Attributional Style Analysis

High-quality social relationships, wherein people experience camaraderie and happiness, yield substantial health benefits. For instance, social ties such as marriage and religious involvement have been linked to healthier choices with diet and exercise, possibly because these connections promote positive behavioral norms (Umberson and Montez, 2010). High-quality social relationships also promote mental health by offering individuals a sense of place within a meaningful environment. When people feel connected and supported, they tend to experience a greater sense of control, a psychological state shown to be both associated and causally linked to good health (Lachman and Weaver, 1998). Positive psychological effects of social relationships improve physical health by making it easier for the body to maintain chemical homeostasis over long periods of time by alleviating its “allostatic load” (Umberson and Montez, 2010). Ultimately, these components of high-quality social relationships make people less likely to get sick and die.

Published By: Journal of Religion and Health (international publication about the relationship between religion and physical health)

Moreover, researchers have correlated religion with increased life expectancy, longevity, and lower mortality rates (Chiswick & Mirtcheva, 2013; George et al., 2000; Lee & Newberg, 2005; Marks, 2005). Evidently, religion and spirituality produce positive biological health outcomes.

incorporate religion in contrast to the baseline standard thought of health as a biomedical or

This study evaluated the interaction effect of organized religiosity, non-organized religiosity, and intrinsic religiosity on general mental health and depression. In a random stratified sample of 1000 participants from Alabama counties those who scored high in all three dimensions of religiosity reported fewer depression symptoms and better mental health.

The Christian faith views death and disease as byproducts of sin and are a part of life due to sinful human nature. Jesus was a healer of people and the followers have followed in His footsteps. The early health care system was started by nuns and other followers in the church (Preston, 2000). By following the teachings of their religion they sought to address health and suffering by taking a holistic approach to healing. By taking into consideration the mental and spiritual, along side the physical, they believe a deeper level of healing can be given. Health is not just addressing the physical symptoms but, helping achieve a peaceful state of mind and having meaningful relationships with those

In this paper the author will explain what is faith and religion, and compare the philosophy of Sikh, Buddhism, and Jewish religions with that Christian and the author’s religion, include spiritual perspective and elements of healing, how necessary is to permit patient to practice their religious beliefs and rituals, and last, describe how this information could be incorporated into the daily health care professionals routine.

* Social support from families, friends and community can help people solve problems and deal with adversity

In my opinion, it may be difficult to define health because it may vary from one person to another depending on one’s perception about health. The World Health Organization (WHO) defines health as a state of complete physical, mental and social wellbeing and not just the absence of disease (Saylor, 2004). However, I feel that the WHO definition of health misses a very important aspect of health which is spirituality. According to Anye et al. (2013), spirituality is associated “with a more positive outlook and better quality of life”. In fact, they found that in patients with advanced stages of cancer, religious belief was associated with higher life satisfaction and patients who engaged in religious activity reported higher levels of happiness and had positive outcomes (Anye et al. 2013). In addition, studies have shown that mental health patients who have consistently identified spiritual needs as an important issue to them had symptoms of relief and general well-being (Chidarikire, 2012).

The United States (U.S.) has always been the melting pot of the world, resulting in a diverse spiritual community. Christianity is still the predominant religion, but a recent survey by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life details the shifts taking place in the U.S. According to the study, 28 percent of American adults have left the faith of their upbringing for another religion, or no religion at all. The number of people that claim no affiliation with any particular faith is rising, and the number of people practicing non-Christian religions is increasing (Pew Forum 2010).

Social support was taken as the perception and actuality that one is cared for, has assistance available from other people (spouse, relatives and friends) and that one is part of a supportive social network (Odongo et al, 2015). To demonstrate, my grandmother was able to have a lot of support from the family in which this allowed her to detect the cancer earlier due to the awareness of breast cancer in our family history. Breast cancer runs in my family, in every generation, and the remission of my grandmother’s cancer has led everyone to help out and understand the toll that the cancer was taking on her body. This allowed the family to learn more and support her in what decision she has made in taking the steps of recovery. Several studies have also described how the patient’s concealment of symptoms may influence, delay of medical help-seeking, while discussing them with friends and family can facilitate the decision to seek medical advice (Odongo et al, 2015).

Referring to a news article I read, researchers at the University of North Carolina found that the quantity and quality of one’s social relationships affect certain health measures at different points in their lives, for example, “adolescents who are socially isolated face the same risk for developing inflammation as those who don’t exercise” and “Older adults are more at risk for developing hypertension from social isolation than from diabetes” (Izadi, 2016, pg1). In the same article it explains four surveys that were performed on more than 14,000 participants at different stages of their lives to capture the essential qualities of their social lives followed by their physical well-being. They found that social relationships can not only prevent some of the effects caused by stress but they can also help with coping. According to the universal class website, studies have shown that “the more social relationships someone has, the greater the person's ability to fight the common cold” and “those with a strong social network have been shown twice as likely to survive after a heart attack than those lacking strong relationships” (The Benefits of Social Relationships, 2018). They found that being more socially connected is protective when it comes to our health, whereas being less socially connected is associated with risk factors when it comes to our health.

While women, tend to have higher levels of education, report higher levels of prior hospitalization or mental illness, and have more social support. In regards to the first hypothesis stated, it was partially correct except for the portion assuming men would receive more instrumental support than women. The data showed that women received more support in all three fields than men. In regards to the mediating model of depression, the results indicated that life events have a positive effect on depression, while social support and mastery illustrate direct negative effects on depressive symptoms. However, it is important to note that for females, social support does not mediate the effects of life evens on depression. Overall, social support was supported by the data to be a more important mediating factor for depression in men than women; it is noted that, “Although women have more social support, this support fails to mediate the effect of life stressors on depressive symptomatology” (Lagory et al.,

Am actual account of religious beliefs and shunning of medical treatment was first recorded in 2009 with a Northeast Philadelphia family. The family whose religion shunned traditional medicine allowed an infant son to pass away at a nearby hospital. In 2009 according to an article published in the Newsworks Philadelphia Newspaper written by

A 10-year study from the Journal of Family Practice, “found that 83% of the studies done on spirituality found a positive effect on physical health, 92% showed mental health benefits, 4% showed neither a positive nor negative effect and 4% showed harm” ("Spirituality and prayer," 2012), and in these studies spirituality was measured by participation in a religious ceremony, social support, prayer and belief in a higher power. Research among women diagnosed with breast cancer show that “prayer was associated with improved psychological well-being” ("Spirituality and prayer," 2012) and that high religiosity was linked to much lower levels of depression.