Pre- and Post-Pandemic Religiosity and Mental Health Outcomes: A Prospective Study.

Relatively few studies have prospectively examined the effects of known protective factors, such as religion, on pandemic-related outcomes. The aim of this study was to evaluate the pre- and post-pandemic trajectories and psychological effects of religious beliefs and religious attendance. Male and female adults (N = 189) reported their beliefs in religious importance (RI) and their religious attendance (RA) both before (T1) and after (T2) the pandemic's onset. Descriptive and regression analyses were used to track RI and RA from T1 to T2 and to test their effects on psychological outcomes at T1 and T2. The participants who reported a decrease in religious importance and attendance were greater in number than those who reported an increase, with RI (36.5% vs. 5.3%) and RA (34.4% vs. 4.8%). The individuals with decreased RI were less likely to know someone who had died from COVID-19 (O.R. =0.4, p = 0.027). The T1 RI predicted overall social adjustment (p < 0.05) and lower suicidal ideation (p = 0.05). The T2 RI was associated with lower suicidal ideation (p < 0.05). The online RA (T2) was associated with lower depression (p < 0.05) and lower anxiety (p < 0.05). Further research is needed to evaluate the mechanisms driving decreases in religiosity during pandemics. Religious beliefs and online religious attendance were beneficial during the pandemic, which bodes well for the use of telemedicine in therapeutic approaches.

Association between religion, mental health and social distancing during the Covid-19 pandemic / Associação entre religião, saúde mental e distanciamento social na pandemia de Covid-19 / Asociación entre religión, salud mental y distanciamiento social en la pandemia Covid-19

This cross-sectional study aimed to analyze the association of religiosity with behaviors and perceptions in the context of social distancing measures during the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as mental health outcomes, in a university community in Central-West Brazil. A sample of 1,796 subjects responded to an online form with socio-demographic questions and the DASS-21 and PWBS scales. Religion was associated with the frequency of interactions, perceptions of the duration of the social distancing measures, changes in emotional state and history of psychological illness. The prevalence of symptoms of depression, anxiety and stress was lower among people with religion and their scores in psychological well-being were higher. (AU)

Trata-se de um estudo transversal com o objetivo de analisar a associação entre religiosidade e comportamentos e percepções frente ao distanciamento social decorrente da pandemia de Covid-19 e estado de saúde mental em uma comunidade universitária do Centro-Oeste brasileiro. Participaram do estudo 1796 sujeitos, os quais responderam a um formulário online com questões sociodemográficas e às escalas DASS-21 e EBEP. Observou-se associação entre religião e frequência de interações, percepção sobre a duração do distanciamento social e mudanças no estado emocional e histórico de alterações psicológicas. Constatou-se menor prevalência de sintomas relacionados à depressão, à ansiedade e ao estresse e maiores escores de bem-estar psicológico entre aqueles com religião. (AU)

Se trata de un estudio transversal con el objetivo de analizar la asociación entre religiosidad, comportamientos y percepciones frente al distanciamiento social resultante de la pandemia Covid-19 y el estado de salud mental en una comunidad universitaria de la región Centro-Oeste de Brasil. Participaron en el estudio 1796 sujetos, que respondieron un formulario en línea con preguntas sociodemográficas y las escalas DASS-21 y EBEP. Se observó asociación entre religión y frecuencia de interacciones, la percepción de la duración del aislamiento social y los cambios en el estado emocional y el historial de cambios psicológicos. Se observó una menor prevalencia de síntomas relacionados con la depresión, la ansiedad y el estrés, y puntuaciones más altas de bienestar psicológico entre quienes profesaban una religión. (AU)

Religiosity, Mental Health and Substance Use among Black and Hispanic Adults during the First Six Months of the COVID-19 Pandemic in New York City.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the association between personal religiosity, mental health, and substance use outcomes among Black and Hispanic adults during the first six months of the COVID-19 outbreak in New York City (NYC). Phone interviews were conducted with 441 adults to obtain information on all variables. Participants self-reported race/ethnicity as Black/African American (n = 108) or Hispanic (n = 333). Logistic regression were used to examine associations between religiosity, mental health, and substance use. There was a significant inverse association of religiosity and substance use. Religious people had a lower prevalence of drinking alcohol (49.0%) compared to non-religious people (67.1%). Religious people also had substantially lower prevalence of cannabis or other drug use (9.1%) in comparison to non-religious people (31%). After adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity, and household income, the association of religiosity with alcohol use and with cannabis/other drug use remained statistically significant. Despite restricted access to in-person religious activities and congregational supports, the findings suggest that religiosity itself may be helpful from a public health perspective, independent of serving as a conduit for other social services.

Should Cash Subsidy Be Offered to Family Caregivers for the Elderly? The Case of Hong Kong.

Hong Kong's Covid-19 epidemic circumstances have given us a valuable opportunity to reflect on Hong Kong's elderly care policies. This essay argues that Hong Kong should learn from the West and provide a subsidy to family caregivers for proper elderly care. We rebut the social and moralistic reasons for not introducing such a subsidy in Hong Kong. We indicate that providing cash subsidy to family caregivers does not monetize or tarnish Confucian filial obligation to take care of elderly people, but enable adult children from low-income families to undertake this obligation effectively. In addition, we contend that providing such a subsidy would not significantly affect the job market in Hong Kong and that incurred financial and manpower costs for monitoring family care are controllable.

Older Black Americans During COVID-19: Race and Age Double Jeopardy.

The concept of "double jeopardy"-being both older and Black-describes how racism and ageism together shape higher risks for coronavirus exposure, COVID-19 disease, and poor health outcomes for older Black adults. Black people and older adults are the two groups most affected by COVID-19 morbidity and mortality. Double jeopardy, as a race- and age-informed analysis, demonstrates how Black race and older age are associated with practices and policies that shape key life circumstances (e.g., racial residential segregation, family and household composition) and resources in ways that embody elevated risk for COVID-19. The concept of double jeopardy underscores long-standing race- and age-based inequities and social vulnerabilities that produce devastating COVID-19 related deaths and injuries for older Black adults. Developing policies and actions that address race- and age-based inequities and social vulnerabilities can lower risks and enhance protective factors to ensure the health of older Black Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Turning toward or away from God: COVID-19 and changes in religious devotion.

Major stressors can influence religiosity, making some people more religious, while making others less religious. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, we conducted a mixed-method study with a nationally representative sample of religiously affiliated American adults (N = 685) to assess group differences between those who decreased, stayed the same, or increased in their religious devotion. In quantitative analyses we evaluated differences on sociodemographic variables, religious behaviors, individual differences, prosocial emotions, well-being, and COVID-19 attitudes and behaviors. Of most note, those who changed (i.e., increased or decreased) in religious devotion were more likely than those with no change in devotion to experience high levels of stress and threat related to COVID-19, but only those who increased in religious devotion had the highest dispositional prosocial emotions (i.e., gratitude and awe). Further, those who changed in religious devotion were more likely to report searching for meaning than those with no change, but only those who increased were more likely to report actual presence of meaning. Qualitative analyses revealed that those who increased in religious devotion reported increasing personal worship, the need for a higher power, and uncertainty in life as reasons for their increase in religious devotion; those who decreased reported being unable to communally worship, a lack of commitment or priority, and challenges making it hard to believe in God as reasons for their decrease in religious devotion. The findings help identify how COVID-19 has affected religious devotion, and how religion might be used as a coping mechanism during a major life stressor.

We are (not) Different from the Others: Religious Responses to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Slovakia and India.

Although the narrative of modernity has been rejected by numerous scientists, it remains a powerful paradigm. Several Western countries have, during the COVID-19 pandemic, witnessed renewed interest in some archaic practices and beliefs. Based mostly on media analysis, this paper provides an insight into religious responses to the COVID-19 pandemic in Slovakia and India, two completely different cultural areas. Simultaneously, it challenges the self-identification of the West as the epicentre of rational thought, in contrast to the so-called non-Western world. The self-image of superiority adopted by the modern West in terms of religious relevance has proved to be distorted, as the tendency to turn to spiritual practices in times of crisis is not exclusively a feature of non-Western societies.

Modeling nationalism, religiosity, and threat perception: During the COVID-19 pandemic.

The rise of nationalism and populism in Europe has created significant political and policy challenges. Understanding and addressing these challenges will require attention to the psychological mechanisms and social dynamics that have engendered and promoted these societal shifts. This article presents the results of two new empirical studies that attempt to shed light on the relationships between nationalism, religiosity, national and religious identification, threat perception, and sentiment toward different groups. Informed by identity fusion theory and moral foundations theory, Study 1 collected and analysed survey data on these topics. Study 2 utilized the results of Study 1 to construct a system dynamics model in which causal propositions and links are added to the variables, creating an artificial society within which hypotheses about these dynamics can be tested. Both the survey and the simulation suggest that nationalism and religion are affected by the same variables. As such, religion might not be a cause of nationalism (or nationalism the cause of religion), but they could be correlated because of mutual causation.

Religion and sexual identities.

Religion and sexuality have a complex, deep-rooted relationship. Religions often teach how aspects of sexuality should be conducted, typically promoting heterosexuality. Such discourse is at odds with a growing population using sexual minority identities. The tension between one's homonegative faith or religious environment and their sexual minority orientation can lead to poor health outcomes like psychological distress and suicidal ideation. Attempts to change sexual orientation to match religious expectations are futile and frequently harmful. However, sexual minority individuals can find health benefits if they are able to reconcile their religious and sexual identities or find accepting religious/spiritual communities. The COVID-19 pandemic and religious influence on US politics have also shaped the safety of environments for disclosing a sexual minority identity.

Pediatrics, Students, Allied Health and COVID-19.

This second issue of JORH for 2023 considers research relating to (1) pediatrics, (2) students, (3) various allied health professions and their related practices, and lastly, (4) COVID-19. An additional reminder is also provided to readers on the call for papers regarding a future issue on "Religion, Spirituality, Suicide, and its Prevention", as well as a new call for papers with respect to "Spiritual Care for People with Parkinson's Disease and their Caregivers".

Spillover of Vaccine Hesitancy into Adult COVID-19 and Influenza: The Role of Race, Religion, and Political Affiliation in the United States.

BACKGROUND: Due to its potential to lead to vaccine delays and refusals, vaccine hesitancy has attracted increased attention throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. It is crucial to investigate whether demographic patterns differ between adult general vaccine hesitancy and COVID-19 and flu vaccine non-receipt. METHODS: A cross-sectional survey was conducted online in August 2022. In response to questions about vaccine hesitancy, participants indicated whether they would receive the vaccine given various safety and efficacy profiles. Through logistic regression models, we examined variations between general vaccine hesitancy and COVID-19 non-vaccination. RESULTS: Among the 700 participants, 49% of the respondents were classified as having general vaccine hesitancy, 17% had not received the COVID-19 vaccine, and 36% had not had flu vaccinations. In the multivariable analysis, general vaccine hesitancy and the non-receipt of COVID-19 vaccines were significantly higher in Non-Hispanic Black participants, those with no religious affiliation, and Republicans and Independents. CONCLUSIONS: Patterns of vaccine hesitancy and the non-receipt of the COVID-19 vaccination did not vary, indicating a substantial overlap and potential spillover in vaccine hesitancy over the course of the pandemic. Because changing people's opinions regarding vaccinations is generally a challenge, different interventions specific to demographic subgroups may be necessary.

The Role of Religions in the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Narrative Review.

Culture, religion and health are closely intertwined, profoundly affecting people's attitudes and behaviors as well as their conception and experience of illness and disease. In order to analyze the impact of religion in the current COVID-19 pandemic, we performed a literature review investigating both the scientific and grey literature on the topic. COVID-19 outbreaks reported in pilgrimages and religious ceremonies around the world-especially in the first wave of the pandemic wave-and the role played by religion in conveying culturally sensitive information about COVID-19 are some of the evidence we reviewed. Our research highlights how religions have represented, on the one hand, a risk for the spread of the virus and, on the other, a precious opportunity to engage people, and in particular minorities, in fighting the pandemic. To overcome this pandemic and to be prepared for similar ones in the future, scientists, politicians and health professionals should acknowledge the role that culture and religion play in people's lives and how it can assist in tackling complex health challenges.

A Time to Get Vaccinated? The Role of Time Perspective, Consideration of Future Consequences, Conspiracy Beliefs, Religious Faith, Gender, and Race on Intention to Vaccinate for COVID-19 in the United States.

The present study examined the predictability of Time Perspective (TP) tendencies (i.e., Past Positive, Past Negative, Present Hedonistic, Present Fatalistic, and Future), the Balanced Time Perspective (BTP) profile, the Consideration of Future Consequences-Immediate (CFC-I) factor, the Consideration of Future Consequences-Future (CFC-F) factor, conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 being a hoax, religious faith, gender, and race on COVID-19 vaccination intention as a dependent variable. Participants were recruited in the United States through the online platforms Prolific and Google Forms. The final sample was n = 232 (n = 99 male, n = 129 female, and n = 2 other, Mage = 31). Outcome measures included sociodemographic questions, the Zimbardo Time Perspective Inventory-short version, the Consideration of Future Consequences (CFC) ultra-short scale, the COVID-19 Conspiracy Beliefs questionnaire, and the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire-brief version. Regression analyses revealed that vaccination intention was reduced by gender identification as woman, identification as multiracial or from mixed origin, Past Positive, Deviation from a BTP profile, belief in COVID-19 as hoax, and religious faith. Conversely, intention to vaccinate against COVID-19 was increased by Past Negative, CFC-I, and CFC-F. These findings could be beneficial for knowledge transfer to behavioral interventions aimed to promote vaccination against COVID-19, health promotion campaigns, and the public health field.

Religiosity, Theism, Perceived Social Support, Resilience, and Well-Being of University Undergraduate Students in Singapore during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

The COVID-19 pandemic infection control measures severely impacted mental well-being, allowing insight into possible protective parameters. With religion playing a role during challenging times, this study investigated theism and religiosity on the mental well-being of university students during the COVID19 pandemic and how social support and resilience can mediate this effect. One hundred eighty-five university students between 17 and 42 years old responded to online surveys on their theism, religious affiliations, religiosity, well-being, perceived support, and resilience. Pearson's correlations and single and sequential mediation analyses showed that theism did not significantly predict well-being (r = 0.049), but religiosity mediated the relationship (r = 0.432, effect size = 0.187). Sequential mediation analysis showed that resilience did not mediate the relationship between religiosity and well-being, but perceived social support significantly positively mediated religiosity and well-being with an effect size of 0.079. The findings reveal that factors, such as religiosity and social support could thus aid in the mental well-being of future challenging times such as the pandemic.

Chaplaincy, Judaism, Ukraine, COVID-19 and JORH Jubilee.

This first issue of JORH for 2023 considers (1) the ministry of chaplains, (2) Judaism, (3) the people of war-torn Ukraine, (4) the ongoing saga of COVID-19 and, on a happier note, (5) we celebrate a belated jubilee by presenting a bibliometric analysis of the Journal of Religion and Health (1961-2021). To conclude this issue, a book review is presented, "The Desperate Hours" by award winning journalist Marie Brenner, focusing on one hospital's fight to save New York City during COVID-19. A reminder is also provided to readers on the call for papers regarding a future issue on religion, spirituality, suicide and its prevention.

In COVID We Trust: The Impact of The Pandemic on Religiousness-Evidence from Italian Regions.

By changing many aspects of everyday life, the COVID-19 pandemic and the social distance policies implemented to face it have affected the behaviour of people all over the world. Has the pandemic also affected people's approach towards the divine? Previous evidence suggests that prayer searches on the Internet rose during the pandemic and that people tend to rely mainly on intrinsic rather than extrinsic religiousness to cope with adversity. In the present contribution, using a set of panel random effect estimators, we compare the change in religious attendance in Italian regions before and during the pandemic. Our results suggest that there has been an increase in religiousness during the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings are robust to several specifications of the model and to different estimators. This suggests that people derive more comfort from religious activities during hard times that are characterized by uncertainty.

Turning to Religion During COVID-19 (Part II): A Systematic Review, Meta-analysis and Meta-regression of Studies on the Relationship between Religious Coping and Mental Health throughout COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the many associated socio-economic changes constitute a stressful event that required adaptation to new, dynamic, and often threatening conditions. According to the literature, coping strategies are one of the factors that determine a person's degree of adaptation to stressful situations. A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed on the relationship between religious coping and selected indicators of mental health. Due to the large amount of data, this work has been divided into two parts: Part I discussed the positive mental health indicators (Pankowski & Wytrychiewicz-Pankowska, 2023), while this Part II discusses negative mental health indicators. A systematic review of the databases of Science Direct, EBSCO, Cochrane, PubMed, and Google Scholar identified 33 articles related to the severity of depressive symptoms: 30 to anxiety, 23 to stress, 1 related to PTSD symptoms and peritraumatic stress, and 5 related to general negative mental health. The limitations of the research as well as further directions for exploration are discussed.Clinical trial registration This Review was pre-registered at OSF: osf.io/54ygr ( https://doi.org/10.17605/OSF.IO/GMNFV ).

Turning to Religion During COVID-19 (Part I): A Systematic Review, Meta-analysis and Meta-regression of Studies on the Relationship Between Religious Coping and Mental Health Throughout COVID-19.

The COVID-19 pandemic and the many associated socio-economic changes constitute a stressful event that required adaptation to new, dynamic, and often threatening conditions. According to the literature, coping strategies are one of the factors that determine a person's degree of adaptation to stressful situations. A systematic review and meta-analysis was performed on the relationship between religious coping and selected indicators of mental health. Due to the large amount of data, this work has been divided into two parts: this first part discusses positive mental health indicators, while the second discusses negative mental health indicators (Pankowski & Wytrychiewicz-Pankowska, 2023). A systematic review of PubMed, Science Direct, the Cochrane Library, Google Scholar, the Database of Abstracts of Reviews of Effects, and Google Scholar databases was carried out. In addition to the synthesis of information obtained from the research, a meta-analysis of correlation was also performed to determine the strengths of the relationships between the analysed variables, and selected moderators were assessed using meta-regression. Quality of life, well-being, satisfaction with life, happiness, and post-traumatic growth were the positive mental health indicators considered. Meta-analyses indicated a statistically significant relationship between positive religious coping and flourishing (well-being) with overall correlation values of 0.35 [0.30; 0.40]. Further calculations also indicated a relationship between negative religious coping and flourishing - 0.25 [- 0.34; - 0.15]. Data synthesis shows associations between religious coping and such indicators as satisfaction with life and post-traumatic growth, but these issues require further investigation.

Religious Beliefs, Trust In Public Figures, And Adherence to COVID-19 Health Guidelines among American Orthodox and Non-Orthodox Jews.

The COVID-19 pandemic and resultant health crisis highlighted the lack of scholarly understanding of the effects of sociocultural factors and religious beliefs on compliance with public health guidelines. Orthodox Jews in particular were suspected of mistrusting medical experts and were singled out for alleged non-compliance with COVID-19 health guidelines. We surveyed American Jews (N = 1,141) during the early stages of the pandemic about their religious beliefs connected with the pandemic, trust in relevant public figures, and compliance with health guidelines to examine whether and how these factors are related. Generally, participants expressed high levels of trust in scientists, medical professionals, and religious leaders and a high degree of adherence to health guidelines. We examined how trust varies as a function of sociodemographic features, religious affiliation, and health-related religious beliefs (i.e., spiritual health locus of control). Overall, our research underscores the relevance of religious beliefs and trust in public figures to adherence to health guidelines and public health messaging.