Faith battle may hike death risk, study says

Christian Century, Sept 12, 2001

A study has found that elderly people who are struggling with religious beliefs while suffering from illness are more at risk of dying. The study included 596 hospital patients age 55 or older, most of whom were affiliated with mainline or conservative Protestant denominations.

"This study reminds us that religion is a rich, complex process, one that represents a potent resource for people facing problems and one that can, at times, be a source of problems itself," said Kenneth Pargament, lead author of the study and a psychology professor at Bowling Green State University in Ohio.

Results of the study were reported in the August 13-27 edition of Archives of Internal Medicine. Researchers said specific kinds of religious struggle were found in patients who were more likely to die. "Patients' reports that they felt alienated from or unloved by God and attributed their illness to the devil were associated with a 19 percent to 28 percent increase in risk of dying during the approximately two-year follow-up period," they wrote.

The authors called their work "the first empirical study to identify religious variables that increase the risk of mortality." They offered several suggestions for why such struggles could heighten the onset of death. "Individuals who voice religious dissatisfaction and discontent in the midst of their illnesses may alienate themselves from the support and caring of family, friends, clergy and health professionals, which may, in turn, result in a loss of social, emotional and tangible support," they wrote.

Researchers noted that the majority of medical schools are now training students to take spiritual histories of patients. --RNS