give money. Design/methodology/approach A quantitative survey instrument was developed, validated and disseminated. A total of 263 usable responses were obtained using the snowballing sampling technique. Partial least squares-structural equation modeling was used to analyze the research model and obtain meaningful results. Findings The results show that external aspects, i.e. charity projects and trust in charities, have a significant relationship with donors’ attitudes toward fundraising appeal for the COVID-19 fight. Interestingly, the study demonstrates a significant moderating effect of internal values of religious beliefs on the positive relationship between external aspects and attitude to give money. Practical implications The results suggest that governments and non-profit organizations should consider the important role of religious beliefs in driving people’s attitudes to engage in fundraising appeals to fight the pandemic. These findings could generate better insights and policies that boost relief and donation efforts in many ways, such as embarking on sensitization programs to create sufficient awareness on the importance of giving and social solidarity during this challenging time, strengthening the religious faith of donors, setting up charity projects with inclusive information and nurturing a high level of public confidence in charities. Originality/value This study is likely the first study to focus on fundraising campaign attitudes during the COVID-19 pandemic in Bahrain. It is a pioneer study scrutinizing the moderating effect of religious beliefs on the association between extrinsic perspectives of donors and their attitudes toward monetary donations.

Belief systems as coping factors for traumatized refugees: a pilot study

2002 ◽  
Vol 17 (8) ◽  
pp. 451-458 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Brune ◽  
Christian Haasen ◽  
Michael Krausz ◽  
Oktay Yagdiran ◽  
Enrique Bustos ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Post Traumatic Stress Disorder ◽  
Traumatic Stress ◽  
Protective Factor ◽  
Stress Disorder ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Post Traumatic Stress ◽  
Post Traumatic ◽  
Coping Factor

SummaryThe severity of traumatization seems to correlate with a more severe course of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) (and other post-traumatic disorders), while firm belief systems have been found to be a protective factor against post-traumatic disorders. This study sought to determine the role of belief systems in the outcome of psychotherapy for traumatized refugees. The charts of 141 consecutively treated refugees were evaluated retrospectively. A firm belief system was found to be an important predictor for a better therapy outcome. The importance of a firm belief system as a coping factor, which should be used as an instrument in therapy, is discussed. © 2002 Éditions scientifiques et médicals Elsevier SAS

scholarly journals AGAMA, KEPERCAYAAN, DAN KELESTARIAN LINGKUNGAN STUDI TERHADAP GAYA HIDUP ORANG RIMBA MENJAGA LINGKUNGAN DI TAMAN NASIONAL BUKIT DUA BELAS (TNBD)-JAMBI

2014 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Syamsudhuha Saleh
Keyword(s):  
Belief Systems ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Environment Pollution ◽  
The People ◽  
The Government

This article tell about the role of belief systems in maintaining forest jungle. People who lived in the jungleis a group of tribes living in the jungle. Their’s lifestyle nomadic that is moved from one forest otherforest sticks. Forests for the jungle serves as a residence. Forests for them not only as a home but ratherserves as a source of life. If the forests are threatened, it also threatened the life of the jungle. But latelywhere the jungle has been threatened by environment pollution and looting forest. The government hasbeen unreliable in forest preservation and the existence of the jungle. When the government can notbecame a good protector, that makes the people who lived in the jungle are trying for them selves inmaintaining a source of life. With a belief system adopted, the jungle since centuries has been keepingthe forest. With the embraced the belief system of the jungle is able to preserve the environment

scholarly journals Action-Related Thoughts and Beliefs Regulate the Effect of Age Stereotypes on Aging Preparation

2021 ◽  
Vol 5 (Supplement_1) ◽  
pp. 193-193
Author(s):  
Frieder Lang ◽  
Helene Fung ◽  
Dwight Tse ◽  
Yaeji Kim-Knauss
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
Developmental Regulation ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Online Study ◽  
Perceived Utility ◽  
Age Related ◽  
Bipolar Scale ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Effect Of Age

Abstract Thinking about old age stereotypically affects one’s engagement in age-related behaviors and developmental regulation. We hypothesized that positive or negative aging stereotype (AS) would be associated with more or less aging preparation, while action-related thoughts and beliefs might exert influence thereon. We used the AAF online-study dataset consisting of 591 German, 348 Chinese, and 139 American adults (aged 18−93 and 55% female). Using a count measure of 15-preparatory-activities, we first explored the role of AS measured by a bipolar scale and how perceived utility and risk of aging preparation differentiate this association. Findings revealed that perceiving more utility buffered the impact of negative AS, which suggests that one’s action-related thoughts are more proximal and self-relevant predictor of aging preparation. Besides, Chinese and Americans were more susceptible to the presence of AS than Germans, implying that cultural background or societal conditions might also shape one’s belief system and thereby regulate behaviors.

Philosophy’s Prejudice Towards Religion

1998 ◽  
pp. 93-99
Author(s):  
Hendrik Hart
Keyword(s):  
Boundary Conditions ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Religious Faith ◽  
Christian Faith ◽  
Greek Philosophy ◽  
Religious Truth ◽  
Philosophical Modernity ◽  
The Face ◽  
Set Up

Religion acquired a bad press in philosophical modernity after a rivalry developed between philosophy and theology, originating in philosophy’s adopting the role of our culture’s superjudge in all of morality and knowledge, and in faith’s coming to be seen as belief, that is, as assent to propositional content. Religion, no longer trust in the face of mystery, became a belief system. Reason as judge of propositional belief set up religion’s decline. But spirituality is on the rise, and favors trust over reason. Philosophy could make space for the spiritual by acknowledging a difference between belief as propositional assent and religious faith as trust, a distinction lost with the mixing of Greek philosophy and Christian faith. Artistic or religious truth disappeared as authentic forms of knowing. But Michael Polanyi reintroduced knowledge as more than can be thought. Also postmodern and feminist thought urge us to abandon autonomous reason as sole limit to knowledge. We have space again for philosophy to look at openness to the spiritual. If spirituality confronts us with the mystery of the existential boundary conditions, religion may be a form of relating to the mystery that confronts us from beyond the bounds of reason. That mystery demands our attention if we are to be fully in touch with perennial issues of human meaning.

The role of scientific reasoning and religious beliefs in use of complementary and alternative medicine

2019 ◽  
Vol 42 (3) ◽  
pp. e239-e248
Author(s):  
Vladimíra Čavojová ◽  
Selin Ersoy
Keyword(s):  
Critical Thinking ◽  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Scientific Reasoning ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Religious Faith ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Gender And Age ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

Abstract Background While previous research has shown that trust in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is linked with other unfounded beliefs (e.g. paranormal phenomena or pharmaceutical conspiracies) and that analytic thinking can help alter these beliefs, the role of the ability to evaluate evidence as a protective factor has not been established yet. Methods A cross-sectional design with a hundred participants was used with self-report data from questionnaires and performance test. The dependent variables were the belief in CAM and use of CAM. Predictor variables were scientific reasoning (measured by Scientific Reasoning Scale), critical thinking dispositions (measured by Critical Thinking Disposition Instrument; UF-EMI), religious beliefs (measured by Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire), gender and age. Results Scientific reasoning and religious faith independently predicted belief in alternative medicine, while the role of scientific reasoning in actual reported use of CAM diminished after religious faith, gender and age were introduced to the model. Conclusion The results highlight the fact that it is not enough to appeal to the general critical thinking of people, but we need to teach them some practical skills that would help them to evaluate evidence in other, health-unrelated, contexts as well.

scholarly journals The Materiality of Myth

2019 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
pp. 29-53
Author(s):  
Sara Ann Knutson
Keyword(s):  
Everyday Life ◽  
Iron Age ◽  
Belief Systems ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Oral Traditions ◽  
Material Objects ◽  
Textual Evidence ◽  
Everyday Objects ◽  
The Relationship

The vivid presence of material objects in Scandinavian cosmology, as preserved in the Old Norse myths, carries underexplored traces of belief systems and the material experience of Iron Age Scandinavia (400–1000 CE). This paper proposes an archaeological reading of Norse mythology to help explain how ancient Scandinavians understood the presence and role of deities, magic, and the supernatural in everyday life. The Norse myths retain records of material objects that reinforced Scandinavian oral traditions and gave their stories power, memory, and influence. From Thor’s hammer and Freyja’s feathered cloak to Sigyn’s bowl and Ran’s net, such materials and the stories they colour are informed by everyday objects of Iron Age life – spun with the magic, belief, and narrative traditions that made them icons. The mythic objects promoted a belief system that expected and embraced the imperfections of objects, much like deities. These imperfections in the divine Norse objects and the ways in which the gods interact with their materials are part and parcel of the Scandinavian religious mentality and collective social reality. This work ultimately questions the relationship between materiality and myth, and seeks to nuance our current understandings of the ancient Scandinavian worldview based on the available textual evidence.

scholarly journals Discussing responsibility and ways of influencing health

2008 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Outi Jolanki
Keyword(s):  
Data Collection ◽  
Old Age ◽  
The Other ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Group Discussions ◽  
Collection Method ◽  
Do It Yourself ◽  
Study Participants ◽  
Sensitive Issues

In this discursive study of four group discussions, I examine how the study participants respond to questions about the possibilities of individuals to influence their own health and their responsibility for health, and what is the role of old age in this context. One key finding was that the participants balanced between seeing health as a do-it-yourself matter and on the other hand as a matter of fate or chance. The participants did not question the idea that they could influence their health or assume responsibility for their own health, but they did raise several factors that limit individual influence. Focus groups proved to be an appropriate data collection method for studying morally laden and potentially sensitive issues. It is suggested that the findings of this small-scale study echo broader western discourses on health and old age and contemporary cultural and social developments.

The Great White Bear in Cosmology, Myth, Imagery, and Ritual

Bears ◽  
2020 ◽  
pp. 71-90
Author(s):  
Thomas E. Berres
Keyword(s):  
Religious Belief ◽  
Religious Beliefs ◽  
Human Person ◽  
Belief System ◽  
Leadership Roles ◽  
Mortuary Ritual ◽  
Ritual Action ◽  
Culture History ◽  
The Universe

The Great White Bear in the Central Algonquian philosophical religious belief system possessed the power to maintain or end life. In the Menominee Nation worldview, the Great White Bear with its long, burnished copper tail was the most powerful Lower World mythical being in the cosmos that needed appeasement through strict ritual action and close communication. The religious role of this being is articulated within the cross-cultural prominence of bear clans and their obligatory leadership roles among Central Algonquian and Chiwere-Siouan speaking nations. Traditional sacred narratives and artistic expressions, like in pictography and a Hopewell effigy pipe found in mortuary ritual contexts, show that this other-than-human person was intimately connected with religious beliefs, ritual, culture history, and knowledge transmitted through generations—connections essential for unity and harmony within the universe.

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