Psychosocial and health-related characteristics of religious well-being

Association between religiosity and orthorexia nervosa with the mediating role of self-esteem among a sample of the Lebanese population - short communication

BACKGROUND

Orthorexia Nervosa is not yet classified as an eating disorder albeit it can be found in different populations. This condition can be characterized by a preoccupation with the quality of food, accompanied by obsessive thoughts regarding eating behaviors, leading to malnutrition. Previous associations have been reported between high levels of eating disorders and lower levels of self-esteem; where individuals have low self-esteem due to the pressured felt to fit the norms of society in beauty standards. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the relationship between religiosity and orthorexia nervosa via either trait or state self-esteem.

METHODS

This study was conducted between September 2021 and February 2022 and included 428 participants from all Lebanese governorates. The Teruel Orthorexia Nervosa scale was used to measure orthorexia nervosa. The following scales state self-esteem and religiosity were used to measure self-esteem.

RESULTS

Sociodemographic characteristics (age, gender, marital status, household crowding index, body mass index and education) were entered in the mediation model as confounding variables. Higher religiosity was significantly associated with higher state self-esteem (Beta = 0.07), while higher state self-esteem was significantly associated with lower identification of those that exhibited ON tendencies or symptoms (Beta= -0.11).

CONCLUSION

A high state self-esteem was correlated with a lower level of orthorexia nervosa. Higher religiosity was shown to be associated with higher self-esteem, which in turn was associated with a decrease in the scores of orthorexia nervosa.

The Associations of Greek and Religious Organization Participation with College Students' Social Well-Being and Purpose

Two online-survey studies examined the associations of Greek (i.e., sorority and fraternity) and religious (i.e., church or campus ministry) organization participation with college students' social well-being and sense of purpose. In study 1 (N = 281), religious organization membership (versus no membership) was associated with connectedness and purpose, but for Greek organizations the associations held only with respect to level of organization involvement. In study 2 (N = 426), Greek and religious organization membership were both associated with most social well-being and purpose indicators, but only Greek membership was linked to lower loneliness. As in study 1, level of involvement in Greek, but not religious, organizations was linked to social well-being. Hypothesized moderators of the associations between organization membership and the purpose and social well-being variables were not supported. We discuss implications for professionals who work with college students to promote well-being, and we present future research ideas.

HIV Risk-Reduction Strategies for Substance Abusers: Effecting Behavior Change

Substance abuse has a strong link to HIV/AIDS in the United States. Use and abuse of alcohol and other drugs often reduce inhibitions and encourage engagement in high-risk sexual behaviors that can ultimately result in HIV and AIDS. The HIV/AIDS epidemic in the United States has disproportionately affected minorities with African Americans being the group hardest hit. This article presents some of the behavioral, social, and psychological factors that influence the risk for drug use. It highlights and assesses the effectiveness of HIV risk-reduction strategies developed for drug-using populations and makes recommendations for a more holistic and integrated approach utilizing multiple interventions at multiple levels.

Prevention and treatment of college student drug use: A review of the literature

Drug use during the college years is a significant public health concern. The primary goal of this paper is to provide a comprehensive review of prevention and treatment studies of college student drug use in order to guide college prevention efforts and to inform and stimulate new research in this area. First, established risk factors for drug use were reviewed. High levels of personality traits including, impulsivity, sensation-seeking, negative emotionality, emotional dysregulation, and personality disorder symptoms increase risk for drug use. Drug use has also been linked to overestimating normative levels of drug use and experiencing negative life events, and specific motives for drug use are linked to more problematic patterns. There have been very few studies examining prevention and treatment, but parent-based and in-person brief motivational interventions appear to be promising. Longitudinal studies of the development and course of drug use among college students, as well as clinical trials to evaluate novel theoretically-based intervention and prevention programs that take into account established risk factors for drug abuse are needed.

Influence of religious factors on attitudes towards suicidal behaviour in Ghana

The objective of this qualitative study was to understand how religion influences lay persons' attitudes towards suicide in Ghana. Twenty-seven adults from both rural and urban settings were interviewed. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to analyse the data. Results showed that the participants are committed to core and normative religious beliefs and practices they perceived as life preserving. Such an understanding influenced their view of suicidal behaviour as unacceptable. Nevertheless, religion facilitated their willingness to help people during suicidal crisis. Religious commitment theory is used to explain some of the findings of this study. Implications for suicide prevention are discussed.

Refining the depression-nicotine dependence link: patterns of depressive symptoms in psychiatric outpatients with current, past, and no history of nicotine dependence

The aim of this study was to elucidate the depression-nicotine dependence link by evaluating which specific depressive symptoms are uniquely associated with nicotine dependence in psychiatric outpatients. Participants were assessed using structured clinical interviews which yielded psychiatric diagnoses and clinical ratings on a wide variety of depressive symptoms. Depressive symptoms were compared across three groups: (1) patients with no history of nicotine dependence (NND; n=1015); (2) patients with past nicotine dependence in full remission for at least 2 months (PND; n=211); and (3) patients with current nicotine dependence (CND; n=342). Participants with CND evidenced elevations on certain typical-vegetative, melancholic, and dysphoric depressive symptoms as compared to patients with NND and (to a lesser extent) patients with PND. Group differences were most consistent for depressed mood, anhedonia, appetite/weight loss, psychomotor disturbance, fatigue, and insomnia. Differences were least apparent for atypical symptoms. The symptomatic profiles of PND and NND patients were virtually indistinguishable. Certain vegetative, melancholic and dysphoric depressive symptoms are closely associated with nicotine dependence and could play an important etiological role in depression-nicotine dependence comorbidity.

Effects of Trauma and Religiosity on Self-Esteem

Self-esteem is often lower among persons who have experienced trauma, but religiosity may ameliorate these psychological effects. The purpose of this paper was to examine the relationships among religiosity, self-esteem, and childhood exposure to trauma, utilizing data from the National Comorbidity Survey, a large (N = 8,098) nationally representative population survey in the 48 contiguous states of the USA that assessed religious practices, self-esteem, and exposure to trauma. Exposure to trauma in childhood was assessed through self-report of presence or absence of childhood physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect. Religiosity was assessed as the sum of responses to 4 self-report items (religious service attendance, use of religion for comfort and guidance, and importance of religion). Self-esteem was assessed on 9 self-report items adapted from the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Analysis of variance compared scores for persons who reported exposure to childhood abuse and differed in the value they placed on various religious practices on self-esteem. Persons who reported physical abuse, sexual abuse, or neglect in childhood had significantly lower mean self-esteem than those who did not report these events. There was also a main effect for religiosity in a comparison of persons who reported childhood sexual abuse with those who reported none. The High Religiosity group had higher mean self-esteem than the Medium and Low Religiosity groups. There was a significant interaction as those who reported childhood sexual abuse had lower mean self-esteem than peers who reported none in the Low and Medium Religiosity groups. Mean self-esteem for those who reported childhood sexual abuse was comparable to that of those who reported none in the High Religiosity group.