Meditation, Compassionate Love, and Mental Health in Later Life

PURPOSE

Understanding of the mechanisms by which meditation imparts beneficial effects on later-life mental health is limited. The current study assessed the role of compassionate love in mediating the relationship between meditation and mental health in later life.

METHOD

Using data from a nationwide web-based survey (N = 1,861), we examined the indirect effects of meditation on depressive symptoms and anxiety via compassionate love.

RESULTS

Participants who practiced meditation (compared to those who did not) had significantly higher feelings of being loved (b = 0.11, p < 0.05); those who experienced more love had lower depressive symptoms (b = -2.10, p < 0.001) and anxiety (b = -0.99, p < 0.001). Meditation also had significant indirect effects (via compassionate love) on depressive symptoms (b = -0.23, p < 0.05) and anxiety (b = -0.11, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION

This study underscores the need for contemplative interventions that foster compassionate love to improve mental health in later life. [Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 50(3), 40-50.].

How Christian Nurses Respond to Patient Requests for Prayer: An Observational Study

ABSTRACT

Nurse-provided spiritual care includes support of patient spiritual practices such as prayer. However, limited evidence exists about how nurses respond when a patient requests prayer. A subsample of nurses (n = 381) from a larger study responded to two open-ended questions in an online survey in response to a prayer scenario. Among these mostly Christian nurses, 97% indicated willingness to pray. Content analysis revealed a five-component structure for praying: Open, Set the Stage, Request, Wrap-up, Close. The structure provides a template for future research and nurse prayer in clinical contexts.

The association between religious participation and memory among middle-aged and older adults: A systematic review

OBJECTIVES

Mounting evidence suggests religion plays an important role in maintaining cognition. No prior systematic review has focused on the specific association between religion and the memory domain of cognition in middle-aged and older adults. We carried out a systematic review to explore this association in depth.

METHODS

We searched the PsycINFO, Scopus, and PubMed databases to identify articles assessing any means of measuring religion as the exposure and memory as the outcome. Articles had to report on studies with comparison groups to be eligible for inclusion in the review. We followed the PRISMA checklist to conduct the review (PROSPERO registration # CRD42022330389).

RESULTS

Nine out of the 1648 citations retrieved in the literature search were included in the review. The majority of included articles had a moderate risk of bias. Most results showed positive associations between religion and memory.

DISCUSSION

Despite consistency in the direction of association between religion and memory, the literature contained some important research gaps: the studies were cross-sectional; a lack of information existed regarding whether different faiths, sex/gender and depression affected the association; and underpowered studies prevented us from drawing firm conclusions about the direction or magnitude of effect. Longitudinal studies avoiding these issues are needed in this field.

Meditation and Cognitive Outcomes: A Longitudinal Analysis Using Data From the Health and Retirement Study 2000-2016

Objective

We aimed to assess the association between meditation practice and cognitive function over time among middle-aged and older adults.

Method

We included Health and Retirement Study (HRS) participants assessed for meditation practice in the year 2000 as part of the HRS alternative medicine module (n = 1,160) and were followed up for outcomes over 2000-2016 period. We examined the association between meditation ≥ twice a week vs none/less frequent practice and changes in the outcomes of recall, global cognitive function, and quantitative reasoning using generalized linear regression models. Stratified analyses among persons with/without self-reported baseline depressive symptoms were conducted to assess the link between meditation and cognitive outcomes.

Results

Among our full study sample, meditation ≥ twice a week was not significantly associated with total recall [β ; 95% CI: -0.97, 0.57; p = 0.61], global cognitive function [β ; 95% CI: -1.01, 1.12; p = 0.92], and quantitative reasoning [β ; 95% CI: -31.27, 8.32; p = 0.26]. However, among those who did not have self-reported depressive symptoms at baseline, meditation ≥ twice a week was associated with improvement in cognitive outcomes such as total recall [β ; 95% CI: 0.03, 0.18; p = 0.01] and global cognitive function [β ; 95% CI: 0.05, 0.40; p = 0.01] over time.

Conclusions

Frequent meditation practice might have a protective effect on cognitive outcomes over time, but this protection could be limited to those without self-reported baseline depressive symptoms. Future studies could incorporate more precise meditation practice assessment, investigate the effect of meditation on cognitive outcomes over time, and include more rigorous study designs with randomized group assignment.

Pre-registration

This study is not preregistered.

Exploring the Meaning of Spirituality and Spiritual Care with Help From Viktor Frankl

Problem: A difficult concept to understand, spirituality is not often addressed in healthcare. Purpose: This paper will explore the concept of spirituality and spiritual care using the theory of meaning by Viktor Frankl. Implications: Authors will provide ways for nurses to think about spiritual needs and spiritual care for patients and identify barriers to spiritual care implementation. Suggestions are made for spiritual inquiry, resources are provided for spiritual care education and training, and recommendations are made for nursing education curricula and health care policy change. Conclusions: With a greater understanding of spirituality, nurses practicing holistic care can increase their spiritual care competence and implement spiritual care into practice.