Pastoral Psychology最新文献

Ecological grief results from human-caused environmental changes. While it is a growing subject of study, research on the relationship between it and spirituality/religion remains scarce. This article explores the topic by focusing on the frameworks of religious coping and (complicated) spiritual grief. Religion and spirituality can be resources for coping with ecological grief, but there can also be difficulties which cause spiritual grief: crises about beliefs, estrangement from one’s spiritual community, and disruption in spiritual practice. The author proposes a new term for the combinations of ecological and spiritual grief: eco-spiritual grief. Frameworks of religious coping (the RCOPE) and spiritual grief (the Inventory of Complicated Spiritual Grief, ICSG) are analyzed in relation to ecological grief and eco-spiritual grief. The author argues that elements in these frameworks can be useful in relation to ecological grief and spirituality, but modifications should be made for this particular topic. Research about ecological grief should avoid individualizing tendencies, strong anthropocentrism, and a narrow focus on monotheism. Some items in the RCOPE and ICSG are especially relevant for monotheism, but they could be broadened to include other forms of spirituality. Themes for nuanced research about the matter are charted. The results are relevant for anyone who wants to explore the intersections of spirituality/religion and ecological grief, as well as theology and psychology, and they have special relevance for researchers and (pastoral) psychologists.

This article discusses the experiences of 12 survivors of domestic violence, 9 women and 3 men, regarding how their congregations responded and how that affected their views of God. These qualitative interviews were part of a larger mixed-methods study on domestic violence and the church that sought to provide further insight into the intersection of faith, domestic violence, and church response. Domestic violence occurs in religious families, just as it does in the general population. In these cases, the victims of abuse often first reach out to their pastors or clergy members for assistance. Using transcendental phenomenology, the authors sought to understand the survivors’ experiences in disclosing abuse to their faith communities. The findings show that despite numerous painful experiences with the church, the survivors’ faith and views of God largely stayed intact. Further domestic violence education, connection to resources, and attention to congregational policies and practices are vital in the faithful response to abuse.

Personality traits are a significant predictor of cross-cultural adjustment. However, researchers have yet to establish this relationship among religious missionaries. This study used a cross-sectional design to explore whether personality traits are part of the repertoire of abilities religious missionaries need to enhance psychological well-being when adjusting to a new cultural context. A sample of 221 religious missionaries completed a standardized study in the Cubao Diocese in the Philippines. The study used a bootstrap corrected and accelerated regression to determine the moderating effect of personality traits on cross-cultural adjustment and psychological well-being. As predicted, the personality traits (HEXACO) have positive and negative moderation effects. Results showed the positive moderation effect of emotionality and the negative moderation effects of honesty-humility, extraversion, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and openness to experience between cross-cultural adjustment and psychological well-being at a 5% significance level.

The late twentieth century saw a revival and change in holistic care offered in the healthcare setting. Music therapy and spiritual care are new professions that have entered the healthcare field to support patients with existential angst and crisis based on the diagnoses they face. In this paper, we systematically analyze music therapy and spiritual care and how they support the healing and journey of patients and family members in the healthcare setting.

Religious leaders (i.e., clergy and chaplains) face unique, ongoing stressors that can increase risks for psychosocial and vocational vulnerabilities. Emerging evidence indicates concerning prevalence rates of distress and attrition among these professionals, particularly since the COVID-19 pandemic. To date, most empirical work has focused on compromised functioning among religious leaders. Utilizing a more holistic approach, this systematic review explores individual, relational, and organizational factors associated with diverse outcomes. Following the PRISMA methodology, we identified 82 empirical articles investigating (a) risk and protective factors related to burnout, trauma impacts, spiritual distress, and other occupational hazards and/or (b) factors associated with well-being and flourishing, over and above distress reduction. We summarize the state of the available evidence, distinguishing between risk increasers, protective factors, and well-being enhancers. Attention is given to three domains: individual (e.g., demographics, personality factors, virtue development, coping and formation practices), relational (e.g., peer, family, and collegial supports; navigation of conflicts and polarized issues in one’s community of care), and institutional (e.g., role ambiguity or clarity, resource availability, systemic expectations and demands). We identify notable gaps to be addressed in future research; for example, most studies are cross-sectional, lack diversity in religion, gender, and geography, and operationalize well-being as the absence of symptoms rather than the presence of positive states and functioning. Considering the available evidence, we present best practices to guide psychological practitioners, denominational bodies, and others involved in religious leaders’ formation.

The dire present and future realities of climate change have evoked diverse emotional responses (e.g., eco-anxiety, fear, guilt, despair). This article focuses on eco-remorse, which is distinct from eco-guilt. Relying principally on the work of Giorgio Agamben, it is argued that eco-remorse is a first and necessary step toward eco-metanoia. This sets the stage for a discussion of the attributes of eco-metanoia—namely, acts of care that entail the (1) recognition and respect for the singularities of other species, (2) subordination of instrumental epistemologies to personal epistemologies, and (3) inclusion of other species in justice discourses and in political deliberations.

Prayer can provide some benefits at work, but only if it is connected with strengthening the person’s close and truthful relationship with God. There is a lack of research regarding the role of this religious practice in antisocial behavior at work and the mechanisms explaining these links. The aim of this study was to examine the mechanisms underlying the association between prayer and egoism at work, taking into account the perception of the relationship with God as a moderator and humility as well as lack of haughtiness as mediators in this connection. The study sample consisted of 754 full-time Polish employees. The mechanisms underpinning the association between prayer and egoism at work were shown. Only for those employees with the highest results in their perception of their relationship with God was prayer positively related to humility and lack of haughtiness and negatively related to egoism at work. Moreover, only in a group of employees with higher than average results in their perception of their relationship to God was a moderated mediating effect noticed. In representatives of this group, prayer was positively related to humility and a lack of haughtiness, which in turn negatively predicted egoism at work. The benefits of prayer at work—humility and a lack of haughtiness and egoism—were confirmed, but only for employees with a perceived close relationship with God. In Polish employees who perceive that they have a close relationship with God, prayer is recommended for cultivating humility and reducing haughtiness as well as egoism at work.

With the global outbreak of COVID-19, it is important that vaccination be emphasized to build herd immunity. However, vaccine hesitancy is negatively associated. Religious views impact the interpretations and acceptance of medical and scientific evidence, leading to a variety of responses to vaccination, such as vaccine hesitancy. The aim of this study was to delve into the reluctance of religious individuals towards vaccines, particularly towards COVID-19. An integrative review was conducted using PubMed/Medline, Web of Science, and Google Scholar databases to find articles from 2020 to 2023. Twenty articles were selected for review. The review found that religiosity is negatively associated with COVID-19 vaccine uptake across different religious groups. The article proposes a theoretical way to mitigate religious influence on COVID-19 vaccine hesitancy.

Spiritual health is a process of human development that is commensurate with the individual’s spiritual capacities, abilities, insights, and tendencies. Several factors can affect the spiritual health of children, and they vary based on the context and culture of society. The aim of this study was to accurately identify the factors affecting the spiritual health of children in the context of Iranian society. This qualitative study was conducted using conventional content analysis and semistructured interviews. Participants were 17 children aged 6 to 12 years, 4 parents, and 5 researchers and specialists that were selected by purposeful sampling. Graneheim and Lundman’s content analysis approach was used to analyze the data with MAXQDA14 software. During the analysis of the text of the interviews, two themes of positive factors in the educational system with five categories (Emotional-educational factors, Behavioral-educational factors, Parents’ personality style in the educational system, Education/Training, and Effective socio-environmental factors) and negative factors in the educational system with three categories (Incorrect psycho-behavioral factors of parents, Incorrect parental educational factors, and Ineffective environmental-social contexts) were obtained. The triangle of family, education, and environment seems to play a very important role in the spiritual health of children. How to teach parents about spiritual health and its importance in their lives and the lives of their future children should be considered by activists in this field. Considering the important role of the school as the second home, educators, teachers, and educational programs are essential to achieving these goals.

Grit, defined as patience and perseverance for long-term goals, has been explored with various traits in the past decade. The present cross-sectional study explored the level of grit in the sample along with its relationship with religiosity and emotional stability. The purposive sample included 400 adults divided into five distinct groups: medical doctors, religious scholars, civil service officers, army officers, and PhD doctors from Quetta city, Pakistan (n = 80 for each group; mean age = 32.50 years, SD = 10.51). A significant and strong correlation was found between emotional stability and grit, whereas with religiosity, grit exhibited a significant but relatively weak correlation. A one-way ANOVA was performed to analyze mean differences between sample groups, which differed significantly. Tukey’s honestly significant difference (HSD) test indicated that among the above-mentioned groups, PhD doctors were grittiest. Though both emotional stability and religiosity predicted grit among professionals significantly, religiosity did not mediate the relationship between emotional stability and grit. Further implications of the findings are discussed.