Existential Well-being Research Articles

Spiritual well-being in breast cancer patients

Introduction: Breast cancer patients frequently experience spiritual discomfort due to the disease, its diagnosis, and its repercussions. When end-of-life patients’ spiritual needs are not adequately served, they are forced to deal with an overall burden of daily distress and anxiety that affects their emotional and spiritual health. Several studies indicate that, when coping with cancer, people frequently turn to spirituality. Spirituality and religiosity have been associated with less depressive symptoms, enhancing well-being throughout cancer treatment and in cancer survivors. This study sought to characterize the spiritual health of breast cancer patients (religious well-being and existential well-being).Methods: A descriptive observational study design was used, and the population of this research was breast cancer patients at the public hospital. The sample total of this research was 104 respondents. The samples were chosen using non-probability sampling with a purposive sampling technique. Spiritual well-being as a variable was measured using the spiritual well-being scale. Data were then analyzed for categorization into less, enough, and good, expressed in frequencies and percentages. Results: The result of this research shows that good religious well-being with a total of 63 (60,6%) and existential well-being enough with a total of 56 (53,8%).Conclusions: This study demonstrates the responder’s good existential and religious well-being categories. Palliative care can be added to medical therapies and programs to promote spiritual well-being, such as spiritual counseling, meditation, and dhikr therapy, which can be helpful for patients with breast cancer.Keywords: breast cancer; existential well-being; religious well-being; spiritual well-being

Balancing power: Ambulance personnel's lived experience of older persons' participation in care in the presence of municipal care personnel.

Patient participation is considered to promote well-being and is, therefore, central in care contexts. Care-dependent older persons living at home constitute a vulnerable population with increased ambulance care needs. Care transfers risk challenging participation in care, a challenge that can be accentuated in situations involving acute illness. To illuminate meanings of older persons' participation in ambulance care in the presence of municipal care personnel from the perspective of ambulance personnel. A phenomenological hermeneutical method was used to analyse transcripts of narrative interviews with 11 ambulance personnel. The ambulance personnel's lived experience of older persons' participation includes passive and active dimensions and involves a balancing act between an exercise of power that impedes participation and equalisation of power that empowers participation. The main theme 'Balancing dignity in relation to manipulating the body' included the themes Providing a safe haven and Complying with bodily expressions, which means shouldering responsibility for existential well-being and being guided by reactions. The main theme 'Balancing influence in relation to perceived health risks' included the themes Agreeing on a common perspective, Directing decision-making mandate, and Sharing responsibility for well-being, which means shouldering responsibility for health focusing on risks. Influence is conditional and includes performance requirements for both the older person and municipal care personnel. Care-dependent older persons' participation in care from the perspective of ambulance personnel means recognising passive and active dimensions involving human dignity, the ability to influence care, and optimising care efforts through collaboration. This study provides a deepened understanding of the balancing of power involved in ambulance care determining participation, where power is equalised or exercised depending on personal engagement, health risks, and available care options. The knowledge provided holds the potential to improve ambulance care to benefit older persons in critical life situations.

Preparing for the Future While Living in the Present: Older Adults' Experiences Creating a Legacy of Values.

A legacy of values (e.g., legacy letter) is a nonlegal way to intentionally communicate intangible assets (e.g., values, life lessons, and emotional and supportive instruction) with others. There is scant research on legacy creation outside of a palliative care context, and no studies have explored the experiences of community-dwelling older adults creating a legacy of values. As part of an exploratory sequential mixed methods study, we conducted semistructured interviews with older adults (N = 16) who had previously created a legacy of values. We analyzed transcribed interviews using an interpretive descriptive approach. We iteratively coded interviews deductively with sensitizing concepts identified in the literature (existential well-being, end-of-life preparation and completion, generativity, and resilience), and inductively, based on participants' descriptions. Codes were categorized by patterns of motivations, content, outcomes, and meaning, and thematically summarized. We conceptualized the overall experience of creating a legacy of values as Preparing for the Future While Living in the Present and identified 4 themes: Preserving the Intangible for You and for Me, Sharing What I Want You to Know, Obtaining Peace through Reflection and Preparation, and Living into a Continuing Legacy. Participants attained peace, realized their life was not complete, and were challenged to live intentionally through legacy creation. Creating a legacy of values may concurrently prepare older adults for the end of life and the remainder of life. These findings offer insight into a generative act that can promote intentional living among older adults.

Being well? A meta-ethnography of older patients and their relatives’ descriptions of suffering and well-being in the transition from hospital to home

BackgroundAs the average length of hospital stay decreases, more and more older patients will need support during and after the hospital transition, which will mainly be provided by their relatives. Studies highlight the enormous effect such a transition has on the lives of older patients and their relatives. However, research is lacking regarding in-depth understanding of the complexities and the notions of suffering and well-being the older patients and their relatives describe in the transition from hospital to home. Therefore, this study aims to examine the description of suffering and well-being on a deeper, existential level by drawing on existing phenomenological research.MethodsIn order to synthesize and reinterpret primary findings, we used the seven-step method for meta-ethnography. Following specific inclusion criteria and focusing on empirical phenomenological studies about older patients and their relatives experiences of hospital to home transitions, a systematic literature search was conducted. Data from ten studies have been analyzed.ResultsOur analysis identified three intertwined themes: i) ‘Being excluded vs. being included in the transition process’, ii) ‘Being a team: a call for support and a call to support’ and iii) ‘Riding an emotional rollercoaster’. The last theme was unfolded by the two subthemes ‘Taking on the new role as a caregiver: oscillating between struggling and accepting’ and ‘Getting back to normal: oscillating between uncertainty and hope’. Within those themes, older patients and their relatives described rather similar than contradictory aspects.ConclusionsThis study offers insights into the tension between existential suffering and well-being described by the older patients and their relatives during the transition from hospital to home. Especially, the description of well-being in all its nuances which, if achieved, enables older patients and their relatives to identify with the situation and to move forward, this process can then be supported by the health care professionals. However, there is still lack of knowledge with regards to a deeper understanding of existential well-being in this process. Given the increasing tendency towards early hospital discharges, the findings underpin the need to further investigate the experiences of well-being in this process.

Existential well-being for the oldest old in nursing homes: a meta-ethnography

Abstract Ideas of well-being in old age are often anchored in the successful ageing paradigm, foregrounding independence, activeness and autonomy. However, for those oldest old living in nursing homes, these goals are largely out of reach. In this article, we use the meta-ethnographic method to explore and reinterpret existing findings on the ways in which well-being is experienced (or not) by the oldest old in institutional care settings. We frame our findings in existential well-being theory, which understands wellbeing as a sense of ‘dwelling-mobility’. Our analysis resulted in the following themes: (a) institutionalisation as both restrictive and liberating; (b) reciprocity and mattering: the importance of being seen; (c) the need for kinship and the problem of ruptured sociality; (d) rethinking agency: situated, delegated and supported; and (e) lowered expectations: receiving care is not a passive act. We conclude that while institutional care environments are not always conducive to well-being, this does not have to be so. By shifting our focus from successful ageing ideals onto relationally situated care practices, a possibility for existential well-being opens up, even in situations of decline and care dependency.

The Association between Occupational Burnout and Spiritual Well-being in Emergency Nurses: A Cross-Sectional Study.

This study evaluated the occupational burnout (OB) and spiritual well-being (SWB) of emergency nurses as well as the associations between these variables. This cross-sectional study was conducted in six hospitals and emergency medical centers affiliated with Ardebil University of Medical Sciences (Ardebil, Iran), in 2020. Data were collected via socio-demographic, Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS), and Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) questionnaires. This study included 239 emergency department nurses. The mean age of the participants was 34.4±6.4 years. The mean of existential well-being and religious well-being was 40.3±8.7 and 41.0±9.2, respectively. The results indicated that moderate (P=0.007) and severe (P<0.001) personal accomplishment was a positive and significant predictor of the SWB in emergency department nurses. Proper planning and provision of suitable educational programs in the dimension of the SWB of nurses prevent the creation and continuation of OB and increase the self-efficacy and job satisfaction of emergency medical staff, resulting in better patient care.

Содержание понятия "экзистенциальное самочувствие" в контексте близких по смыслу психологических феноменов

The article offers a comparative analysis of the concept of existential self-feeling with concepts close to it in meaning that have already entered the lexicon of psychological science. It is correlated with the concepts of the concepts of R. May, L. Binswanger, A. Lengle, R. D. Stolorou, A. Schopegauer, D. A. Leontiev, P. E. Astafiev, A. F. Lazursky, S. L. Frank, N. Kopteva, Holondovich and co-workers, etc. The specifics of the content of the concepts - well-being, sense of being, being-in-the-world, existential fulfillment, resilience, ontological confidence / uncertainty, psychological well-being, general well-being, direct self-being, ontological unconscious and their similarity and difference from the concept of existential self-sentiment are considered. The concept of existential self-sentiment means a person's experience of his existence as the most reliable of the facts of existence. This experience cannot be objectified or measured in its immediate manifestations, but it can be judged by how it is reflected in the qualitative characteristics of self-consciousness: a sense of fullness of being or emptiness; do we feel our serenity or concern; meaningfulness of being or meaninglessness - these and other qualities of self-perception indicate a certain dynamics of existential well-being, on which, in turn, the dynamics of the quality of our life as a whole depends. Existential self-feeling is not a function of the psyche, but it has a decisive functional significance in the entire structure of the mental, like a “background” that determines the properties and characteristics of any “figure” formed on this “background”. Understanding the essence of existential well-being in the order of our existence will provide an appropriate mental resource, both in terms of “vitality”, and in terms of the ability to fully and joyfully live our lives.

IMPACT OF SPIRITUAL WELLBEING ON HEALTH PROMOTING LIFESTYLES IN CORONARY HEART DISEASE PATIENTS: MEDIATING ROLE OF PERCEIVED HEALTH STATUS

Objectives: To find out the role spiritual and existential wellbeing in health promoting lifestyles that are mediated through perceived health status in Coronary Heart Disease (CHD) Patients. Methodology: After obtaining approval (reference #331) from Institutional Review Board of the affiliated university as sample of 257 males and 228 females consecutive CHD patients (age range 18-65 years; M = 47.56, SD = 2.30) meeting the inclusion criteria were recruited in the study. Patients who suffered from strokes or other chronic diseases like hypothyroidism, cancer, liver or renal malfunctioning were excluded from the study. Participants were requested to complete three scales (and a demographic form) that included Spiritual Wellbeing Scale (SWBS), Short Form 12 Health Survey (SF-12HS), and Health Promoting Lifestyle Profile-II (HPLP-II). Data was collected from outdoor patients at a public hospital in Lahore, Pakistan between November 5 and March 31, 2021-22, and correlations were run across constructs using a macro-process (version 3.3) in SPSS (version 26.0). Results: Results indicated that spiritual (religious and existential) wellbeing had a significant direct effect on health promoting lifestyles significant at p &lt; 0.001. Further, results showed a significant direct and indirect path coefficients of physical and mental health components of perceived health status with spiritual, religious, existential wellbeing, and health promoting lifestyles but not for physical functioning and bodily pain, p &gt;0.05. Conclusion: Spirituality and positive health perceptions for cardiac patients can maintain their health through engaging in healthy lifestyles. Study highlighted the importance of adopting such perceptions to relieve cardiac symptoms to avoid further complications.

Existential isolation and well-being in justice-involved populations.

Much work in psychology has focused on feelings of social isolation and/or loneliness. Only recently have psychologists begun to explore the concept of existential isolation (EI). EI is the subjective sense that persons are alone in their experience and that others are unable to understand their perspective. EI thus occurs when people feel that they have a unique worldview unshared by others. Measured as either a state or trait, empirical studies have shown EI undermines life meaning and decreases well-being; people scoring high on EI report lower levels of need satisfaction, purpose in life, and meaningfulness and increased death-related concerns. There is also a positive correlation between EI and anxiety, depression, and suicidal ideation. The purpose of this perspective paper is to review literature on EI and discuss its relevance to people who have been involved with the justice system. Given their higher rates of substance use, mental health difficulties, and trauma, this traditionally underserved population is particularly susceptible to compromised well-being. We theorize that EI may impede the impact of therapeutic interventions in justice settings as more isolated individuals may feel disjointed from their counselors and peers, thereby decreasing levels of treatment engagement, participation, satisfaction, and perceived social support. Professionals may be able to mitigate issues related to EI by an enhanced focus on establishing authenticity within the therapist-client relationship (e.g., empathy, perspective taking, compassion), connecting with clients via I-sharing [i.e., matching on a shared experience(s)], and/or encouraging active participation in client's behavioral healthcare needs (e.g., self-reflection).

Existential Well-being among Young People Leaving Care: Self-feeling, Self-realisation, and Belonging

ABSTRACT This study explores young people’s perceptions of their existential well-being during the transition after leaving care. We use the theoretical framework of ‘existential well-being,’ which is a relational approach. The study deploys participatory action research methodology and involves peer research with 74 young people leaving care aged 17–32 in Finland (2011–2012) and England (2016–2018). The data was gathered through semi-structured interviews and thematically analysed. We identified three inter-linking categories of existential well-being related to the basic issues of being a person: who one is and where one belongs. Self-feeling involves the importance of how one feels about oneself and one’s physical and mental health and security. Self-realisation relates to one’s hopes and the means for making one’s own decisions in everyday life. Belonging concerns the confidence one expresses in one’s supportive social networks. The findings highlight that, alongside the practical issues of out-of-home care, attention should increasingly focus on young people's reflections on their own lives, and an ethics of care should be developed to better meet their needs. These findings argue for the need to further support young people’s psychosocial and mental health in child welfare policy and practice.

Correlation of spiritual health and depression among young adults in a state university in Southern Philippines

Introduction: Much of the study on the link between spirituality and mental health has focused on depression because of its prevalence in the Philippine population especially among the younger generation. This study assessed the respondents' demographic characteristics, their spiritual health as measured by the Spiritual Well-being Scale (SWBS), and their level of depression as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI). &#x0D; Methods: The study employed a descriptive-correlational quantitative research design and non-probability convenience sampling to acquire 200 respondents who are undergraduate students aged 18-25 enrolled in a state university in Southern Philippines. The data were examined using frequency distribution, percentage distribution, and Pearson’s correlation coefficients. &#x0D; Results: The data indicated that respondents' average religious well-being score was 55.28, indicating a favorable sense of one's relationship with God. The existential well-being score had a mean of 44.56, indicating a moderate level of life fulfillment and meaning. Furthermore, the total score for all depressed symptoms was 23.32, indicating that people who took part in the survey during the pandemic suffered moderate to severe depression. Correlation analysis found a negative correlation between spiritual health and the level of depression (r=-.458, p=0.001). &#x0D; Conclusion: The study concluded that spiritual health, as expressed through existential well-being and religious well- being, is a separate component that lends explanatory power to mental well-being prediction. The study advises heads of health sectors in various institutions to intensify their fight against depression. Additional research is also strongly encouraged. &#x0D; Keywords Spiritual health, existential well-being, religious well-being, depression, mental health, quantitative research

Spiritual well-being, anxiety and depression in the preoperative period of cardiac surgery

Objective: to correlate religiosity and spiritual well-being with anxiety and depression in patients in the preoperative period of cardiac surgery. Methods: cross-sectional study conducted with 174 patients admitted to a university hospital using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale, and the DUKE Religiosity Index. Results: the religious well-being and religiosity dimensions did not present significant differences between anxious and non-anxious patients. Existential well-being showed lower scores than religious well-being, being significantly lower among anxious patients. Among patients with depressive symptoms, the existential well-being score was significantly lower. Religiosity and religious well-being were not different between depressed and non-depressed patients. Conclusion: religiosity and spirituality did not exempt patients from presenting anxiety and depression in the preoperative period of cardiac surgery, although they are cited as mediators of coping strategies and psychological adaptation. Contributions to practice: the present study provides evidence that religiosity does not exempt patients from being anxious while waiting for heart surgery.

Deeply lonely in the borderland between childhood and adulthood - Experiences of existential loneliness as narrated by adolescents

ABSTRACT Background Adolescence is associated with different feelings and experiences that can negatively affect adolescents’ health and well-being. In the transition between childhood and adulthood, experiences of loneliness are common. A deep form of loneliness is described as existential loneliness. Studies among adults have shown that existential loneliness often arises in connection with transitions and is related to suffering, but may lead to positive experiences when acknowledged and addressed. Therefore, the aim of this study was to explore adolescents’ experiences of existential loneliness. Methods This was an exploratory-descriptive qualitative study based on narrative interviews with 16 adolescents (median age 17.5). The data were analysed inductively using qualitative content analysis. Findings Existential loneliness among adolescents was related to experiences of social exclusion and “in-betweenness”. To alleviate their suffering, the adolescents tried to avoid burdensome feelings and thoughts, and they chose between sharing or not sharing their inner lives with someone else. Conclusions It is important to support adolescents’ sense of belonging, and they may need assistance in dealing with existential loneliness, as well as with finding constructive and healthy ways of recuperating from the suffering. Professionals need knowledge of existential loneliness to promote adolescents’ existential health and well-being.

Personal Well-being and Existential Fulfillment: Theoretical and Philosophical Aspect.

The relevance of the work is due to the fact that the analysis of indicators of mental and physical health of a person and their mutual influence is little disclosed in the philosophical literature. There is a problem of studying the achievement of well-being in philosophical terms and the factors influencing it, including the connection of existential fullness (fundamental existential motivations) with various positive aspects of the functioning of the individual that make up well-being: autonomy, competence, personal growth, positive relationships, self-acceptance, life goals. In this regard, we have undertaken a study related to the study at the theoretical level of the relationship between existential fulfillment and well-being. The purpose of the study: to identify the relationship between the components of life well-being and existential fulfillment. The degree of existential fullness shows whether there is a lot of meaning in life, whether a person lives in inner harmony, whether his decisions and actions correspond to his essence. Life well-being is a subjective feeling of wholeness of satisfaction with one's being. The study revealed significant connections between the components of such personal constructs as life well-being and existential fulfillment. As a result of the theoretical study , the following conclusions were made: The first fundamental existential motivation concerning the possibility of existence in the world is largely related to self-acceptance and competence. The second fundamental existential motivation concerning the value of life is largely related to self-acceptance and positive relationships. The third fundamental existential motivation concerning self-esteem is largely related to personal growth. The fourth fundamental existential motivation, crowning all the previous ones and concerning meaning, is essentially related to life goals and autonomy.

The Influence of Spiritual Well-Being on Depression among Protestant College Seminarians in Korea With a Focus on the Mediating Effect of Self-Esteem

Spirituality and depression have been studied in relation to mental health for many years, but not in the context of Korean seminarians. This study explored the association between spiritual well-being, depression, and self-esteem—the latter playing a mediating role—using a sample of Korean Protestant College seminarians. In addition, gender differences in the values of variables were examined using the latent mean analysis (LMA) method; the mediational pathway from spiritual well-being to depression via self-esteem was investigated through the multigroup structural model analysis. A total of 434 seminarians from one Baptist theological university/seminary and one Presbyterian college in South Korea responded to survey questions about spiritual well-being—it was categorized into religious well-being (RWB) and existential well-being (EWB)—self-esteem, and depression. Male seminarians ( N = 177) obtained a higher mean score on a measure of self-esteem; female seminarians ( N = 246) obtained a higher mean score on a measure of depression. EWB had a significant direct effect on self-esteem and depression in both groups. However, EWB had a significant indirect effect on depression via self-esteem as a mediator only for female seminarians. Meanwhile, RWB did not influence self-esteem or depression in either group. Implications based on these findings are discussed.

Religion, migration, and existential wellbeing

Religion, migration, and existential wellbeing

When Knowledge Is Not Enough

When Knowledge Is Not Enough

Investigating the Role of Normative Support in Atheists' Perceptions of Meaning Following Reminders of Death.

According to terror management theory, humans rely on meaningful and permanence-promising cultural worldviews, like religion, to manage mortality concerns. Prior research indicates that, compared to religious individuals, atheists experience lower levels of meaning in life following reminders of death. The present study investigated whether reminders of death would change atheists’ meaning in life after exposure to normative support for atheism. Atheists (N = 222) were either reminded of death or a control topic (dental pain) and exposed to information portraying atheism as either common or rare, and then asked to rate their perceived meaning in life. Results showed that reminders of death reduced meaning in life among atheists who were told that atheism is common. Results were consistent with the view that atheism reflects the rejection of religious faith rather than a meaningful secular terror managing worldview. Discussion considers implications for maintaining healthy existential wellbeing, identifies limitations, and highlights future research directions.

Religious and existential well-being among nursing students in anambra state, nigeria

Spirituality is a significant concept for the discipline of nursing with substantial influence on holistic care of patients. The purpose of the study was to investigate the status of Spiritual Well-Being (SWB) among nursing students in public Schools of Nursing in Anambra State, Nigeria.&#x0D; A cross-sectional survey was carried out among 228 nursing students based in three government Schools of Nursing in Anambra State, Nigeria. A 20 item Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWS) comprising of 10 questions each on religious and existential wellbeing sub-scales was adapted for the study. Internal consistency reliability of the instrument using the Cronbach Alpha coefficient was 0.93. Ethical approval was obtained from Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital (NAUTH) ethical committee. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics. Chi-Square and Pearson correlation analysis were done to verify association between variables using SPSS version 21 for Windows. Probability value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. The mean age of respondents was 22 years. Overall, 55.1% reported moderate level of spirituality compared with 44.9% who had high level of spirituality. Nursing students’ average spiritual well-being (SWB) score was 97.7. SWB was significantly related to the level of study of respondents (p= 0.001). A significant strong positive correlation was found between Religious Well-Being (RWB) and Existential Well-Being (p=0.001; r=.697). The study has shown that nursing students in public Schools of Nursing in Anambra State, self-reported moderate level of spiritual wellbeing (SWB). Educational interventions are required to improve nursing students’ religious and existential well-being for the ultimate purpose of promoting holistic nursing care.

Protocol for EXICODE: the EXIstential health COhort DEnmark—a register and survey study of adult Danes

IntroductionWe established the EXIstential health COhort DEnmark (EXICODE) to examine how existential and spiritual needs, practices and orientations in a secular culture are linked to health outcomes, illness trajectory and...