The level of religiousness as a predictor of psychological and social well-being in older people. Results from the study on the relationship between religious practices and quality of life in older age conducted in Krakow, Poland

INTRODUCTION: Religiousness may increase psychological and social well-being in several ways, e.g. by generating high levels of social resources and by providing specific cognitive resources that are useful in coping with stressors. The aim of presented research was to verify hypotheses on the relationship between religiousness and well-being in older age.

METHODS: The sample population consisted of 367 randomly selected older Roman Catholics living in Krakow. Data was collected using a structured questionnaire. Religiousness was measured by assessing religious practice, beliefs, experiences, coping and support. Psychological and social well-being were assessed using SF-20, HADS, DUKE Social Support Scale and Loneliness Scale. In the statistical analyses Hierarchical Cluster Analysis and regression analyses were performed.

RESULTS: Multivariate linear regression analysis for mental well-being as a dependent variable showed that better mental health characterized those individuals who reported higher level of religious: practices (B=0,24;p<0,05), beliefs (B=0,46;p<0,05), experience (B=0,37;p<0,05) and coping (B=0,19;p<0,05). Similar analyses done for subjective symptoms of depression revealed that less  depressed were those who reported higher frequency of religious practices, both public (B=-0,15;p<0,05) and private (B=-0,31;p<0,05), as well as those who reported stronger faith (B=-0,26; p<0,05), deeper religious experiences (B=-0,28;p<0,05) and higher level of social support obtained in religious settings (B=-0,17;p<0,05). Two clusters were extracted using K-means cluster analysis: cluster 1 (those who scored higher on each dimension of religiousness) and cluster 2 (those, who scored lower).Multivariate regression analyses showed that individuals from cluster 1 had better mental health that those from cluster 2 (B=9,12;p<0,05). Similar analysis done for depression level revealed that the individuals from cluster 1 were less depressed (B=-7,8;p<0,05) in comparison with individuals from cluster 2. Significant relationships were also found between the level of religiousness and the level loneliness, social functioning and social roles performance.

CONCLUSIONS: Multidimensional religious involvement is a significant determinant of psychological and social well-being in later life.