Abstract
Human beings endure a multitude of life events, from daily frustrations to the terror of combat. What factors determine whether people flourish or flounder in the face of adversity? Traditional approaches to this question have investigated the biological, sociological, and psychological. These discoveries have led to a greater understanding of the framework of resilience. However, another growing body of research, generated by the field of psychology of religion and spirituality, may further inform our appreciation of resilience pathways.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
Although many regard the definition of “religion” to reference institutionalized doctrines and “spiritual” to mean a personal experience of the divine or sacred, there is debate about the overlapping meanings of these terms (see Zinnbauer et al. 1997; Zinnbauer and Pargament 2005) thus we will use the terms interchangeably in this review.
References
Ai, A. L., Park, C. L., Huang, B., Rodgers, W., & Tice, T. N. (2007). Psychosocial mediation of religious coping styles: A study of short-term psychological distress following cardiac surgery. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 33(6), 867–882.
Ai, A. L., Peterson, C., Tice, T. N., Bolling, S. F., & Koenig, H. G. (2004). Faith-based and secular pathways to hope and optimism subconstructs in middle-aged and older cardiac patients. Journal of Health Psychology, 9(3), 435–450.
Ai, A. L., Tice, T. N., Peterson, C., & Huang, B. (2005). Prayers, spiritual support, and positive attitudes in coping with the September 11 national crisis. Journal of Personality, 73(3), 763–791.
Ano, G. G. (2005). Spiritual struggles between vice and virtue: A brief psychospiritual intervention. Unpublished doctoral dissertation, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH.
Ano, G. G., & Vasconcelles, E. B. (2005). Religious coping and psychological adjustment to stress: A meta-analysis. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 61, 461–480.
Astin, A. W., Astin, H. S., & Lindholm, J. A. (2004). The spiritual life of college students: A national study of students’ search for meaning and purpose. University of California, Los Angeles, Spirituality in Higher Education, Entering Freshmen Survey (2004). Retrieved November 15, 2006, from http://www.spirituality.ucla.edu/results/index.html.
Avants, S. K., Beitel, M., & Margolin, A. (2005). Making the shift from ‘addict self’ to ‘spiritual self’: Results from a stage I study of spiritual self-schema (3-S) therapy for the treatment of addiction and HIV risk behavior. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 8, 167–177.
Baker, R., & Gorgas, J. (1990, July 19). Crash broke her back, but not her spirit. News Journal (Mansfield OH), p. 5A.
Bearon, L. B., & Koenig, G. (1990). Religious cognitions and use of prayer in health and illness. The Gerontologist, 30(2), 249–253.
Bosworth, H. B., Park, K., McQuoid, D. R., Hays, J. C., & Steffens, D. C. (2003). The impact of religious practice and religious coping on geriatric depression. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 18(10), 905–914.
Bryant, A. N., & Astin, H. S. (2008). The correlates of spiritual struggle during the college years. The Journal of Higher Education, 79(1), 1–27.
Carrico, A. W., Ironson, G., Antoni, M. H., Lechner, S. C., Duran, R. E., Kumar, M., et al. (2006). A path model of the effects of spirituality on depressive symptoms and 24-h urinary-free cortisol in HIV-positive persons. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 61(1), 51–58.
Cohn, M. A., Fredrickson, B. L., Brown, S. L., Mikels, J. A., & Conway, A. M. (2009). Happiness unpacked: Positive emotions increase life satisfaction by building resilience. Emotion, 9(3), 361–368.
Cole, B. S., Hopkins, C. M., Tisak, J., Steel, J. L., & Carr, B. I. (2008). Assessing spiritual growth and spiritual decline following a diagnosis of cancer: Reliability and validity of the spiritual transformation scale. Psycho-Oncology, 17(2), 112–121.
Contrada, R. J., Goyal, T. M., Cather, C., Rafalson, L., Idler, E. L., & Krause, T. J. (2004). Psychosocial factors in outcomes of heart surgery: The impact of religious involvement and depressive symptoms. Health Psychology, 23(3), 227–238.
D’Aquili, A. B., & Newberg, E. G. (1998). The neuropsychology of spiritual experience. In Koenig, H. G. (Ed.), Handbook of religion and mental health (pp. 75–94). San Diego, CA: Academic Press.
Desai, K. M. (2006). Predictors of growth and spiritual decline following spiritual struggles. Unpublished master’s thesis, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH.
Dumont, M., & Provost, A. (1999). Resilience in adolescents: Protective role of social support, coping strategies, self-esteem, and social activities on experience of stress and depression. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 28(3), 343–363.
Durkheim, E. (1915). The elementary forms of religious life: A study in religious sociology. (trans: Joseph Ward Swain). New York, NY: MacMillan.
Egeland, B., Carlson, E., & Sroufe, L. (1993). Resilience as process. Development & Psychopathology, 5, 517–528.
Ellison, C. G., Boardman, J. D., Williams, D. R., & Jackson, J. S. (2001). Religious involvement, stress, and mental health: Findings from the 1995 Detroit area study. Social Forces, 80(1), 215–249.
Exline, J. J. (2002). Stumbling blocks on the religious road: Fractured relationships, nagging vices, and the inner struggle to believe. Psychological Inquiry, 13, 182–189.
Exline, J. J., Yali, A. M., & Sanderson, W. C. (2000). Guilt, discord, and alienation: The role of religious strain in depression and suicidality. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 56, 1481–1496.
Faigin, C. A., & Pargament, K. I. (2008). Filling the spiritual void: Spiritual struggles as a risk factor for addiction. Poster session presented at the 20th annual convention of the Association for Psychological Science, Chicago, IL.
Falsetti, S. A., Resick, P. A., & Davis, J. L. (2003). Changes in religious beliefs following trauma. Journal of Traumatic Stress, 16(4), 391–398.
Farley, Y. R. (2007). Making the connection: Spirituality, trauma and resiliency. Journal of Religion & Spirituality in Social Work, 26(1), 1–15.
Ferraro, K. F., & Koch, J. R. (1994). Religion and health among Black and White adults: Examining social support and consolation. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 33, 362–375.
Florian, V., Mikulincer, M., & Taubman, O. (1995). Does hardiness contribute to mental health during a stressful real-life situation? The roles of appraisal and coping. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68(4), 687–695.
Frankl, V. E. (1984). Man’s search for meaning: An introduction to logotherapy. (Preface: Gordon W. Allport). New York, NY: Washington Square Press.
Freud, S. (1927). The future of an illusion. New York, NY: W. W. Norton & Company.
Galek, K., Krause, N., Ellison, C. G., Kudler, T., & Flannelly, K. J. (2007). Religious doubt and mental health across the lifespan. Journal of Adult Development, 14(1–2), 1625.
Gall, T. L. (2006). Spirituality and coping with life stress among adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse. Child Abuse & Neglect, 30(7), 829–844.
Gear, M. R., Faigin, C. A., Gibbel, M. R., Krumrei, E. J., Oemig, C. K., McCarthy, S. K., & Pargament, K. I. (2008). The winding road: A promising approach to addressing spiritual struggles of college students. UCLA Spirituality in Higher Education Newsletter, 4(4), 1–8.
Gurin, G., Veroff, J., & Feld, S. (1960). Americans view their mental health: A nationwide interview survey. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Haimes, Y. Y. (2009). On the definition of resilience in systems. Risk Analysis, 29(4), 498–501.
James, W. (1961). The varieties of religious experience. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.
Johnson, T. J., Sheets, V., & Kristeller, J. (2008). Identifying mediators of the relationship between religiousness/spirituality and alcohol use.Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, 69(1), 160–170.
Kabat-Zinn, J., Lipworth, L., & Burney, R. (1985). The clinical use of mindfulness meditation for the self-regulation of chronic pain. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 8(2), 163–190.
Kirkpatrick, L. A. (2005). Attachment, evolution, and the psychology of religion. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
King, L. A., King, D. W., Keane, T. M., Fairbank, J. A., Adams, G. A. (1998). Resilience: Recovery factors in post-traumatic stress disorder among female and male Vietnam veterans: Hardiness, postwar social support, and additional stressful life events. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 74(2), 420-434.
Kobasa, S. C. (1979). Stressful life events, personality, and health: An inquiry into hardiness. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 37(1), 1–11.
Koenig, H. G. (1998). Religious beliefs and practices of hospitalized medically ill older adults. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 13, 213–224.
Koenig, H. G., Kvale, J. N., & Ferrel, C. (1988). Religion and well-being in later life. The Gerontologist, 28(1), 18–28.
Koenig, H. G. (1988). Religious behaviors and death anxiety in later life. The Hospice Journal, 4(1), 3–24.
Koenig, H. G., Cohen, H. J., Blazer, D. G., Pieper, C., et al. (1992). Religious coping and depression among elderly, hospitalized medically ill men. American Journal of Psychiatry, 149(12), 1693–1700.
Koenig, H. G., Ford, S. M., George, L. K., Blazer, D. G., et al. (1993). Religion and anxiety disorder: An examination and comparison of associations in young, middle-aged, and elderly adults. Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 7(4), 321–342.
Koenig, H. G., McCullough, M. E., & Larson, D. B. (2001). The handbook of religion and health. New York, NY: Oxford University Press.
Kooistra, W. P., & Pargament, I. (1999). Religious doubting in parochial school adolescents. Journal of Psychology & Theology, 27(1), 33–42.
Knight, C. (2007). A resilience framework: Perspectives for educators. Health Education, 107(6), 543–555.
Krause, N., Ingersoll-Dayton, B., Ellison, C. G., & Wulff, K. M. (1999). Aging, religious doubt, and psychological well-being. The Gerontologist, 39(5), 525–533.
Langer, N. (2004). Resiliency and spirituality: Foundations of strengths perspective counseling with the elderly. Educational Gerontology, 30(7), 611–617.
Masten, A. S. (1994). Resilience in individual development: Successful adaptation despite risk and adversity. In Wang, M. C., & Gordon, E. W. (Eds.), Educational resilience in inner-city America: Challenges and prospects. Hillsdale, NJ: L. Erlbaum Associates.
Masten, A. S., Hubbard, J. J., Gest, S. D., Tellegen, A., Garmezy, N., & Ramirez, M. (1999). Competence in the context of adversity: Pathways to resilience and maladaptation from childhood to late adolescence. Development and Psychopathology, 11(1), 143–169.
McConnell, K. M., Pargament, K. I., Ellison, C. G., Flannelly, K., & Ellison, C. (2006). Examining the links between spiritual struggles and symptoms of psychopathology in a national sample. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62, 1469–1484.
Miller, W. R., & C’de Baca, J. (2001). Quantum change: When epiphanies and sudden insights transform ordinary lives. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Molock, S. D., Puri, R., Matlin, S., & Barksdale, C. (2006). Relationship between religious coping and suicidal behavior among African American adolescents. Journal of Black Psychology, 32, 366–389.
Murphy, S. A., Johnson, L. C., & Lohan, J. (2003). Finding meaning in a child’s violent death: A five-year prospective analysis of parents’ personal narratives and empirical data. Death Studies, 27(5), 381–404.
Murray-Swank, N. A., & Pargament, I. (2005). God, where are you?: Evaluating a spiritually integrated intervention for sexual abuse. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 8(3), 191–203.
O’Brien, M. E. (1982). Religious faith and adjustment to long-term hemodialysis. Journal of Religion and Health, 21, 68–80.
Park, C. L., & Folkman, S. (1997). Meaning in the context of stress and coping. Review of General Psychology, 1(2), 115–144.
Park, C. L., Folkman, S., & Bostrom, A. (2001). Appraisals of controllability and coping in caregivers and HIV+ men: Testing the goodness-of-fit hypothesis. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 69(3), 481–488.
Pargament, K. I. (1997). The psychology of religion and coping: Theory, research, practice. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Pargament, K. I. (2002). Is religion nothing but…? Explaining religion versus explaining religion away. Psychological Inquiry, 13(3), 239–244.
Pargament, K. I. (2007). Spiritually integrated psychotherapy: Understanding and addressing the sacred. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Pargament, K. I., & Cummings, J. (2009). Anchored by faith: Religion as a resilience factor.
Pargament, K. I., & Park, L. (1995). Merely a defense? The variety of religious means and ends. Journal of Social Issues, 51(2), 13–32.
Pargament, K. I., Ishler, K., Dubow, E., Stanik, P., Rouiller, R., Crowe, P., et al. (1994). Methods of religious coping with the Gulf War: Cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Journal for the Scientific Study, 33, 347–361.
Pargament, K. I., Kennell, J., Hathaway, W., Grevengoed, N., Newman, J., & Jones, W. (1988). Religion and the problem-solving process: Three styles of coping. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 27(1), 90–104.
Pargament, K. I., Smith, B. W., Koenig, H. G., & Perez, L. (1998a). Patterns of positive and negative religious coping with major life stressors. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 37, 710–724.
Pargament, K. I., Zinnbauer, B. J., Scott, A. B., Butter, E. M., Zerowin, J., & Stanik, P. (1998b). Red flags and religious coping: Identifying some religious warning signs among people in crisis. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 54(1), 77–89.
Pargament, K. I., Koenig, H. G., Tarakeshwar, N., & Hahn, J. (2004). Religious coping methods as predictors of psychological, physical and spiritual outcomes among medically ill elderly patients: A longitudinal study. Journal of Health Psychology, 9, 713–730.
Pargament, K. I., Ano, G. G., & Wachholtz, A. B. (2005a). The religious dimension of coping: Advances in theory, research, and practice. In Paloutzian, R. F., & Park, C. L. (Eds.), Handbook of the psychology of religion and spirituality. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Pargament, K. I., Magyar-Russell, G. M., & Murray-Swank, N. A. (2005b). The sacred and the search for significance: Religion as a unique process, Journal of Social Issues, 61(4), 665–687.
Pargament, K. I., Murray-Swank, N. A., Magyar, G. M., & Ano, G. G. (2005c). Spiritual struggle: A phenomenon of interest to psychology and religion. In Miller, W. R., & Delaney, H. D. (Eds.), Judeo-Christian perspectives on psychology: Human nature, motivation, and change (pp. 245–268). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Pargament, K. I., Desai, K. M., & McConnell, K. M. (2006). Spirituality: A pathway to posttraumatic growth or decline? In Calhoun, L. G., & Tedeschi, R. G. (Eds.), Handbook of posttraumatic growth: Research and practice (pp. 121–137). Mahway, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates Publishers.
Pressman, P., Lyons, J. S., Larson, D. B., & Strain, J. J. (1990). Religious belief, depression, and ambulation status in elderly women with broken hips. American Journal of Psychiatry, 147(6), 758–760
Reed, P. G. (1987). Spirituality and well-being in terminally ill hospitalized adults. Research in Nursing & Health, 10(5), 335–344.
Reynolds, D. K., & Nelson, L. (1981). Personality, life situation, and life expectancy. Suicide and Life-Threatening Behavior, 11(2), 99–110.
Rizzuto, A. (1979). The birth of the living God: A psychoanalytic study. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Rutter, M. (1987). Psychosocial resilience and protective mechanisms. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 57(3), 316–331.
Schooler, C., & Caplan, L. J. (2009). How those who have, thrive: Mechanisms underlying the well-being of the advantaged in later life. In Bosworth, H. B., & Hertzog, C. (Eds.), Aging and cognition: Research methodologies and empirical advances (pp. 121–141). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Schwarz, L., & Cottrell, F. (2007). The value of spirituality as perceived by elders in long-term care. Physical & Occupational Therapy in Geriatrics, 26(1), 43–62.
Smith, T. B., McCullough, M. E., & Poll, J. (2004). Religiousness and depression: Evidence for a main effect and the moderating influence of stressful life events: Correction to Smith et al. (2003). Psychological Bulletin, 130(1), 65.
Spilka, B., Shaver, P. R., & Kirkpatrick, L. A. (1997). A general attribution theory for the psychology of religion. In Spilka, B., & McIntosh, D. (Eds.), The psychology of religion: Theoretical approaches. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
Tarakeshwar, N., Pearce, M. J., & Sikkema, K. J. (2005). Development and implementation of a spiritual coping group intervention for adults living with HIV/AIDS: A pilot study. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, 8(3), 179–190.
Tarakeshwar, N., Vanderwerker, L. C., Paulk, E., Pearce, M. J., Kasl, S. V., & Prigerson, H. G. (2006). Religious coping is associated with the quality of life of patients with advanced cancer. Journal of Palliative Medicine, 9(3), 646–657.
Trenholm, P., Trent, J., & Compton, W. C. (1998). Negative religious conflict as a predictor of panic disorder. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 54(1), 59–65.
Wachholtz, A. B., & Pargament, I. (2005). Is spirituality a critical ingredient of meditation? Comparing the effects of spiritual meditation, secular meditation, and relaxation on spiritual, psychological, cardiac, and pain outcomes. Journal of Behavioral Medicine, 28(4), 369–384.
Webster’s New Universal Unabridged Dictionary. (2003). China: Barnes & Noble Publishing, Inc. (Original work published The Random House Dictionary of the English Language, the Unabridged Edition (2001)).
Windle, G., Markland, D. A., & Woods, R. T. (2008). Examination of a theoretical model of psychological resilience in older age. Aging & Mental Health, 12(3), 285–292.
Wolin, S., & Wolin, S. (1993). The resilient self. New York, NY: Villard Books.
Yohannes, A. M., Koenig, H. G., Baldwin, R. C., & Connolly, M. J. (2008). Health behavior, depression and religiosity in older patients admitted to intermediate care. International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry, 23(7), 735–740.
Zinnbauer, B. J., & Pargament, K. I. (2005). Religiousness and spirituality. In Paloutzian, R. F., & Park, C. L. (Eds.), Handbook of the psychology of religion and spirituality. New York, NY: The Guilford Press.
Zinnbauer, B. J., Pargament, K. I., Cole, B., Rye, M. S., Butter, E. M., Belavich, T. G., et al. (1997). Religion and spirituality: Unfuzzying the fuzzy. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 36(4), 549–564.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2011 Springer New York
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Faigin, C.A., Pargament, K.I. (2011). Strengthened by the Spirit: Religion, Spirituality, and Resilience Through Adulthood and Aging. In: Resnick, B., Gwyther, L., Roberto, K. (eds) Resilience in Aging. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0232-0_11
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0232-0_11
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-1-4419-0231-3
Online ISBN: 978-1-4419-0232-0
eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)