{"title":"Faith Factors, Character Strengths, and Depression following Hurricane Michael","authors":"Arthur A. Raney, A. Ai, R. Paloutzian","doi":"10.1080/10508619.2022.2029045","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Natural disasters have increased exponentially in recent decades, imposing existential threats to humans. Yet, surprisingly little research has explored the role of religion and spirituality (R/S) and transcendence-related character strengths in post-disaster depression. Using data (N = 491) from victims of Category 5 Hurricane Michael, this study examined whether R/S factors and character strengths helped to buffer against post-disaster depressive symptoms. A hierarchical regression model revealed an inverse association of perceived spiritual support with depression, after adjusting for demographic and event-related factors; strength of faith and the use of prayer for coping were not significantly related with depression. Upon inclusion of character strengths into the model, those relationships changed dramatically. Hope and optimism negatively predicted depression, whereas strength of faith and prayer for coping did so positively. Follow-up moderation analyses found that victims reporting particularly high levels of R/S factors and particularly low levels of character strength experienced the most depressive symptoms. The findings suggest that the potential protection of R/S factors in disasters may actually be due to transcendence-related character strength factors.","PeriodicalId":47234,"journal":{"name":"International Journal for the Psychology of Religion","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":1.7000,"publicationDate":"2022-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"International Journal for the Psychology of Religion","FirstCategoryId":"102","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1080/10508619.2022.2029045","RegionNum":2,"RegionCategory":"哲学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q2","JCRName":"PSYCHOLOGY, MULTIDISCIPLINARY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
ABSTRACT Natural disasters have increased exponentially in recent decades, imposing existential threats to humans. Yet, surprisingly little research has explored the role of religion and spirituality (R/S) and transcendence-related character strengths in post-disaster depression. Using data (N = 491) from victims of Category 5 Hurricane Michael, this study examined whether R/S factors and character strengths helped to buffer against post-disaster depressive symptoms. A hierarchical regression model revealed an inverse association of perceived spiritual support with depression, after adjusting for demographic and event-related factors; strength of faith and the use of prayer for coping were not significantly related with depression. Upon inclusion of character strengths into the model, those relationships changed dramatically. Hope and optimism negatively predicted depression, whereas strength of faith and prayer for coping did so positively. Follow-up moderation analyses found that victims reporting particularly high levels of R/S factors and particularly low levels of character strength experienced the most depressive symptoms. The findings suggest that the potential protection of R/S factors in disasters may actually be due to transcendence-related character strength factors.
期刊介绍:
The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion (IJPR) is devoted to psychological studies of religious processes and phenomena in all religious traditions. This journal provides a means for sustained discussion of psychologically relevant issues that can be examined empirically and concern religion in the most general sense. It presents articles covering a variety of important topics, such as the social psychology of religion, religious development, conversion, religious experience, religion and social attitudes and behavior, religion and mental health, and psychoanalytic and other theoretical interpretations of religion. The journal publishes research reports, brief research reports, commentaries on relevant topical issues, book reviews, and statements addressing articles published in previous issues. The journal may also include a major essay and commentaries, perspective papers of the theory, and articles on the psychology of religion in a specific country.