The persistence of spiritual experience among churchgoing and non-churchgoing Italians : sociological and psychological perspectives

The study presented in this article draws on theories and methods developed within the psychology of religion to examine, from a fresh perspective, a problem established within the sociology of religion: the ‘oddity of the Italian situation’. The study employs the notion of openness to mystical experience as an indicator of the level of spiritual awareness among a sample of 1,155 Italians ranging in age from 14 to 80 years. The data demonstrated that, while levels of openness to mystical experience remain quite high among non-churchgoing Italians, these levels are significantly associated with sex, age, religious attendance, and personal prayer. Moreover, the differences between attenders and non-attenders are sensitive to the ways in which aspects of mystical experience are expressed. The dialogue between the psychology of religion and the sociology of religion generates fresh insight into the religious and spiritual landscape of Italy today

Psychological temperament and the Catholic priesthood : an empirical enquiry among priests in Italy

This study draws on psychological type theory that has its origins in the work of Jung (1971) and psychological temperament theory as proposed by Keirsey and Bates (1978) to explore the psychological preferences and profile of Catholic priests serving in Italy. Data provided by 155 priests demonstrated an overwhelming preference for sensing and judging (SJ at 76 %), followed by intuition and feeling (NF at 12 %), intuition and thinking (NT at 8 %), and sensing and perceiving (SP at 5 %). In their study of styles of religious leadership, Oswald and Kroeger (1988) characterize the SJ preference as ‘the conserving serving pastor.’ The implications of these findings are discussed for leadership strengths and weaknesses in the Catholic Church

Attaccamento a Dio, attaccamento ai genitori e ai pari e atteggiamento religioso in un gruppo di adolescenti italiani

Numerosi contributi in letteratura descrivono il rapporto che un credente cattolico ha con Dio facendo riferimento ai concetti della teoria dell’attaccamento di Bowlby. In questa prospettiva le principali caratteristiche degli stili di attaccamento ai genitori e ai pari possono riproporsi nella relazione con Dio. Nel presente lavoro è stata indagata in un gruppo di 992 adolescenti cattolici la relazione tra gli stili di attaccamento ai genitori, ai pari e a Dio e il grado di influenza di questi stili sull’atteggiamento religioso. Dai risultati emerge che le dimensioni insicure dell’attaccamento con i genitori e con i pari sono predittive di un attaccamento altrettanto insicuro e ansioso con Dio. Bassi livelli di attaccamento evitante o ansioso con Dio si riflettono in atteggiamenti positivi verso la religione e una maggiore partecipazione ai riti religiosi. I dati tendono a confermare l’ipotesi che il legame con Dio è influenzato dallo stile di attaccamento che il credente ha instaurato con i genitori e i pari. Tuttavia, dai risultati emerge che bassi livelli in alcune dimensioni dell’attaccamento (Comunicazione e Fiducia) tendono ad essere compensate nella relazione con Dio

The psychological temperament of Catholic priests and religious sisters in Italy : an empirical enquiry

This study draws on psychological temperament theory (a development from psychological type theory) to map the characteristics of 95 Catholic priests and 61 religious sisters in Italy, who completed the Francis Psychological Type Scales. The data demonstrated a strong preference for sensing and judging (the Epimethean Temperament, SJ) among both priests (71%) and religious sisters (61%). In their study of religious leadership, Oswald and Kroeger characterised the SJ preference as ‘the conserving serving pastor’. The implications of these findings are discussed for leadership strengths and weaknesses in the Catholic Church

Pre-existing Psychiatric Morbidity Is Strongly Associated to Takotsubo Syndrome. A Case-Control Study

BackgroundTakotsubo syndrome (TTS) is an emerging disease characterized by an acute and reversible myocardial dysfunction which may have an influence on clinical status and prognosis. Despite extensive research, its pathophysiology has not been completely elucidated; among other hypothesis, a heart-brain interaction has been proposed. MethodsThe aim of this study was to assess the impact of psychiatric disorders and of some personality types on the pathogenesis of TTS. We conducted a retrospective observational case-control study. We enrolled a total of 50 patients, 25 with a previous diagnosis of TTS and 25 patients with a history of acute coronary syndrome (ACS), that underwent a comprehensive lifetime psychiatric assessment. ResultsWe found no significant difference between TTS and ACS patients in cardiovascular risk profile. The frequency of lifetime psychiatric disorders was significantly greater in TTS. In particular, in the univariate analysis, TTS group showed a higher prevalence of mood disorders (Major Depressive Disorder, Bipolar Disorder, Dysthymia; 16 vs. 2, P < 0.001) and anxiety disorder (Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Panic Disorder, Agoraphobia; 20 vs. 8, P = 0.001) compared with ACS group. There was also a significant tendency in TTS patients to psychotropic medication use, substance abuse, and psychologist or psychiatrist consulting. However, there was no difference between the groups in previous stressful events and Type D personality. Moreover, the multivariate analysis showed that mood disorders were independently associated with TTS (OR 16.9, 95% CI, 2.2-127). ConclusionOur study demonstrated that pre-existing anxiety disorders and mostly mood disorders were significantly higher in TTS patients than in ACS group, suggesting the role of psychiatric disorders as possible pathophysiological substrate of TTS

Moral disengagement and generalized social trust as mediators and moderators of rule-respecting behaviors during the COVID-19 outbreak

In this study, we tested a theoretical model with moral disengagement, a mediator,and generalized social trust (GST), a mediator and a moderator of the relationshipbetween personality traits and rule-respecting behaviors (i.e., social distancing andstay-at-home), during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in Italy. Thedata were collected on 1520 participants (61% males). General results are threefold: (1) moral disengagement mediated the relationship between emotional stability, narcissism,psychopathy, and social distancing; (2) among components of GST, trust in Governmentmediated the relationship between psychopathy and social distancing; trust in knownothers mediated the relationship between emotional stability, agreeableness, andMachiavellianism with total number of exits; trust in unknown others mediated therelationship of emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and psychopathywith average daily number of exits; (3) GST moderated the indirect effect of personalitytraits on rule-respecting behaviors through moral disengagement. The theoretical andpractical importance of these results is discussed

Moral Disengagement and Generalized Social Trust as Mediators and Moderators of Rule-Respecting Behaviors During the COVID-19 Outbreak

In this study, we tested a theoretical model with moral disengagement, a mediator, and generalized social trust (GST), a mediator and a moderator of the relationship between personality traits and rule-respecting behaviors (i.e., social distancing and stay-at-home), during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) outbreak in Italy. The data were collected on 1520 participants (61% males). General results are threefold: (1) moral disengagement mediated the relationship between emotional stability, narcissism, psychopathy, and social distancing; (2) among components of GST, trust in Government mediated the relationship between psychopathy and social distancing; trust in known others mediated the relationship between emotional stability, agreeableness, and Machiavellianism with total number of exits; trust in unknown others mediated the relationship of emotional stability, agreeableness, conscientiousness, and psychopathy with average daily number of exits; (3) GST moderated the indirect effect of personality traits on rule-respecting behaviors through moral disengagement. The theoretical and practical importance of these results is discussed

Das Bild von sich selbst und Beziehungsentwicklung bei den Adoleszenten

U članku se ističe kako je izgradnja slike o sebi u adolescenciji proces razvoja svijesti o vlastitim sposobnostima i o novoj ravnoteži sa svijetom vlastitih odnosa. Istraživanje, provedeno na uzorku od 280 učenika, potvrđuje kako je prihvaćanje slike o sebi osnaženo uravnoteženjem raznih područja odnosa proučavanih adolescenata i kako ih postupno osposobljava za odgovorniju autonomiju.Im Artikel wird hervorgehoben, wie die Erstellung des Bildes von sich selbst in der Adoleszenz ein Prozeß des vergrößerten Gewissens von der eigenen Fähigung wie auch von neuem Gleichgewicht mit der eigenen Welt der Beziehungen sei. Die Erforschung durchgeführt am Muster von 280 Schülern bestätigt das Akzeptieren des eigenen Bildes, verstärkt durch das ins Gleichgewicht gebrachte Verhältnis mit verschiedenartigen Gebieten der erforschten Adoleszenten und wie es sie zur größeren Autonomie befähigt

Rate-control vs. rhythm-control in patients with atrial fibrillation: a meta-analysis

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