Impact of Spirituality in Mental Health

Background

In the past decade or so, researchers across a range of disciplines have started to explore and

acknowledge the positive contribution spirituality can make to mental health. Service users and

survivors have also identified the ways in which spiritual activity can contribute to mental health and

wellbeing, mental illness and recovery. This report reviews the evidence and explores the impact that

some expressions of spirituality can have as part of an integrative approach to understanding mental

health and wellbeing.

Mental health problems

Anecdotal, quantitative and qualitative evidence all point to a positive (although often modest)

relationship between spirituality and mental health in relation to a number of mental health problems.

Depression is the most common mental health problem in the UK and has been the focus of much of

the research exploring the relationship between spirituality and mental health. The evidence shows

a positive association between church attendance and lower levels of depression amongst adults,

children and young people. It also shows that belief in a transcendent being is associated with reduced

depressive symptoms.

Similar research has examined the relationship between spirituality and anxiety or stress. Quantitative

research demonstrates reduced levels of anxiety in a number of populations, including medical

patients in later life, women with breast cancer, middle aged people with cardiac problems and those

recovering from spinal surgery. Qualitative research also demonstrates that yoga and meditation are

also associated with improvements in mental health and reductions in anxiety.

There is an emerging literature examining the association between spirituality and post-traumatic stress

disorder (PTSD). One review found 11 studies that reported links between religion, spirituality, and

trauma-based mental health problems. A review of these 11 studies produced three main findings. First,...