The role of spirituality in coping: Examining the relationships between spiritual dimensions and coping styles

摘要

This article explores the role played by spirituality in coping and presents the relationships between spiritual dimensions and coping styles. Spirituality has been considered as an important buffer against stressful events which may help people to overcome their distress and difficulties. Two hundred and eight individuals completed questionnaires which included the Self-description Questionnaire of Spirituality and the Coping Inventory for Stressful Situations. The results suggest that three spiritual dimensions, i.e., Religious attitudes, Ethical sensitivity, and Harmony, play an important role in coping processes. The dimensions have a different impact on particular styles depending on their internal structure. Overall spirituality was associated with Task-oriented and Social Diversion coping. It means that people characterized by a high level of spirituality will try to solve problems through efforts aimed at solving the problem and seeking out social support. There was no statistically significant relationship between Religious attitudes and coping styles. Ethical sensitivity was positively connected with using Task-oriented, Avoidance-oriented, and Social Diversion coping. Harmony was associated positively with Task-oriented, but negatively with Avoidance-oriented, coping. The relationships between spirituality dimensions and coping styles confirmed the assumption that people's reactions to stress relate to the configuration of their spiritual qualities.