Experiential Avoidance Mediates the Relationship between Prayer Type and Mental Health before and through the COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract

The practice of prayer has been shown to predict various mental health outcomes, with different types of prayer accounting for different outcomes. Considering the numerous stressors facing seminary students, which have only intensified throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, prayer may be a common coping strategy for students who study theology, spiritual growth, and leadership. The present study investigates the role that different types of prayer may have in reducing anxiety, depression, and work burnout among seminary students. Experiential avoidance is proposed as a mediator such that specific types of prayer contribute to greater spiritual and characterological formation through staying engaged in the midst of struggle. Longitudinal data was collected from 564 graduate seminary students from 17 institutions accredited by the Association of Theological Schools. Based on previous research, we hypothesized that experiential avoidance would mediate the relationship between colloquial, liturgical, meditative, and petitionary prayer types and the negative mental health outcomes of anxiety, depression, and work burnout. Results confirmed significant negative relationships between colloquial, liturgical, and meditative prayer types and all three mental health indicators, fully mediated by experiential avoidance. Petitionary prayer was not significantly related to lower levels of mental health. These results indicate that engaging in certain prayer practices may be a protective factor by facilitating experiential engagement.

Navigating the wilderness of faith and vocation: My journey as a Chinese-American psychologist and pastor.

“…For example, drawing on the sentiments above from Brueggemann, I have begun to explore the impact of experiential avoidance (i.e., that desire to not have reality pointed out) on religious practice. In one study, we identified longitudinal associations between religious exploration, experiential avoidance, and virtue (Jankowski, Murphy, et al, 2022) while another longitudinal study highlighted the mediation effect of experiential avoidance on the relationship between prayer and mental health (Lowe et al, 2022). These findings bring about an emerging empirical backdrop to my belief that authentic Christian spirituality (as modeled so well by Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane) is one that ultimately moves us closer to the reality of ourselves, of others, and of the world—even if that reality is uncomfortable or difficult to accept.…”

Secondary Traumatic Stress, Religious Coping, and Medical Mistrust among African American Clergy and Religious Leaders

“…Future research might also investigate the variables that make one more at risk for high levels of negative religious coping and medical mistrust. Additionally, future research can also explore variables (especially those that are religiously oriented) that may contribute to post-traumatic growth, such as self-compassion (Yuhan et al 2021) and different forms of prayer (Lowe et al 2022).…”

Mental health, substance use, and the importance of religion during the COVID-19 pandemic

“…Religious beliefs, practices, and spirituality have been observed to promote mental health through positive religious coping, positive beliefs, and community support as a means to cope with stress and illness (Weber & Pargament, 2014). For example, the adaptive coping benefits of religious practices such as prayer may potentially be attributed to religion's capacity to help individuals approach instead of avoiding the reality of themselves and their circumstances (Lowe, Wang, & Chin, 2022). Virtues such as humility and gratitude have also been identified as mediators of the association between religious commitment and eudemonic…”