At least since M ARX and F REUD , there has existed a conceptualization of religious belief as pathological. 1 According to this view, religious beliefs result from, and are indicative of, some kind of intellectual flaw or deficiency (P LANTINGA 2000). We might say that religious beliefs are here construed as reflecting doxastic dysfunction (from the Greek word “doxa”, meaning “opinion” or “bel...

Public representations of God range from the highly anthropomorphic to the highly abstract, and the present study explored whether differences in the interpretation of those representations are correlated with differences in one’s religious beliefs and religious practices more generally. American adults of varying ages and religious backgrounds completed a questionnaire that probed their belief...

Previous research has indicated that memories can be modified in conjunction with one’s attitudes, in particular, political beliefs. The current study extended this finding by focusing on the relationship between differing religious beliefs and false memories for news events. We predicted that religious people would be more inclined to remember fabricated news events positively depicting religi...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Emotional distress is common in the aftermath of stroke and can impact negatively on the outcome. The study was aimed at evaluating whether religious beliefs can protect from emotional distress. METHODS Data were collected from 132 consecutive inpatients who were hospitalized for stroke rehabilitation and met the research requirements. At admission all study participant...

Approximately 50% of patients do not adhere to medical therapy. Religious and spiritual factors may play an important role in determining medication compliance in mental illness. The aim of this paper is to review published evidence documenting a relationship between religion/spirituality (R/S) and treatment adherence in mental illness, in particular in schizophrenia, depression and substance a...

Using ethnographic techniques, I studied the religious and spiritual aspects of health care at the N.R.I. Academy of the Sciences in Chinakakani, Andhra Pradesh, India, to gain perspectives on how culture influences people’s beliefs about health. It became apparent that “cultural customs” accounted for people’s similar beliefs concerning recovery from disease and injury, irrespective of their d...

OBJECTIVE Spiritual beliefs can help people find meaning of life, and can also influence their feelings, behaviors and mental health. The present research studied the relationship between basic religious beliefs (Human, Existence and God) and five personality factors: neuroticism, extraversion, openness, agreeableness, conscientiousness. METHOD One hundred seventy eight students of Islamic Az...

BACKGROUND Religiosity in health care delivery has attracted some attention in contemporary literature. The religious beliefs and practices of patients play an important role in the recovery of the patient. Pregnant women and women in labour exhibit their faith and use religious artefacts. This phenomenon is poorly understood in Ghana. The study sought to investigate the religious beliefs and p...

If religious beliefs matter, how should we expect those beliefs to affect the behavior of religious terrorists? The religious motivation for terrorism often is assumed to be pursuit of bene ts in the afterlife. Though Berman (2009) and others do not nd much empirical support for theology as an motivator for terrorism, few economic models of terrorism attempt to incorporate religious beliefs. We...

BACKGROUND Holistic practice involves caring for the physical, psychological, social and spiritual needs of patients. Spiritual assessment is an important part of the patient's overall assessment. Religion is a component of spirituality and is supported by a recognisable formal system of beliefs. Religious beliefs might help patients in their search for meaning in life, especially in difficult ...