Religiosity, magical ideation, and paranormal beliefs in anxiety disorders and obsessive-compulsive disorder: a cross-sectional study

Beyond Belief and Practice: An Exploratory Literature Review and Discussion of the Differential Impact of Spirituality and Religiosity on Mental Health Disorders

The relationship between spirituality and religiosity and their impact on mental health is intricate and underexplored. This exploratory review aims to elucidate the distinct effects of these constructs, highlighting their contributions to psychological well-being and clinical practices. By dissecting the impacts of spirituality and religiosity on mental health, the study focuses on their individual and combined roles in shaping therapeutic approaches and theoretical understandings in the field. A literature review was conducted using PubMed, focusing on articles discussing spirituality, religiosity, and their intersection with mental health and psychopathology. Out of 312 identified articles, 69 peer-reviewed articles were included after screening for relevance. The results indicate that spirituality and religiosity significantly influence mental health yet are often conflated, leading to research inconsistencies and clinical challenges. Spirituality, as a broad and individualistic pathway, enhances personal well-being and resilience, often transcending organized religious practices. In contrast, religiosity, with its structured community support, sometimes imposes constraints that exacerbate stress under specific doctrinal pressures. Neurobiological evidence suggests that both constructs interact with cognitive processes and brain function, influencing emotional regulation and stress response. The study concludes that distinguishing between spirituality and religiosity is essential for precise academic discourse and effective clinical practice. This differentiation allows for more personalized therapeutic approaches, accommodating an individual's spiritual and religious contexts. The authors propose a refined framework for future research and therapeutic applications to be sensitive to the nuanced experiences of individuals and to better tailor interventions in clinical settings.

Assessment of Comorbid Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

Obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) are commonly comorbid and share prominent features (e.g., intrusions, safety behaviors, and avoidance). Excellent self-report and clinician-administered assessments exist for OCD and PTSD individually, but few assess both disorders, and even fewer provide instruction on differential diagnosis or detection of comorbid OCD and PTSD. To address this gap in the literature, the current paper aims to (1) highlight diagnostic and functional similarities and differences between OCD and PTSD to inform differential diagnosis, (2) outline assessment recommendations for individuals with suspected comorbid OCD and PTSD, OCD with a significant trauma history or posttraumatic symptoms, or PTSD with significant obsessive-compulsive symptoms, and (3) explore future directions to evaluate and improve methods for assessing co-occurring OCD and PTSD.

[Spirituality - Value of the relationship]

Nowadays, issues of religiosity and spirituality are viewed differently than 50 years ago. Social upheaval, migration and secularization have changed the interpretation of religious meaning but have not made religion obsolete. This article describes the differences between a religious and a secular global view and defines spirituality as attachment to a larger entirety. The resources of spirituality are described and the dangers of fanaticism and fundamentalism should not be neglected. Criteria for healthy belief are compared to religious delusion. In the context of attachment theory and the concept of self-transcendence, the value of spirituality is explained by connectedness and relationship.

Influence of religious aspects and personal beliefs on psychological behavior: focus on anxiety disorders

The current paper presents literature relevant to the relationship of religiosity, spirituality, and personal beliefs with mental health and, in particular, anxiety disorders as an empirical narrative review, providing an overview on the most important and clinically relevant research results on the topic. The relationship between religiosity/spirituality, personal beliefs (ie, magical ideation and paranormal beliefs), and mental health has lately been studied extensively, and results have indicated significant associations among these variables. However, scientific approaches to this field are complex and multidimensional, partly leading to poor operationalization, incomparable data, and contradictory results. Literature demonstrates that higher religiosity/spirituality and magical ideation scores have often been associated with increased obsessive–compulsive traits. Similar results could not be confidently replicated for other anxiety disorders. However, it is still unclear if these differences suggest a specific association with obsessive–compulsive traits and reflect deviating etiopathogenetic and cognitive aspects between obsessive–compulsive disorder and other anxiety disorders, or if these results are biased through other factors. Religiosity/spirituality and personal beliefs constitute important parameters of human experience and deserve greater consideration in the psychotherapeutic treatment of psychiatric disorders.