Well-Being and Spirituality: Understanding the Relationship

Abstract

Well-being and spirituality have been examined for quite some time throughout history. The study presented examined the relationship between level of spirituality and well-being (Lun et al., 2013). There were 49,943 participants in the study. Participants answered eight surveys related to the study. Results found that spirituality and well-being are positively linked. It showed that a higher level of spirituality yields a higher level of well-being. The results will help us offer new suggestions and alternatives to those who are lacking in well-being.

Method

Participants

The study examined participants from all around the globe. The total number of participants was 49,943 from 42 different countries. Age range of the pool of participants varied from 15 up to 98 years of age. The average participant age was around 42 years of age. Classified by gender, the study consisted of 47.9% males and 52.1% females.

Measures

There were eight surveys that each participant filled out related to the study. All surveys were worded in a way that was straightforward and accommodating to participants from all societal backgrounds. Overall satisfaction of life was the first one. A 10-point scale was used where 1 signified that the participant was completely dissatisfied with his/her life while 10 signified being completely satisfied.

The second survey asked about the participants’ happiness. A 4-point scale was used where 1 signified not at all happy and 4 signified very happy. The researchers asked that the participants take everything into consideration when thinking about how happy they feel.

The third survey asked about the participants’ belief in religious authorities. A set of four questions was presented and the participant was instructed to simply respond “yes” or “no” to each question. The questions asked whether or not the participant believed that religious authorities in his/her country are addressing the needs of the individual and the society.

The fourth survey asked about the importance of God (or gods) in the participants’ lives. This was a straightforward question which used a 10-point scale in ranking the importance. A score of 1 indicated that God was not at all important in the participant’s life while a score of 10 indicated that God was very important.

The fifth survey measured the importance of religion to the participant. The participant was presented with a list of six things in life – one of which included religion. The other items presented might have been things such as school, family, work, money, or shopping. Beside each item, the participant was to indicate how important each item was in his/her life. A 4-point scale was used. A score of 1 indicated that it was very important while 4 indicated not at all important.

The sixth survey asked whether or not the participants participated in spiritualistic practices such as praying. The participant was to indicate either “yes” or “no” to indicate whether or not he/she took time each day to pray or meditate.

The seventh survey involved social religious involvement. It aimed to find out whether the participant participates in socially involved religious activities such as going to church. Attending weddings or funerals was stated as an exclusion to the survey and participants were instructed to not respond if they only attended weddings or funerals. A 7-point scale was used to assess this. Using a score of 1, the participant indicates that he/she attends services more than once a week, 2 means once a week, 3 means once a month, 4 means only on certain special holy days, 5 means once a year, 6 means less than once a year, and a score of 7 means never/practically never. Any response that was less than once a month would classify the participant as an infrequent goer of social religious activities while any response more often than that would make the participant a frequent goer.

Finally, the eighth survey asked about religious membership. This was to find out whether or not a participant was a member of a church or other religious organization. A 3-ponit scale was used. 1 indicated not belonging, 2 meant belonging but not active, and 3 meant belonging and active. Members that stated they are active in membership were grouped and classified as strongly identifying with religion.

Procedures

The participants were briefed on the study and subsequently gave their informed consent to participate. They then answered the eight surveys related to the study. In the end, they were debriefed by the researchers.

Data Analyses

The study examined a relational hypothesis between level of spirituality and well-being. The hypothesis was tested using the Hierarchical Linear Modeling Analysis (HLM). Each of the eight surveys from the study was categorized and all used the HLM.

Results

The study examined the researchers’ hypothesis which stated that the higher level of spirituality for a participant would yield a high well-being for the participant. The alpha was 0.01. The study showed that the link between spirituality and well-being varies from culture to culture. Overall, it proved that the researchers were correct in their hypothesis. However, in countries where religious activities were not very common, the study showed that well-being decreased with spirituality.

Discussion

The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between spirituality and well-being. The study showed that the link between spirituality and well-being varies from culture to culture. Overall, it proved that the researchers were correct in their hypothesis. However, in countries where religious activities were not very common, the study showed that well-being decreased with spirituality.

The limitation of the study was that religious concepts vary from culture to culture. Even though it presented the questions in a straightforward way, participants may have not understood the true intent of the questions. Also, some participants failed to respond to certain questions. Therefore, an accurate correlation could not be obtained for those participants and had to be excluded from the results.

A few other studies have been conducted which all examined the same ideas and aimed at obtaining results geared toward a correlation between spirituality and well-being. The study which examined well-being and spirituality when linked to people with chronic illnesses also yielded a positive correlation between the two (Dezutter et al., 2013).

The results of the study are helpful in that we are able to understand individuals better. We can offer new suggestions and alternatives to people who struggle with well-being and sense of self.