Religion and spirituality in rehabilitation psychology.

Abstract

This article surveys the current attitudes of rehabilitation specialists regarding spirituality and religiousness. The existing data on the associations of spirituality and religiousness with measures of physical and mental health and well-being in people with disabilities are described. The role of religion-spirituality in the lives of caregivers for people with disabilities is addressed, as are professionals' attitudes toward considering patients' religious and spiritual involvement in the course of rehabilitation. Finally, the potential ways to use patients' spirituality and religiousness in assessment and intervention are discussed, and directions for future research are proposed.Religion holds considerable importance for many Americans. For example, 92% of the U.S. population is affiliated with a religion (Kosmin & Lachman, 1993). According to a recent survey, 96% of Americans believe in God or a universal spirit, 42% indicate that they attend a religious worship service weekly or almost weekly, 67% indicate that they are members of a church or synagogue, and 60% indicate that religion is "important" or "very important" in their lives (Gallup, 1995). Almost three quarters of Americans say that their approach to life is grounded in their religious faith (Bergin & Jensen, 1990; Princeton Religious Center, 1994a, 1994b. The religiousness of the U.S. population is unmatched by almost any other industrialized nation (Gallup, 1979).

Striving for the Sacred: Personal Goals, Life Meaning, and Religion

“…Some authors have remarked that a spiritual or religious worldview can be a source of empowerment for people with disabilities, and a means of moving beyond physical limitations to embrace a more holistic vision of life (Selway & Ashman, 1998). A pair of recent review articles (Kilpatrick & McCullough, 2000; Selway & Ashman, 1998) on religion, disability, and health lamented the dearth of empirical research in this area and called for additional research to understand the religious and spiritual dimensions of disability and rehabilitation. The studies that do exist have tended to examine the reactive role of religion in coping with disability.…”

Spirituality: A Coping Mechanism in the Lives of Adults With Congenital Disabilities

“…One of the main criticisms of the past literature on disability and spirituality was the heterogeneity of the participants in various studies (Kilpatrick & McCullough, 1999). In the present study, many more participants with congenital physical disabilities (78%) than ADD (33%) mentioned spirituality in relation to turning points in their lives.…”

“…In addition to training, interest in issues surrounding different groups of people has also emerged as an area of research. Some of the groups of interest are ( (Byrd, 1998;Treloar, 2002).The research that has examined the role of spirituality for people who have disabilities indicates that there is an inconsistent picture about the benefits of religious practice and spirituality in helping people avoid disability in the first place or in their recovery (Kilpatrick & McCullough, 1999;Powell, Shahabi, & Thoresen, 2003). As Kilpatrick and McCullough noted, however, religion and spirituality are used by some people with disabilities and their families to help them cope with their disability.…”

Measuring Dimensions of Spirituality in Chemical Dependence Treatment and Recovery: Research and Practice

“…There is a strong tendency among those in the helping professions to believe that a patient's spirituality/religiousness influences the course of medical and psychological interventions, recuperation from chronic illness, and mortality (Feher and Maley 1999;Kirkpatrick and McCullough 1999;Rose 1999;McCullough et al 2000). In the literature on chemical dependence, spirituality and religiousness have been Int…”