Relationship of self-reported mysticism with depression and anxiety in Iranian Muslims.
Nima Ghorbani, P J Watson, Reza Rostami
Psychological Reports April 1, 2007 DOI: 10.2466/pr0.100.2.451-454 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cross-sectional survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 131 |
| Population | Iranian Muslim undergraduate volunteers (80 women, 51 men; mean age 20.5 years) |
| Topics | Anxiety Depression Mysticism |
| Key findings | Religious interpretation of mystical experience correlated negatively with depression and moderated the relationship between introvertive mysticism and anxiety, such that introvertive mysticism was associated with lower anxiety among those high in religious interpretation and very high in introvertive mysticism. |
Abstract
This study examined relationships of self-reported Mysticism with dispositional Depression and Anxiety in Iranian Muslims. The sample contained 80 women and 51 men undergraduates who volunteered to participate (M age=20.5 yr., SD= 2.0). Participants responded to the Hood Mysticism Scale and to the Costello and Comrey Depression and Anxiety Scales. Scores on the Religious Interpretation dimension of mystical experience correlated negatively with those on Depression, explained a similar relationship observed for Extrovertive Mysticism, and moderated the otherwise positive relationship between Introvertive Mysticism and Anxiety. Moderation occurred when Introvertive Mysticism correlated negatively rather than positively with Anxiety in those who scored high on Religious Interpretation and very high on the Introvertive factor. These data suggested possibilities for reconciling conflicts that have appeared between philosophical interpretations of Introvertive Mysticism and previous self-report data.