An Investigation of the Relationship between Spiritual-Religious Well-Being and Mental Health in Students

Abstract

Background and Objectives: Religious and spiritual components play an important role in well-being and health of people, and their evaluation seems to be necessary. The present study was carried out to determine the correlation between different domains of religious-spiritual well-being and mental health in the students of Qom University of Medical Sciences as well as the predictive power of different domains of religion and spirituality for students&rsquo; health level. Methods: The present study was carried out as a descriptive-correlational study on 158 students of Qom University of Medical Sciences in 2014. Samples were selected using random sampling method. The research data were collected by Multidimensional Inventory for religious-spiritual well-being and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ). Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation coefficient, and regression analysis. Results: The means of religious-spiritual well-being and mental health variables in the students were 24.63&plusmn;2.07 and 12.62&plusmn;6.39. There was a significant correlation between religious-spiritual well-being and mental health (p<0.05). Among the variables entered in the regression model, hope for the future, religiosity, and age had significant effect on mental health. Conclusion: The findings indicated that hope for the future and religiosity were, respectively, the most important religious-spiritual components, helping to improve mental health in students