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Understanding the association between spirituality and mental health outcomes in adolescents in two non-Western countries: Exploring self-control as a potential mediator

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 December 2021

Delshad M. Shroff Open the ORCID record for Delshad M. Shroff [Opens in a new window] ,
Rosanna Breaux Open the ORCID record for Rosanna Breaux [Opens in a new window]  and
Antje von Suchodoletz Open the ORCID record for Antje von Suchodoletz [Opens in a new window]
Delshad M. Shroff*
Affiliation:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Rosanna Breaux
Affiliation:
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Antje von Suchodoletz
Affiliation:
New York University, Abu Dhabi
*
Corresponding author: Delshad M. Shroff, email: dshroff@vt.edu
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Abstract

Empirical knowledge on what specific aspects of mental health are associated with spirituality is limited, and explanations for the mechanisms underlying this association is scarce. Furthermore, there is limited research on this association among individuals from non-Christian religious backgrounds and non-Western countries. The current study examined relations between spirituality and aspects of mental health in 1,544 adolescents from diverse religious backgrounds in two Eastern countries, India and the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Additionally, we examined mediating and moderating factors. Adolescents (58% female) ages 11–15 years completed a questionnaire on aspects of their mental health, spirituality, and self-control abilities. Results showed that spirituality had a significant positive association with life satisfaction and a significant negative association with internalizing problems, but a non-significant relation with externalizing problems, controlling for age, gender, and socioeconomic status. Self-control completely mediated the association between spirituality and life satisfaction, and this mediational relation was only present for adolescents from the UAE. Results support prior research suggesting positive associations between spirituality and adaptive mental health outcomes and extend these findings to adolescents from diverse religious backgrounds in non-Western countries. These findings have important clinical and policy implications for supporting the role of spirituality in an adolescent’s life.

Keywords

adolescencemental healthself-controlspirituality
Type
Regular Article
Information
Development and Psychopathology , Volume 35 , Issue 3 , August 2023 , pp. 1434 - 1443
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2021. Published by Cambridge University Press

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