Conceptualizing Spirituality and Religion for Mental Health Practice: Perspectives of Consumers with Serious Mental Illness

Abstract

Studies show that a high percentage of people with serious mental illness (SMI) draw upon spirituality and religion, resulting in a call for practitioners to incorporate these as part of recovery-related services. A challenge is that there are differing definitions of spirituality and religion presented in the literature which could lead to confusion in practice settings. A qualitative study was conducted with 18 participants with SMI. Findings reveal that there are important nuances, and much overlap, related to how people with psychiatric disabilities define and conceptualize spirituality and religion. Three major conceptualizations of spirituality and religion are presented. Insights from this study are relevant to practitioners interested in incorporating spirituality as part of recovery-oriented practice.