Religion, Spirituality, Age and Health

Running head: RELIGION, SPIRITUALITY, AGE AND HEALTH
Religion, Spirituality, Age and Health
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1RELIGION, SPIRITUALITY, AGE AND HEALTH
Aldwin, C. M., Park, C. L., Jeong, Y. J., & Nath, R. (2014). Differing pathways between
religiousness, spirituality, and health: A self-regulation perspective. Psychology of Religion
and Spirituality, 6(1), 9.
As per the article the spirituality and religiousness are linked with physical and mental
health. It has several positive impacts including decreased morbidity, better health quality,
lower psychological distress, depressive symptoms and lower rate of mortality. Furthermore,
the effect of religiousness on human health is mediated by behavioural self-regulation of the
health habits but the impacts of spirituality on health are been mediated through the influence
of emotional regulations on the physiological processes.
The main strength of this article by Aldwin, Park, Jeong and Nath is that it has
identified the current models of religiousness, spirituality and health. As per the article, the
religiousness is strongly linked with better heath behaviour habits such as lower consumption
of alcohol and smoking and the greater possibility of medical screenings. However, the
weakness of it is that the same is weakly associated with inflammatory biomarkers.
Moreover, according to these authors, spirituality is more linked with the biomarkers like
cardiac reactivity, blood pressure, disease progression and immune factors. They have
concluded their views by stating that the difference in between spirituality and religiousness
as well as in between the biomarker pathways and the better delineation of the health related
behaviour could possibly improve the clinical interventions and applications. However, it is
also to note that the article has not provided any in-depth knowledge of the association of age
related factors with religiousness and spirituality. Also, it has not presented the relation in
between conscientiousness, religiousness and health. It also raises a question on their
conception about the social support in the religious and spiritual context need to be better
varied in terms of its spiritual and structural context. This study is related to pastoral case as it
provides an idea of how to give spiritual guidance and care to an individual.

2RELIGION, SPIRITUALITY, AGE AND HEALTH
Lucchetti, G., Lucchetti, A. G. L., Badan-Neto, A. M., Peres, P. T., Peres, M. F., Moreira-
Almeida, A., ... & Koenig, H. G. (2011). Religiousness affects mental health, pain and quality
of life in older people in an outpatient rehabilitation setting. Journal of Rehabilitation
Medicine, 43(4), 316-322.
As per the article, religiousness is inversely related with the rating of pain and
depressive symptoms and they both are also positively related to the cognitive functioning
and quality of life. The main reasons behind being rehabilitation service patients are the
motor vehicle accidents, advanced osteoarthritis, stroke, brainstem injury, amputation and
their miscellaneous conditions inclusive of low back pain. Carpal tunnel syndrome,
fibromyalgia and others. However, it shed lights on the positive role that religion generally
plays in the physical and mental health of the patients in outpatient rehabilitation setting. It is
also to note that addressing the subject of spirituality and religion is the medical care of the
patients is an important factor in the process of rehabilitation of the older patients living in
Brazil.
The main strength of this article is that in order to conduct this research study, the
researchers of this article have interviewed 110 patients from age ranging from 60 years and
above and this is aiding to its relevancy. The article has concluded on the view that the
religiousness is linked to notably less depressive symptoms, less cognitive impairment, low
perceived pain and better quality of life. The weakness of this article is that it has used the
people ranging from 60 years and above only. It must have also assessed the ones belonging
from lower ages in order to make the conclusion for relevant and accurate. According to
them, clinicians must consider taking of spiritual history and making sure that the spiritual
demands and needs of the older patients belonging from the rehabilitation settings are all
addressed. Yes, it raises a question of whether the same is applied to the individuals
belonging from the age range of below 60 years. The article is related to the pastoral practice