Intrinsic and Extrinsic Religiosity, Spiritual Well-Being, and Attitudes Toward Spiritual Care: A Comparison of Israeli Jewish Oncology Nurses' Scores

Abstract

To examine the differences among secular, traditional, and religious Israeli oncology nurses' intrinsic religiosity, extrinsic religiosity, spiritual well-being, and attitudes toward spiritual care. A comparative, descriptive study. 148 Israeli Jewish nurses drawn from the membership of the Israeli Oncology Nursing Association. Nurses completed mailed questionnaires. The four scales used were intrinsic and extrinsic religiosity portions of the Revised Age Universal Intrinsic-Extrinsic Scale, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and the Spiritual Care Perspective Scale. Secular, traditional, and religious Jewish respondents differed significantly in intrinsic religiosity, extrinsic religiosity, spiritual well-being, and religious well-being. No significant differences were found in existential well-being and attitudes toward spiritual care. Although not significant, an interesting trend was that secular nurses demonstrated more positive attitudes toward spiritual care than religious nurses. Jewish nurses' religiosity, spiritual well-being, and perhaps their attitudes toward spiritual care may be influenced by whether they are secular, traditional, or religious nurses. Israeli Jewish oncology nurses need self-awareness of their intrinsic religiosity, extrinsic religiosity, spiritual well-being, and attitudes toward spiritual care when they are administering holistic care to their patients.