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Does religiousness and spirituality moderate the relations between physical and mental health among aging prisoners?
Author(s) -
Allen Rebecca S.,
Harris Grant M.,
Crowther Martha R.,
Oliver JoAnn S.,
Cavanaugh Ronald,
Phillips Laura L.
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
international journal of geriatric psychiatry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.28
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1099-1166
pISSN - 0885-6230
DOI - 10.1002/gps.3874
Subject(s) - coping (psychology) , psychology , spirituality , psychological intervention , mental health , clinical psychology , prison , ethnic group , mindfulness , psychiatry , medicine , alternative medicine , criminology , pathology , sociology , anthropology
Objective We examined positive and negative religious coping as moderators of the relation between physical limitations, depression, and desire for hastened death among male inmates incarcerated primarily for murder. Methods Inmates over the age of 45 years who passed a cognitive screening completed face‐to‐face interviews ( N = 94; mean age = 57.7 years; SD = 10.68). Multiple regression analyses included age, race/ethnicity, parole belief, physical health, positive or negative religious coping, and all two‐way interactions represented by the product of health and a religious coping variable. Results Older inmates and those who reported greater levels of positive religious coping endorsed fewer symptoms of depression, whereas those who reported greater levels of negative religious coping endorsed more symptoms of depression. Inmates who reported higher levels of depression endorsed a greater desire for hastened death. The effect of physical functioning on desire for hastened death is moderated by negative religious coping such that those who endorsed higher levels of negative religious coping reported a greater desire for hastened death. Conclusions Examinations of religious/spiritual practices and mindfulness‐based interventions in prison research have assumed a positive stance with regard to the potential impact of religious/spiritual coping on physical and mental health. The current findings provide cautionary information that may further assist in selection of inmates for participation in such interventions. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.