Religiosity spirituality and nonreligious spiritual practices linked to anxiety and depressive symptoms.

Spirituality may protect against depressive symptoms in young adults, but its relationship with anxiety is complex and depends on how spirituality is expressed. In a cross-sectional study of 1,240 Polish adults aged 18-25, higher overall spirituality and specific spiritual domains—Direct Connection with the Creator, Asceticism, and Divine Love—were linked to less severe depressive symptoms. However, anxiety levels were highest among those engaging in non-religious forms of spiritual practices, regardless of whether they identified as Catholic or atheist. The Meditation domain correlated with higher anxiety in Catholics and atheists, while Divine Love and Asceticism correlated with lower anxiety in specific subgroups. The findings suggest spirituality's role in mental health varies by how it is practiced and integrated with one's worldview.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Spirituality and religiosity are increasingly examined as factors relevant to mental health, yet less is known about individualized nonreligious forms of spiritual practices. In this cross-sectional study, we investigated associations between spirituality, religious affiliation, non-religious forms of spiritual practices (NFSP) and symptoms of anxiety and depression in 1240 young adults aged 18-25 in Poland. Participants were categorized as Catholics, Catholics engaging in NFSP, atheists, or atheists engaging in NFSP. Spirituality was assessed using the Interfaith Spirituality Scale and anxiety and depressive symptoms using the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale. Group differences were evaluated using the Kruskal-Wallis test with Dunn post hoc tests and associations were examined with Spearman rank correlations. Higher total spirituality and the domains Direct Connection with the Creator Asceticism and Divine Love were inversely associated with depressive symptom severity in the total sample. Anxiety levels differed between groups and were highest among participants engaging in NFSP regardless of religious affiliation. In group specific analyses, anxiety correlated positively with the Meditation domain in Catholics and atheists and correlated negatively with Divine Love in Catholics engaging in NFSP and with Asceticism in atheists engaging in NFSP. These findings suggest that spirituality may function as a protective correlate for depressive symptoms whereas links with anxiety are more heterogeneous and may depend on how spirituality is expressed and integrated with worldview.