1. Existential/Spiritual Development
Module 11-2
Existential/Spiritual Development

2. What are Values?
Beliefs & attitudes about the way things should be, & what is important

3. Do your values affect your life?
Values and life satisfaction
Money
Love
Life satisfaction
0.6
0.4
0.2
0.0
-0.2
-0.4
Importance
scores

4. Can Cultural Values Change?
Changes in U.S. (college student) values in the last 50 years
Less importance on a meaningful philosophy of life
Less concern for the well-being of others.
Greater concern for personal well-being
More interested in self-fulfillment & self-expression
More interest in physical health & well-being

5. Values Taught in the U.S. – last 50 years
Emphasized personal rights in education.
De-emphasized social responsibility.
Produced a “me first” mentality that undermines:
trust in others
commitment
altruism

6. Results? Increasing Antisocial Behavior
Conduct disorder – age-inappropriate actions & attitudes that violate family expectations, society’s norms, and the personal or property rights of others
Impulsive, overactive, aggressive, under-controlled
Temperament, parenting, violent neighborhood

7. Is there a Spiritual Void?
Gabarino (1999) interviewed youth. Found spiritual, emotional emptiness. Seeking meaning on the dark side.
Does out-of-control behavior come from a lack of meaning, or a lack of order and authority? Are the two related?

8. Meaning in Life Victor Frankl (1984)
Life is meaningful because it is unique & finite; three most distinct human qualities are spirituality, freedom & responsibility
Baumeister (1992) Needs for meaning
Purpose: goals & fulfillment
Values:
Sense of efficacy: one can make a difference
Self-worth: from doing & belonging

9. What does being religious do for a person?
Teenagers (13-18 year olds)
95% believe in God
75% pray
50% went to church
Among college students
79% believe in God
69% pray
69% searching for meaning
50% not secure about religious beliefs
Lifespan Religious/Spiritual Beliefs - U.S.

10. Religion & Spirituality – U.S. Adolescents
Positive effects
Less likely to use drugs
Health
Lower levels of problem behavior/delinquency
More likely to do community service
Religious behaviors were linked to sexual activity

11. U.S. Religious/Spiritual Beliefs - Adulthood
MacArthur Study of Midlife Development
70% religious, spirituality a part of their lives
75% pray
Half attend services only rarely
Declining faith in
Mainstream institutions (denominations)
Religious leaders
Spiritual & moral stature of the nation

12. Benefits of Faith Meaningful faith related to happiness
Religious women had higher self-rated health throughout life (ages 20-94); no association for men
Studies have found that religious commitment moderates blood pressure
Religious participation related to longer life (42 studies) – Health Psychology
Prayer is associated with positive, health-related changes

13. Benefits of Faith Mind Health Report, Dr. Andrew Newberg, neurotheology
Becoming more forgiving. Forgiveness is associated with better overall health and life satisfaction – Psychological Science
Achieving Goals more effectively (better self-control)– Psychological Bulletin
Teens only half as likely to use drugs – Psychology of Addictive Behaviors

14. Benefits of Faith Medical
Coping better with breast cancer – PsychoOncology
Improving recovery from heart surgery – The Gerontologist
Enhancing Recovery from brain injury – Rehabilitation Psychology
Reducing the impact of chronic pain – Journal of Behavioral Medicine
Reducing risk for diabetes complications – Diabetes Care
Lowering kids’ anxiety before surgery – Anesthesia & Intensive Care

15. Benefits of Faith Mental Health
Recovering from abusive relationships – Social Psychology Quarterly
Reducing risk for depression – American Journal of Psychiatry
Protecting against stress – Annals of Behavioral Medicine
Protecting against Age-related Mental Decline – The Journals of Gerontology: Series B
Improving mood & outlook – Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease
Calming Anger – Personality & Social Psychology Bulletin
Controlling Fear of Terrorist attacks – Journal of Personality & Social Psychology
Alleviating Panic Disorder – Depression & Anxiety

16. Negative Views of God Have negative consequences
Holding God responsible for harm
Feeling abandoned by God
Attributing cruelty to God
Anger at God
Seeing self as a victim
Have negative consequences
Increased risk of death – Archives of internal Medicine (600 hospital patients)
Mental well-being decreased among breast-cancer patients – Journal of Palliative Medicine
Problems recovering from the death of a loved one – Journal of Personality & Social Psychology

17. Religious Activity & the Brain
Generally, prayer activates the more “human” (anterior cingulate) and rational (frontal lobe) parts of the brain and deactivates the more primitive emotional systems (limbic)
Speaking in Tongues (also known as praying in the Spirit) decreases frontal lobe activity

18. Spirituality & Neuroscience
What does a PET scan of prayer and meditation look like?
Parietal lobes become quiet (sense of timelessness)
Temporal lobes become active (associated with hallucinations, OBE’s)
Conclusion: It appears the brain is wired for mystical experience.

19. Religious Activity & the Brain
12 minutes of prayer per day may decrease frontal lobe shrinkage that occurs with age
Increased activity in the anterior cingulate area leads to feelings of compassion
As parietal lobe activity drops, we begin to feel more at one with God, others and the universe
Prayer can prevent activation of negative emotions in the limbic system (fear/anger)

20. Religious Activity & the Brain
The frontal lobe is engaged in activities such as:
Meditation
Chanting
Repetitive prayers
Contemplative prayers
For optimum brain function, it may be good to reduce limbic activity as much as possible
This should help the body by reducing stress.

21. How about people who had NDE’s (Near Death Experiences)?
More self-awareness
More social awareness
Vivid memories of the NDE
Increased belief in an afterlife
Lessening of the fear of death
More empathy
Effects persisted and even increased after 8 years.
A control group of people who nearly died, but had no NDE, did not have these effects, but more PTSD-like (Post-traumatic Stress Disorder) symptoms
Van Lommel (Cited in Discover, July 2005)

22. Religion in Older Adults
Increase in spirituality at the beginning of older adulthood;
Associated with earlier spirituality in the 30’s
Early involvement predisposes to further development
Older adults more likely to say that:
Faith is the most significant influence in their lives
Try to put faith into practice
Attend services

23. Religion in Older Adults
Affects self-esteem, life satisfaction, & optimism if it is meaningful
Helps one to face death
Helps one to find meaning
Helps one to accept the losses of old age
Religious friends give social support
Religious services and activities allow people to assume leadership, teaching roles
Prayer & meditation lower stress and are associated with longevity