"Mental Health, Religion & Culture"

Ineichen, Bernard

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2018.1557872pmid: N/A

Exiting fundamentalist groups can create great difficulties, sometimes affecting the mental health of those who leave or attempt to leave. Four examples are discussed. Edmund Gosse (1849–1928) left the Plymouth Brethren in young adulthood and wrote his book Father and Son in 1907. Jeanette Winterson (b. 1959) left the Elim Pentecostal Church in Accrington aged 16 and wrote a fictionalised autobiography and a memoir of her early life. Rebecca Stott (b. 1964) left the Exclusive Brethren in her teenage years and wrote a biography of herself and her father In the Days of Rain (2017). Tara Westover (b. 1986) grew up in a Mormon family in rural Idaho and after a tumultuous childhood went to university and wrote an account of her early life, Educated (2018). All four have gone on to become notable writers. The experience of the process of exiting their religion was achieved at heavy cost to their psychological development.

Wani, Irfan Ahmad; Singh, Bhupinder

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1581755pmid: N/A

The present study is an examination of Islamic psycho-spiritual therapy in managing craving, withdrawal symptoms, and mental health problems among cannabis users. Homogeneous purposive sampling was used in the selection of the sample. The therapy and administration of three scales (Marijuana Craving Scale Short Form; Cannabis Withdrawal Scale; Mental Health Inventory) were undertaken among 40 Muslim male cannabis users whose age ranged between 14 and 37 years on pre- and post-test analysis. The results highlighted the significant differences in the respective dimensions of the Craving and Withdrawal Scales and the Mental Health Inventory such as compulsivity, emotionality, expectancy and purposefulness, withdrawal intensity and negative impact of withdrawal symptoms, anxiety, depression, loss of behavioural/emotional control, emotional ties, life satisfaction, psychological distress, psychological well-being, and mental health index.

Tekke, Mustafa; Özer, Bayram

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1625314pmid: N/A

The fear of happiness is culturally influenced, especially in conservative communities, in which there is an indirect suggestion that happiness should be restrained or that it should remain hidden. This study evaluated the fear of happiness of university students (N = 211) in Turkey by administering a collection of questionnaires; the Warwick-Edinburgh Mental Well-being, the Satisfaction With Life Scale, Fear of Happiness Scale, and the Piety and Hope components from Religious Orientation Scale (There is no faith bias affecting the fear of happiness). There was no association identified between piety and fear of happiness, but hope and life satisfaction were found to be negatively associated with fear of happiness. It is indirectly implied that cultural-oriented factors than religious values might be potentially playing a major role in the happiness perception. Future research should include the factor of superstitious belief in order to differentiate the level of its impact on fear of happiness.

Nissen, Ricko Damberg; Gildberg, Frederik Alkier; Hvidt, Niels Christian

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1636368pmid: N/A

Ethnic minority patients are overrepresented in Danish forensic psychiatry and knowledge is needed on how these patients are approached in relation to religious and cultural issues. The aim of this study was to investigate how psychiatrists in Danish forensic psychiatry approach religious ethnic minority patients. The study revealed positive approach towards religious ethnic minority patients. However, unless religion features as part of the illness, the tendency is to not incorporate the patients’ religiosity in treatment. The study finds that the hospital chaplain is regarded by the psychiatrists as an important part of the ward and expressed the desire for a more formal cooperation with religious specialists to be developed. Finally, the study finds that religious practices such as Ramadan, common prayer, and Islamic edicts on food and unlawful touch are areas where more knowledge is needed, especially in relation to anxiety, potential stress, and conflict situations.

Judd, Katherine

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1639649pmid: N/A

Religious beliefs are an important part of daily life for many individuals; however, these beliefs are often not discussed in therapy, creating potential barriers to treatment. The current study investigated factors influencing participant willingness to discuss religious beliefs with a therapist, including perceived clinician cultural humility (PCH), religious outlier status (ROS), and religious commitment (RC). Participants completed RC and ROS measures and viewed a clip depicting a clinician who was either high or low in cultural humility. They then rated the clinician’s cultural humility and their willingness to discuss religious beliefs. Results demonstrated that PCH was only significant predictor of willingness to discuss, accounting for 36% of the variance. These results suggest that clients are more willing to discuss their religious beliefs with a clinician who is high in cultural humility than one who is not, regardless of more stable client factors such as religious commitment and religious outlier status.

Mechammil, Molly; Boghosian, Sara; Cruz, Rick A.

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1644302pmid: N/A

Middle Eastern/North African (MENA) individuals may have heightened risk for developing mental health problems due to unique cultural stressors. However, traditional cultural and religious practices and beliefs socialised within the family environment may reduce the likelihood of seeking mental health services. This qualitative study aimed to better understand the intersection of cultural, religious, and mental health attitudes among MENA individuals. Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted with MENA adults who had received therapy services (N = 13) and were analysed for emergent themes. Respondents reported lack of understanding of mental illness within their communities, and prominent levels of perceived and self-stigma. Families and religious practices/beliefs played an important role in responding to mental illness. Results suggest that incorporating psychoeducation and community awareness campaigns alongside religious services may help to reduce barriers to receiving mental health treatment.

Ang, Angelica Vidallo; Montiel, Cristina Jayme

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1646232pmid: N/A

Where there are diverse professionals and curers dealing with possession, differences in representations exist. This study uses social representations theory as a frame to examine both the representational overlaps and differences in possession among various Filipino health professionals and the lay distinctly socialised in Western biomedical and psychological lenses and in local religious and traditional folk beliefs. Themes were extracted from 12 individual interviews. Results showed five representational themes, namely: possession as sinakluban, as a vulnerability, as a disease, as kulam, and as being chosen. Findings were discussed in relation to the interface among religion, indigenous beliefs, psychopathological frame, and the Western biomedical model.

Le, Yen K.; Piedmont, Ralph L.; Wilkins, Teresa A.

doi: 10.1080/13674676.2019.1646235pmid: N/A

The aim of this study was to examine the predictive power of spirituality and religiousness in terms of well-being. Spirituality and religiousness were measured by the ASPIRES Scale. Participants in this study were 171 middle-aged Vietnamese-born American Catholics. Results indicated that both resilience and stress significantly related to Prayer Fulfillment, Religious Involvement, and Religious Crisis, and Universality related significantly to resilience. A series of hierarchical multiple regressions examined the incremental predictive validity of spirituality and religiousness over gender, religious status, and personality. Results demonstrated that spirituality and religiousness incrementally predicted stress overload and resilience in midlife over these other variables (Δ R2 scores ranged from .02 to .06). These findings provided further support for the hypothesis that spirituality and religiousness are important resources for managing stress and maintaining resilience for middle-aged Vietnamese-born American immigrants.