A Qualitative Study on Disabled Persons with Spinal Cord Paralysis with a Focus on Religious and Spiritual Guidance

Abstract

Currently, studies in social, psychological, medical, and further relevant areas have been carried out on disabled individuals, and numerous services are provided to them by the public administration, local governments, and the civil society. Among these service areas, the need for religious and spiritual counseling has come to the fore in recent years. Qualitative studies in relevant disciplines and service areas on groups with special qualities in the form of a theoretical needs analysis might help to determine the religious and spiritual needs of people with a spinal cord paralysis and this would contribute to areas of practical service. Qualitative research on people with spinal cord paralysis and their spirituality is very scarce in our country. We have conducted one-and-a-half hour focus group interviews with 15 women, 6 men, 21 adults with spinal cord paralysis, who volunteered for a period of one-week within one month. The findings are structured under three main themes and eight sub-themes (traumatic history, search for meaning, faith, social relations, rituals and worship, social work, sports, search for spirituality). The study aims to determine factors that affect the religious and spiritual well-being of the participant group, their existential, spiritual, and religious search, and the ways they choose for their religious and spiritual well-being. Accordingly, qualified findings are obtained from 59 answers and 222 frequencies of the participants under 3 main themes, and the factors that affect their religious and spiritual well-being, existential and religious questionings, and the ways they choose for their religious and spiritual well-being are determined. As a result of the research, the factors affecting the religious and spiritual well-being of the participants, existential and religious inquiries, and the ways they resorted to for religious and spiritual well-being were determined.