Identifier	Thesis 1718
Author	Black, Dorrett Y.
Title	Racial identity, spirituality and health attitudes among african americans
Publisher	Central Connecticut State University
Date of Publication	2003
Resource Type	Master's Thesis
Abstract	The origins of psychology looked at studying the "psyche" or soul of an individual, as well as the interactions between the biological organism and its physical and social environment. Throughout the evolution of psychology, scientific study and religion have been separated into independent domains of knowledge. It was originally believed that each individual had a mind body connection until the early 19th century, when this philosophy was changed and medicine and psychology were practiced separately in the Western culture. Since the 1960s, the health care profession has experienced a resurgence of interest in spirituality (Catanzaro, 2001). Even with improved knowledge and advanced technology in medicine, in recent years, doctors have been revisiting the issue of mind body connection. While religion does influence thought and behavior, it has often been presented as having an effect on health. In recent years, there has been an increase in research on the relationship between religion/spirituality and health. Much of this research has indicated that people who are spiritual have less stress and stronger social support groups, which enhances their health. Furthermore, people who are spiritual tend to be engaged in less risky behaviors such as smoking, alcohol usage and drug abuse, and practice a healthier lifestyle. Studies indicate that spirituality and religious coping is especially effective for the elderly, women and people of African descent. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between racial identity, spiritual beliefs and health attitudes among African American individuals. Forty-five African American men and women were administered questionnaires assessing racial identity, spirituality, and health attitudes. Findings of the present study indicate that there was no significant relationship between racial identity, spirituality and health. However, there were positive significant relationships between health and Somatization, health problems and Obsessive-Compulsiveness, and between health problems and the results of the Global sensitivity index. Significant positive relationships were noted between Internalization and Somatization, There were also a positive significant relationship between paranoid ideation and Immersion/Emersion; between Global severity index (GSI) and Encounter. Significant negative relationships were observed between Obsessive-Compulsiveness and Preencounter; between Encounter and Obsessive-Compulsive; and between Hostility and Immersion, and between Paranoid Ideation and Encounter. The results of this study may have expand our understanding of the relationships between psychological well-being and health among African Americans. Implications of the finding will be discussed.
Subject	African Americans -- Race identity African Americans -- Health and hygiene African Americans -- Religion
Department	Department of Psychology
Advisor	Mate-Kole, C. Charles
Type	Text
Digital Format	application/pdf
Language	eng
OCLC number	713735071
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Racial identity, spirituality and health attitudes among african americans

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