Janice Bell Meisenhelder

Altruistic social interest behaviors are associated with better mental health

Objective This study investigated whether altruistic social interest behaviors such as engaging in helping others were associated with better physical and mental health in a stratified random sample of 2016 members of the Presbyterian Church throughout the United States. Methods Mailed questionnaires evaluated giving and receiving help, prayer activities, positive and negative religious coping, and self-reported physical and mental health. Results Multivariate regression analysis revealed no association between giving or receiving help and physical functioning, although the sample was highly skewed toward high physical functioning. Both helping others and receiving help were significant predictors of mental health, after adjusting for age, gender, stressful life events, income, general health, positive and negative religious coping, and asking God for healing (R2 = .27). Giving help was a more important predictor of better reported mental health than receiving help, and feeling overwhelmed by others’ demands was an independent predictor of worse mental health in the adjusted model. Significant predictors of giving help included endorsing more prayer activities, higher satisfaction with prayer life, engaging in positive religious coping, age, female gender, and being a church elder. Frequency of prayer and negative religious coping were not related to giving help. Conclusions Helping others is associated with higher levels of mental health, above and beyond the benefits of receiving help and other known psychospiritual, stress, and demographic factors. The links between these findings and response shift theory are discussed, and implications for clinical interventions and future research are described.

TERRORISM, POSTTRAUMATIC STRESS, AND RELIGIOUS COPING

The events of September 11, 2001 triggered a widespread national response that was two-fold: a posttraumatic stress reaction and an increase in attendance in religious services and practices immediately following the tragic events. The following discussion traces the existing research to distinguish this posttraumatic stress reaction from posttraumatic stress disorder as a recognized psychiatric diagnosis. This disaster reaction is then examined in light of the research on religious coping, delineating both its positive and negative aspects and the respective outcomes. A conceptual model illustrates the benefits in seeking religious comfort for managing a postdisaster stress response. Nursing implications for practice are discussed.

Frequency of prayer and functional health in Presbyterian pastors

The purpose of this correlational study was to examine the relationship of frequency of prayer to eight subcategories of physical and mental health. As part of the ongoing Presbyterian Panel, 1,412 active Presbyterian pastors drawn from a national, random sample were surveyed by mail regarding their frequency of prayer and self-perceptions of health outcomes. The results indicated a high level of functioning overall for all eight categories of physical and mental health. Predictably, frequency of prayer was extremely skewed towards high frequency. Despite a lack of variation in both health and prayer, high frequency of prayer was significantly related to higher scores in three health outcomes: vitality, general health, and mental health. These relationships remained significant in the analysis even after controlling for the influence of demographic variables, such as gender and age. Various explanations of the results are explored.

Spirituality and Health Outcomes in the Elderly

The purpose of this mail survey was to examine the relationship of attitudinal and behavioral measures of spirituality to physical and mental health outcomes in a sample of elderly community residents. Frequency of prayer, importance of faith, and reliance on religion for their coping were compared for their association with eight categories of physical and mental health. All three measures, prayer, faith and religious coping, correlated strongly with positive mental health, but not with the other seven physical health categories. Multiple regression analyses indicated importance of ones faith had the strongest association with positive mental health, even after controlling for the effect of other significant variables, age and education. The behavioral measure of prayer was a component of importance of faith to mental health, with no independent impact. This study highlights attitudes rather than practices, as the stronger spiritual variables related to mental health in the elderly.

Prayer and Health Outcomes in Church Lay Leaders

This study examined the relationship of frequency of prayer on health outcomes in a national sample of 1,014 church lay leaders. The survey included questions on the frequency of prayer and the Medical Outcomes Study, Short Form 36 Health Survey, measuring eight categories of functional health. The results indicated a high level of functioning overall. Age was strongly related to most aspects of health in this sample. Frequent prayer was associated with poor physical functioning and poor ability to carry out role activities, but these relationships were not significant when the effect of age and gender was controlled. Frequent prayer was also significantly associated with high mental health scores, regardless of age or gender. This study supports the growing body of data suggesting a positive relationship between frequency of spiritual practices and mental health, even in a homogenous sample of active church members.

Faith, Prayer, and Health Outcomes in Elderly Native Americans

This survey questioned 71 Native Americans over age 65 living in the general community on their frequency of prayer, importance of faith, and their health status. The researchers hypothesized that people with higher scores in faith and prayer would experience a more positive health status. Self-reports of health indicated a high level of functioning overall. Older people and those living alone had poorer physical and emotional health outcomes than younger elders and those living with one or more persons, although neither age nor living situation was related to mental health. People who prayed more often and those who indicated a high importance of their faith scored higher in the mental health subscale, confirming the hypothesis for this dimension of health.

Terrorism, post-traumatic stress, coping strategies, and spiritual outcomes.

This mail survey measured post-traumatic stress symptoms, spiritual and non-spiritual coping strategies, and positive spiritual outcomes following the tragedies of 9/11/01 in a national, random sample of 1,056 Presbyterians. Respondents reported mild to moderate degrees of re-experiencing and hyper-arousal symptoms of post-traumatic stress, unrelated to location or knowing someone involved. People experiencing high stress used greater frequency and variety of both spiritual and non-spiritual types of coping strategies. Positive spiritual outcomes were remarkably related to positive spiritual coping strategies, in contrast to no association with negative coping. This study illustrates the significant degree of post-traumatic stress experienced with vicarious exposure and a wide spectrum of coping strategies used following the major terrorist attacks.

Terrorism, Posttraumatic Stress, Spiritual Coping, and Mental Health

This study examines stress and coping in relation to mental health and spiritual outcomes following the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In November 2001, a survey was mailed to a stratified, randomized sample of registered voters from six communities in Massachusetts (n = 231) and New York City (n = 58). The Short PTSD Rating Interview (SPRINT) posttraumatic stress scale, positive and negative spiritual coping, spiritual outcomes, the Short Form‐36 (SF‐36) Health Survey Mental Health subscale, and measures of prayer, church attendance and seeking social support comprised the questionnaire. Residents averaged between partial to full levels of posttraumatic stress, highest in New York City residents, but unrelated to knowing someone injured/killed in the tragedy. Seeking time with family and friends, positive spiritual coping attitudes, prayer, and attending a religious service were strongly related to positive spiritual outcomes. A decreased mental health score correlated with high stress score and negative spiritual coping. The study supported the observation of widespread secondary stress response to terrorist attacks, turning toward faith to cope with this tragedy, and the negative association of both stress and negative spiritual coping attitudes on mental health.

Spiritual Coping at the End of Life: A Case Study of a College Student

This qualitative case study identified patterns of spiritual coping in a personal prayer journal of a 19-year-old woman fighting terminal cancer. A phenomenological instrumental case study approach with a content analysis identified common themes. Three positive clusters were continuous across the time span with equally strong representation: seeking God (42), asking God (38), and thanking God (39). The seeking cluster included prayers asking for closeness and offering her life to God. The asking cluster included solicitations for an ability to follow God and to help others. The thanking theme included expressions of trust, praise, and thanksgiving. The fourth cluster, questioning (17), represented turmoil and distress, coinciding with discovery of metastatic cancer following previously clear scans. The data provide insight into prayers of a young adult and evidence for positive spiritual coping via the mechanism of written prayers in a journal. Implications for nurses include combining journaling with a positive focus in meditation and prayer.

Caring for the bereaved parent: Guidelines for practice.

Purpose The purpose of this research review was to create practical guidelines for the primary care practitioner in comforting, counseling, and educating bereaved parents and their significant supporters. Data sources The authors used an extensive review of the literature for original research reports of bereaved parents’ self-identified needs for comfort from their friends, family, and healthcare practitioners. Insight gained from the authors’ clinical work with bereaved parents added further understanding. Conclusions Parents express strong preferences and needs regarding support from both social relationships and healthcare personnel. Specific guidelines were created for use by both friends/family members and health professionals. Implications for practice Nurse practitioners have an important role in supporting bereaved parents, and educating their friends and family on the most helpful behaviors during this painful time.