Abstract
Pastoral mental health is a topic that has only rarely been researched empirically in the psychological literature, yet a pastor’s mental health can have a significant impact on churches, communities, and even nations (Royal and Thompson, Journal of Psychology and Christianity,31(3), 195–204, 2012). One of the thoughts prompting this research is that evangelical pastors might be expected to resist the findings of psychological research and lack understanding of specific mental illnesses they are potentially facing. Combined with historical and cultural dynamics that could influence resistance to professional psychological help, evangelical pastors have personal, internal factors that could also strengthen resistance, including the researched issues of self-disclosure flexibility and spiritual well-being. A correlational research design with multivariate regression was used to determine potentially significant or predictive relationships between the relevant factors. Among evangelical seminary students (N = 251) preparing for parish-based pastoral ministry, this research determined that no significant relationship, predictive or otherwise, existed between self-disclosure flexibility, spiritual well-being, and attitudes toward seeking professional psychological help. Implications include a shift in focus toward external factors influencing pastors’ help-seeking attitudes, such as the need for the mental health community to develop connections with evangelical pastors and the development of more support for Christian mental health professionals in the larger evangelical community.
Highlights
Pastoral mental health is a topic that has only rarely been researched empirically in the psychological literature, yet a pastor’s mental health can have a significant impact on churches, communities, and even nations (Royal and Thompson, Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 31(3), 195–204, 2012)
Scores were calculated for the Self-Disclosure Index (SDI), Spiritual Well-Being (SWB), and Attitudes Toward Seeking Professional Psychological Help (ATSPPH) by adding the scores of the questions within each assessment
The SDI and ATSPPH scores, with 10 questions each, had a range from 0 to 50, and SWB scores, with 20 questions, had a range from 0 to 100. Some questions had their scores reversed in order to ensure that each question’s score was measuring the outcome of interest properly
Summary
Pastoral mental health is a topic that has only rarely been researched empirically in the psychological literature, yet a pastor’s mental health can have a significant impact on churches, communities, and even nations (Royal and Thompson, Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 31(3), 195–204, 2012). Combined with historical and cultural dynamics that could influence resistance to professional psychological help, evangelical pastors have personal, internal factors that could strengthen resistance, including the researched issues of self-disclosure flexibility and spiritual well-being. With these “internal unrealistic expectations” and a lack of awareness of potential or real impairment, the pastor will either unnecessarily resist or ignore the ever more competent and plentiful psychological resources available Combined with these historical and cultural dynamics that could influence resistance to professional psychological help, evangelical pastors have additional personal and internal issues that could influence that resistance. One of these factors is certainly the tendency toward self-disclosure that can be rooted in one’s personality, family of origin, or other relational experiences. The psychological element of self-disclosure flexibility is critical for the pastor, as an imbalance in relational connections with other people is a recipe for burnout. Chandler (2009) notes that “pastors face stress and loneliness because of a multiplicity of demands, which negatively impacts them as well as their families and constituencies” (p. 274)
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