Skip to main content

Advertisement

Log in

The Relationship Between Spiritual Development and Life Satisfaction Among Students of Qom University of Medical Sciences

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Religion and Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Having a spiritual perspective on life can have an effect on the optimism and individuals level of life satisfaction, and it is a protective factor against self-harm in life. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between spiritual development and life satisfaction in students of Qom University of Medical Sciences, Iran. This cross-sectional study is part of study that was performed in Qom University of Medical Sciences, Iran, from February 2015 to July 2016 which accommodates 250 medical and paramedical students that were selected through systematic random sampling. Data collection tools were demographic, spiritual attitude and ability questionnaire and Diener’s satisfaction with life scale. Data were analyzed using frequency, percent, Pearson correlation and linear regression analysis in SPSS 20 software. The Pearson correlation coefficient between spiritual attitude and life satisfaction (R = 0.37) at the level of p < 0.001 and between spiritual ability and addiction (R = 0.34) at the level of p < 0.001 was direct and meaningful. The relationships between spiritual development and life satisfaction should be considered in university programs for the development of spirituality in the life of students in order to increase the life satisfaction.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Abdel-Khalek, A. M. (2010). Quality of life, subjective well-being, and religiosity in Muslim college students. Quality of Life Research,19(8), 1133–1143.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Aliakbarzadeh Arani, Z., Biderafsh, A., & Salmani, S. (2018a). The relationship of spirituality development and addiction potential among students of Qom University of Medical Sciences. Journal of Religion and Health. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-018-0643-x.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • AliAkbarzadeh Arani, Z., Haji Mohammad Hoseini, M., & Hamzeei, F. (2018b). The correlation between spiritual health and pleasure in students of Qom University of Medical Sciences (Iran). Health Spirituality and Medical Ethics,5(1), 15–19.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alleyne, M., Alleyne, P., & Greenidge, D. (2010). Life satisfaction and perceived stress among university students in Barbados. Journal of Psychology in Africa,20(2), 291–297.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Alorani, O. I., & Alradaydeh, M. T. F. (2017). Spiritual well-being, perceived social support, and life satisfaction among university students. International Journal of Adolescence and Youth,23(3), 291–298.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Anand, V., Jones, J., & Gill, P. S. (2015). The relationship between spirituality, health and life satisfaction of undergraduate students in the UK: An online questionnaire study. Journal of Religion and Health,54(1), 160–172.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Arabzadeh, M., Naiemi, G., & Pirsagh, F. (2017). Prediction of life satisfaction in students based on Islamic lifestyle and spiritual intelligence. Rooyesh-e-Ravanshenasi,6(1), 25–44.

    Google Scholar 

  • Assarroudi, A., Jalilvand, M. R., Oudi, D., & Akaberi, A. (2012). The relationship between spiritual well-being and life satisfaction in the nursing staff of Mashhad Hasheminezhad Hospital (2011). Modern Care Journal (Scientific Quarterly of Birjand Nursing & Midwifery Faculty),9(2), 156–162.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bao, X., Pan, W., Shi, M., & Ji, M. (2013). Life satisfaction and mental health in Chinese adults. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal,41(10), 1597–1604.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bdyvsfkhany, Z., & Akbari, H. (2015). The relationship between spiritual intelligence and life satisfaction. Scientific Journal of Education Research,9(38), 1–16.

    Google Scholar 

  • Chapman, B., & Guven, C. (2016). Revisiting the relationship between marriage and wellbeing: Does marriage quality matter? Journal of Happiness Studies,17(2), 533–551.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chaves, Ed C L, Iunes, D. H., Moura, Cd C, Carvalho, L. C., Silva, A. M., & Carvalho, E Cd. (2015). Anxiety and spirituality in university students: A cross-sectional study. Revista Brasileira de Enfermagem,68(3), 504–509.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Civitci, A. (2015). Perceived stress and life satisfaction in college students: Belonging and extracurricular participation as moderators. Procedia—Social and Behavioral Sciences,205, 271–281.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Deb, S., McGirr, K., & Sun, J. (2016). Spirituality in Indian University students and its associations with socioeconomic status, religious background, social support, and mental health. Journal of Religion and Health,55(5), 1623–1641.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment,49(1), 71–75.

    CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Fergusson, D., McLeod, G., Horwood, L., Swain, N., Chapple, S., & Poulton, R. (2015). Life satisfaction and mental health problems (18 to 35 years). Psychological Medicine,45(11), 2427–2436.

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gonçalves, J. P., Lucchetti, G., Menezes, P., & Vallada, H. (2015). Religious and spiritual interventions in mental health care: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled clinical trials. Psychological Medicine,45(14), 2937–2949.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Grover, S., & Helliwell, J. F. (2017). How’s life at home? New evidence on marriage and the set point for happiness. Journal of Happiness Studies. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10902-017-9941-3.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hazrati, M. Z. (2017). The degree of religiosity of female students and their effective social factors (case study of Islamic Azad University, Science and Research Branch of Tehran). Women’s Books,19(73), 125–151.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobsson, L., & Lexell, J. (2016). Life satisfaction after traumatic brain injury: Comparison of ratings with the life satisfaction questionnaire (LiSat-11) and the satisfaction with life scale (SWLS). Health and Quality of Life Outcomes,14(1), 10.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Jafari, E., Dehshiri, G. R., Eskandari, H., Najafi, M., Heshmati, R., & Hoseinifar, J. (2010). Spiritual well-being and mental health in university students. Procedia—Social and Behavioral Sciences,5, 1477–1481.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kress, V. E., Newgent, R. A., Whitlock, J., & Mease, L. (2015). Spirituality/religiosity, life satisfaction, and life meaning as protective factors for nonsuicidal self-injury in college students. Journal of College Counseling,18(2), 160–174.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Malmer, T., Hassanzadeh, R., & Heydar, J. (2016). Prediction of life satisfaction based on self-esteem and spiritual intelligence. Journal of Religion and Health,4(1), 29–35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Moreira-Almeida, A., Koenig, H. G., & Lucchetti, G. (2014). Clinical implications of spirituality to mental health: Review of evidence and practical guidelines. Revista Brasileira de Psiquiatria,36(2), 176–182.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Mozafarinia, F., Shokravi, F., & Hydarnia, A. (2014). Relationship between spiritual health and happiness among students. Iranian Journal of Health Education and Health Promotion,2(2), 97–108.

    Google Scholar 

  • Puchalski, C. M., Blatt, B., Kogan, M., & Butler, A. (2014). Spirituality and health: The development of a field. Academic Medicine,89(1), 10–16.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahimi, H. (2014). The relationship between religious attitudes and spiritual health with life satisfaction in nursing students of Kashan University of Medical Sciences introduction. Journal of Ethic and Culture in Nursing and Midwifery,1(2), 9–18.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rezapour, Y., Fathi, A., Sardari, M., & Shiralipour, A. (2010). Relationship between religiosity, socioeconomic status with life satisfaction: With mediating mental health components. Journal of Psychology,5(19), 69–89.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sangelaji, M. H., Rassouli, M., Farahani, A. S., Shakeri, N., & Ilkhani, M. (2016). Correlation between spiritual attitude and hope with quality of life in adolescents with chronic disease. Medical Ethics Journal,10(34), 143–163.

    Google Scholar 

  • Schnettler, B., Miranda-Zapata, E., Grunert, K. G., Lobos, G., Denegri, M., Hueche, C., et al. (2017). Life satisfaction of university students in relation to family and food in a developing country. Frontiers in Psychology,8, 1522.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Sharajabad, F. A., Mohammad-Alizadeh Charandabi, S., & Mirghafourvand, M. (2017). Life satisfaction and its relationship with spiritual well-being and religious practice in Iranian adolescent girls. International Journal of Adolescent Medicine and Health. https://doi.org/10.1515/ijamh-2017-0077.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sharifi, S., & Moeini, M. (2016). The effect of an Islamic spiritual program on life satisfaction of elderly patients with hypertension. Journal of Clinical Nursing and Midwifery,4(4), 93–103.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sheikhi, M., Hooman Heydar, A., Ahadi, H., & Seyyed, Mansour M. (2011). Psychometric characteristics of life satisfaction scale. Thought and Behavior (Applied Psychology),5(19), 15–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • Vahabi, B., Vahabi, A., Yousefi, F., Sayyadi, M., & Roshani, D. (2018). Relationship between spiritual health and happiness in the students of Kurdistan University of Medical Sciences and its related factors. Shenakht Journal of Psychology and Psychiatry,5(2), 93–103.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yadav, R., & Khanna, A. (2014). Impact of spirituality on stress: With the special reference of engineering students of Indian Institute of Technology. Research on Humanities and Social Sciences,4(25), 29–35.

    Google Scholar 

  • Zarghami, M., Khademloo, M., Sheikhmoonesi, F., & Behroozi, B. (2012). Quality of life enjoyment & satisfaction in medical students and natural resources students. Journal of Mazandaran University of Medical Sciences,22(89), 8–42.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

This article is part of a research project with Ethics Code RI.MUQ.REC.1395.14 from the Ethics Committee of Qom University of Medical Sciences, Iran. The authors would like to thank Deputy of Research in Qom University of Medical Sciences, the dear students and all the participants in this study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Zahra Aliakbarzadeh Arani.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Salmani, S., Biderafsh, A. & Aliakbarzadeh Arani, Z. The Relationship Between Spiritual Development and Life Satisfaction Among Students of Qom University of Medical Sciences. J Relig Health 59, 1889–1896 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-018-00749-8

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-018-00749-8

Keywords

Navigation