Implicit/Explicit Beliefs About God, Uncertainty, and Anxiety.

Abstract

Intolerance of uncertainty (IU) refers to the incapacity to cope with a perceived lack of information sustained by negative perceptions about uncertainty and its implications. Previous research regarding the role of religion and spirituality (R/S) in coping with uncertainty is unclear. The current research assessed if implicit and explicit beliefs about God are related to these discrepancies. Participants completed an explicit task, an implicit association task, the Intolerance of Uncertainty Scale, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Results indicated that explicit and implicit beliefs independently correlated with IU and anxiety. Regression analyses suggested that these correlations were primarily due to the relationship between negative beliefs of God and IU and that IU partially mediated the relationship between R/S and anxiety. The current findings add to the growing literature on IU and suggest the need to address R/S as a possible correlate of IU.