The Relationship Between Death Anxiety and Religious Coping Styles in Patients Diagnosed With COVID-19: A Sample in the East of Turkey

This study was conducted to find out the relationship between death anxiety and religious coping styles in patients diagnosed with COVID-19. This cross-sectional and relational study was carried out with snowball sampling technique between May 15 and June 15, 2021. It was found that the participants had a mean Death Anxiety Scale total score of 10.42 [Formula: see text], they had a mean positive religious coping sub-scale score of [Formula: see text] and a mean negative religious coping sub-scale score of 12.82 [Formula: see text]. Statistically significant positive association was found between Death Anxiety Scale and Religious Coping Questionnaire’s both positive and negative coping sub-scale scores ( p < .05). It was found that patients diagnosed with COVID-19 had high level of death anxiety and positive religious coping styles. It was also found that death anxiety levels increased in the patients as their use of positive and negative coping increased.

The Role of Age, Religion/Spirituality, and Humor in the Optimism of Community-Dwelling Older Adults

Current literature reveals that perceived optimism decreases with age (D’Argembeau et al., 2011; Newby-Clark & Ross, 2003). However, replication of these studies is limited. In particular, a lack of investigations exists in examining optimism as individuals transition across older adulthood. Considering the dearth of literature that examines the influence of religion/spirituality and humor on the optimism of older adults, 203 members of Osher Lifelong Learning Institutes, age 65 years and older, from Idaho and California completed pen and paper or electronic surveys. The study used hierarchical multiple regression analysis to examine the impact of age, positive religion/spirituality coping skills, and humor on the optimism of community-dwelling older adults. The participant’s gender significantly explained a 19.3% variance in the optimism scores, whereas age did not significantly contribute to the model (R Change =.000). Positive religious or spiritual coping skills and humor significantly contributed to the variance in optimism scores, explaining a 2.3% and 21.6% variance, respectively. In the final model (F (1, 202, = 13.78, p = .000), all variables except age significantly contributed to the model with humor revealing the highest beta value (beta = .467, p = .000). The findings suggest that optimism is perceived differently by gender but does not change with age. While positive religious coping skills influence optimism, internal or external humor strategies may be more helpful to instill, promote or maintain optimism in older adults. The addition of humor assessment items in wellness evaluations and humor-infused interventions may foster optimism in community-dwelling older adults.

The Association of Positive or Negative Religious Coping Methods With Psychological Distress and Quality of Life Among Parents of Infants With Congenital Heart Disease

Objective: The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether positive and negative religious coping methods were associated with psychological distress and quality of life in parents of infants with congenital heart disease (CHD).Methods: This descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted at a provincial hospital in Fujian, China. Clinical data from 115 parents of infants with CHD were collected. Chinese Sociodemographic Forms, Brief RCOPE, Beck Depression Interview (BDI), and the Short Form Health Survey (SF-36) were used in this study.Results: The sex of caregivers in infants with CHD was an independent predictor of BDI scores. The positive religious coping score and the negative religious coping score were both independent predictors of the BDI score (β = −5.365, P = 0.006 and β = 4.812, p = 0.017). The correlation between the quality-of-life scores and positive or negative religious coping scores indicated that positive religious coping scores were significantly positively correlated with Vitality, Social Functioning, and Mental Health scores. There was a significant negative correlation between negative religious coping scores and mental health scores.Conclusions: Positive or negative religious coping methods may be associated with psychological distress and quality of life among parents of infants with CHD. It is suggested that more attention should be devoted to the influence of religious coping methods on parents of infants with CHD, and the use of religious resources should be encouraged.

How Indonesians Cope with Chronic Pain: Does Seeking Help and Comfort from God Work?

Chronic pain is a significant health problem in many countries including Indonesia, with high prevalence and the possibility to increase in the future. Individuals experiencing chronic pain elicit cognitive and behavioral responses, including pain catastrophizing which can cause high pain interference. Effective coping ability can help reduce the impact of pain catastrophizing on pain interference. Previous research focused on emotion-focused and problem-focused coping in dealing with chronic pain. However, Indonesia as a country with a strong influence from religious values and practices encourages the exploration of positive religious coping. A part of a longitudinal study on psychological factors in chronic pain development, this study aimed to examine the moderating role of three coping styles on pain catastrophizing and pain interference associations. Results from 368 participants male and female with chronic pain showed that positive religious coping and problem-focused coping significantly moderated the effects of pain catastrophizing on pain interference. Seeking help from God helped individuals deal with chronic pain problems, as well as actively resolving difficulties. The use of these two coping styles in the Indonesian population can be useful for managing chronic pain.

The Effect of Mindfulness and Religious Coping on Elderly Mental Health

The elderly population continues to increase not only in the world, but also in Indonesia. One of the cities that contribute to increasing the number of elderly people in Indonesia is Depok, West Java. Elderly is a stage that has experienced many changes and faced various challenges in life. The elderly tend to experience a decline in various aspects. They experience changes in physical, psychological, and social aspects. The changes that occur and all the challenges that must be faced can have an impact on the physical, mental and functioning of life. This study aims to examine whether mindfulness and religious coping have an effect on the mental health of the elderly in Depok city. The sample used were 282 elderly people who were taken using a non-probability sampling technique, namely purposive sampling. The instruments used in this study are adaptations and modifications of the Mental Health Continuum-Long Form (MHC-LF), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ) and Brief RCOPE instruments. The results showed that at 36.5%, there was a significant effect of mindfulness and religious coping together on the mental health of the elderly. In detail, the results of the minor hypothesis prove that there is a significant effect of three dimensions of mindfulness (observe, describe, and act with awareness) and one dimension of religious coping (positive religious coping) on the mental health of the elderly.

Religious Coping and Life Satisfaction during the COVID-19 Pandemic among Polish Catholics. The Mediating Effect of Coronavirus Anxiety

Recent data have indicated that people may have experienced fear during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study aims to deepen our understanding of the relationship between religious coping and life satisfaction by analysing the indirect effects of fear of COVID-19. Methods: This study included 365 people (75% women) aged 18–78 years. The procedure consisted of completing questionnaires to measure religious coping, COVID-19 anxiety, satisfaction with life, and satisfaction with social support. Results: Structural equation modelling showed that positive religious coping was related to greater life satisfaction and greater satisfaction with social support during the pandemic. Moreover, fear of COVID-19 mediated the relationship between negative religious coping and life satisfaction and social support satisfaction. Conclusions: The data suggest a need for practitioners to focus on interventions that enhance positive religious coping to improve life satisfaction during the spread of infectious diseases.

Investigation of Structural Relationships of Factors Affecting Posttraumatic Growth in Women With Breast Cancer

Introduction: It is necessary to identify the factors affecting the posttraumatic growth of cancer patients to minimize the consequences of its psychological trauma. Objective: This study aimed to determine the structural relationships of coping styles, the collapse of core beliefs, social support, spirituality/religious coping with posttraumatic growth variables, and the mediating role of positive reassessment and deliberate mental rumination within a causal pattern. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was performed using path analysis and structural equation modeling (SEM) by convenience sampling method on 213 patients with breast cancer in Mashhad, Iran, in 2019. The pattern of variables relationships was tested in a conceptual model by SEM and used the partial least squares regression method to test the measurement pattern and research hypotheses. In the measurement model section, three convergent validity indices, i.e., Average Variance Extracted (AVE), Composite Reliability (CR), and the Cronbach α, and in the structural model section, two indicators of coefficient of determination (R2) and Stone-Geisser coefficient (Q²). Results: The Mean±SD age of the patients was 52±16 years. The standardized coefficients of the overall effect of core beliefs pathways, positive religious coping, search for meaning, presence of meaning, deliberate rumination over positive re-evaluation were 0.953, 0.386, -0.250, 0.248, and 0.238, respectively (P=0.001). The direct coefficient of the positive reassessment path to posttraumatic growth was 0.085 (P=0.01). Also, the coefficient of collapse path of core beliefs to intrusive rumination was 0.687, which was significant at the level of P=0.0001. Finally, the standardized coefficients of the overall effect of all paths for negative religious coping, the collapse of core beliefs, presence of meaning, problem-based coping style, search for meaning, deliberate rumination, social support, positive religious coping, emotion-based coping, intrusive rumination over posttraumatic growth were -0.481, 0.227, 0.182, 0.146, -0.136, 0.066, 0.060, 0.059, 0.056, and -0.043, respectively (P=0.0001). Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that in addition to confirming the direct paths of independent variables to the posttraumatic growth, positive reassessment had a mediating role between pathways of the presence and search of meaning, conscious rumination, religious coping, and the collapse of core beliefs in posttraumatic growth.

Links between Faith and Some Strengths of Character: Religious Commitment Manifestations as a Moderators

Religious commitment is a significant factor for the development of strengths of character. Previous studies have confirmed that for religious people, it is not religious affiliation but religious orientation that has influenced positive outcomes. The purpose of the research was to verify whether religious commitment moderates the relationship between faith and strengths of character in a sample of religious students from Poland. A cross-sectional investigation of 393 Polish students was performed with using following measures: the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire (SCSORFQ), the Transgression-Related Interpersonal Motivations (TRIM) scale, the Gratitude Questionnaire (GQ-6), the Purpose in Life Test (PIL) test, the Herth Hope Index (HHI), the Brief Religious Coping Scale (Brief RCOPE), and two one-item tools measuring religious practices such as frequency of prayer and attendance at Mass. The obtained results confirmed the moderating role of prayer, mass attendance, and positive religious coping on faith and meaning in life as well as hope. Additionally, positive religious coping moderated the relationships between faith and gratitude as well as between faith and motivation to avoid transgressors. The research has proven that faith without religious commitment is not a strong enough factor to improve strengths of character, and being a believer but not practicing religion is not sufficient to lead a person to finding meaning in life, having enhanced hope, or being able to forgive.

Interactive Effects of Stoicism and Religious Coping on Psychological Distress, Fatigue and Intercultural Communication: Muslim Health Workers in Bali

The rapid transmission of Covid-19 posed threats and challenges for people all around the world. Based on self-ownership theory, the current study tested the interactive effect of positive religious coping and stoicism in decreasing psychological distress and physical fatigue and increasing intercultural communication among Muslim health workers. This study advances the body of literature regarding coping mechanisms in the form of stoic believes and religion to decrease the stressors during disastrous situations like the COVID-19. Using a longitudinal field survey, data were collected from 243 Muslim health workers performing their duties at various public and private hospitals and medical centers in Bali, Indonesia. Data were analyzed using SmartPLS software. The results revealed that interactive effects of positive religious coping with stoicism helped decrease psychological stress and physical fatigue and increase intercultural communication among Muslim health workers during Covid-19. The study contributed to the body of knowledge regarding the role of religious practices and stoicism in building coping mechanisms among Muslim health workers to sustain themselves in a challenging environment.