Spirituality as a Protective Factor A Multinational Study of 267 Adults with Care Experience
Main Article Content
Keywords
spirituality, care leavers, adults with care experience, alternative care, faith, religiosity, protective factors, resilience
Abstract
Adults who were separated from parental care as children and resided in alternative care settings often experience difficulties throughout their lifespan. Thus, it is important to explore factors that lead to better outcomes. Spirituality is one protective factor that has received attention in academic literature in recent years. However, little work has examined spirituality in this population or the specific ways it impacts wellbeing in adulthood. Using thematic analysis, the current study explored the specific ways spirituality serves as a protective factor in a multinational sample of 267 individuals with care experience. Data revealed six spirituality-related themes: 1) relationship with God, 2) spiritual community support, 3) spirituality as a component of identity development, 4) a belief in a higher purpose, 5) spirituality-motivated servanthood, and 6) access to spirituality-based teachings and teachers. Based on these findings, we propose data-informed recommendations to improve services for children separated from parental care.
References
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Commonalities and divergences. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 7(1), 24.
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0037652
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of resilience in contexts of humanitarian crisis. Journal of Refugee Studies, 28(2),
202-221. https://doi.org/10.1093/jrs/fev001
Bang, H., Won, D., & Park, S. (2020). School engagement, self-esteem, and depression of
adolescents: The role of sport participation and volunteering activity and gender
differences. Children and Youth Services Review, 113, 105012. https://doi.org/10.
1016/j.childyouth.2020.105012
Bauer, S., & Campbell, C. (2021). Christian faith and resilience: Implications for social work
practice. Social Work & Christianity, 48(1), 28-51. https://doi.org/10.34043/swc.
v48i1.212
Berejena Mhongera, P., & Lombard, A. (2016). Poverty to more poverty: An evaluation of
transition services provided to adolescent girls from two institutions in Zimbabwe.
Children and Youth Services Review, 64, 145-154. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyo
uth.2016.03.013
Biesta, G. (2010). Pragmatism and the philosophical foundations of mixed methods research.
Sage handbook of mixed methods in social and behavioral research, 2, 95-118.
Boldiş, I. (2014). Youth transition from care to independent adulthood: A social problem?.
Revista de Asistenţă Socială, 13(4), 101-119. Retrieved from https://www.ceeol.com/sear
ch/article-detail?id=302589
Brewer-Smyth, K., & Koenig, H. G. (2014). Could spirituality and religion promote stress
resilience in survivors of childhood trauma?. Issues in Mental Health Nursing, 35(4),
251-256. https://doi.org/10.3109/01612840.2013.873101
Brislin, R. W. (1980). Cross-Cultural Research Methods. In Altman I., Rapoport A., & Wohlwill
J. F. (Eds.), Environment and culture. Human behavior and environment. Springer,
Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0451-5_3
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spirituality, and interpersonal trauma recovery. American Psychologist, 68(8), 675–684.
https://doi.org/10.1037/a0034380
Carter, E. W. (2016). A place of belonging: Research at the intersection of faith and disability.
Review & Expositor, 113(2), 167-180. https://doi.org/10.1177/0034637316637861
Center on Applied Research for Vulnerable Children and Families. (2020). Case management for
child welfare. Retrieved from https://issuu.com/christianalliancefororphans/docs/case
_management_11
Creswell, J. (2013). Qualitative inquiry and research design: Choosing among five approaches (
3rd ed.) Thousand Oaks: Sage.
Creswell, J. W., Hanson, W. E., Clark Plano, V. L., & Morales, A. (2007). Qualitative research
designs: Selection and implementation. The Counseling Psychologist, 35(2), 236-264. https://doi.org/10.1177%2F0011000006287390
Desmond, C., Watt, K., Saha, A., Huang, J., & Lu, C. (2020). Prevalence and number of children
living in institutional care: Global, regional, and country estimates. The Lancet Child &
Adolescent Health, 4(5), 370-377. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2352-4642(20)30022-5
Dieleman, S., Rondel, D., & Voparil, C. (2017). Introduction: Perspectives on pragmatism and
justice. In Pragmatism and Justice. Edited by Dieleman, S., Rondel, D., and
Voparil, C. New York: Oxford University Press, pp. 1-17.
Diraditsile, K., & Nyadza, M. (2018). Life after institutional care: Implications for research and
practice. Child & Family Social Work, 23(3), 451-457. https://doi.org/10.1111/cfs.12436
Ellis, B. J., Bianchi, J., Griskevicius, V., & Frankenhuis, W. E. (2017). Beyond risk and
protective factors: An adaptation-based approach to resilience. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 12(4), 561-587. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691617693054
Francis, L. J., Fisher, J., Lankshear, D. W., & Eccles, E. L. (2018). Modelling the effect of
worship attendance and personal prayer on spiritual well-being among 9-to 11-year-old
students attending Anglican church schools in Wales. International Journal of Children's
Spirituality, 23(1), 30-44. https://doi.org/10.1080/1364436X.2017.1419938
Frimpong-Manso, K. (2018). Building and utilising resilience: The challenges and coping
mechanisms of care leavers in Ghana. Children and Youth Services Review, 87, 52-59.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.02.016
Gilligan, R. (2010). Promoting positive outcomes for children in need. The importance of
protective capacity in the child and their social network. The Child’s World: The Comprehensive Guide to Assessing Children in Need, 2nd edn. London: Jessica Kingsely, 174-83.
Ginesini, G. (2018). Forced migration: Trauma, faith, and resilience. Social Work & Christianity,
45(4), 98-121. Retrieved from https://www.proquest.com/openview/f12984da5e1fd43126
f2f56be9a6001a/1?pq-origsite=gscholar&cbl=40430
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paradigm: The legacy of Burrell and Morgan. Omega, 28(3), 249-268.
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-0483(99)00042-0
Gough, G., & Gulliford, A. (2020). Resilience amongst young carers: Investigating protective
factors and benefit-finding as perceived by young carers. Educational Psychology in
Practice, 36(2), 149-169. https://doi.org/10.1080/02667363.2019.1710469
Gusler, S. K., Jackson, Y., & Brown, S. (2020). The impact of maltreatment on internalizing
symptoms for foster youth: an examination of spirituality and appraisals as moderators.
Journal of Child & Adolescent Trauma, 13(4), 455-467.
Herschell, A. D., Kolko, D. J., Hart, J. A., Brabson, L. A., & Gavin, J. G. (2020). Mixed method
study of workforce turnover and evidence-based treatment implementation in community
behavioral health care settings. Child Abuse & Neglect, 102, 104419. https://doi.org/1
0.1016/j.chiabu.2020.104419
Herta, D.- C., Brindas, P., Trifu, R., & Cozman, D. (2016). Risk and resilience factors of persons
exposed to accidents. Medicine and Pharmacy Reports, 89(2), 257–266. doi:
10.15386/cjmed-547
Heywood, D. (1986). Piaget and faith development: A true marriage of minds?. British Journal
of Religious Education, 8(2), 72-78. https://doi.org/10.1080/0141620860080204
Kakkar, P. (2019). Adoption in India–The past, present, and future trends. International Journal
of Research and Analytical Reviews, 6(2), 718-721. Retrieved from http://ijrar.com/upl
oad_issue/ijrar_issue_20543814.pdf
Korang-Okrah, R. (2015). "It's only by God's Grace": Capturing Ghanaian (Akan) Widows'
Perspectives on Risk and Resilience. Social Work & Christianity, 42(1). Retrieved from
https://www.nacsw.org/RC/49993957.pdf#page=9
Lee, J. H., Nam, S. K., Kim, A. R., Kim, B., Lee, M. Y., & Lee, S. M. (2013). Resilience: A
meta‐analytic approach. Journal of Counseling & Development, 91(3), 269-279.
Llenares, I. I., Sario, J. A., Bialba, D., & Dela Cruz, J. M. (2020). Volunteerism influences on
student resilience and gratitude. Journal of Psychology in Africa, 30(3), 211-216. https://doi.org/10.1080/14330237.2020.1777031
Lou, Y., Taylor, E. P., & Di Folco, S. (2018). Resilience and resilience factors in children in
residential care: A systematic review. Children and Youth Services Review, 89, 83-92.
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.childyouth.2018.04.010
Lunn, J. (2009). The role of religion, spirituality and faith in development: A critical theory
approach. Third World Quarterly, 30(5), 937-951. https://doi.org/10.1080/0143659090
Makanui, K. P., Jackson, Y., & Gusler, S. (2019). Spirituality and its relation to mental health
outcomes: An examination of youth in foster care. Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, 11(3), 203. https://doi.org/10.1037/rel0000184
Manwell, L. A., Barbic, S. P., Roberts, K., Durisko, Z., Lee, C., Ware, E., & McKenzie, K.
(2015). What is mental health? Evidence towards a new definition from a mixed methods
multidisciplinary international survey. BMJ Open, 5(6). http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/bmjo
pen-2014-007079
Marler, P. L., & Hadaway, C. K. (2002). “Being religious” or “being spiritual” in America: a
zero‐sum proposition?. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 41(2), 289-300.
https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5906.00117
Martikke, S., Cumbers, H., Cox, N., Webb, L., Gedzielewski, E., & Duale, M. (2019). Building
bridges into the community: Social capital in a volunteering project for care leavers.
Children & Society, 33(2), 111-125. https://doi.org/10.1111/chso.12300
Martin, F., & Zulaika, G. (2016). Who cares for children? A descriptive study of
care-related data available through global household surveys and how these could
be better mined to inform policies and services to strengthen family care. Global
Social Welfare, 3(2), 6. https://doi.org/10.1007/s40609-016-0060-6
Matheson, I. (2016). The importance of individual personal factors: The experiences of care
leavers who went to university. Developing Practice: The Child, Youth and Family Work
Journal, (46), 42-54. Retrieved from https://search.informit.org/documentSummary;
dn=005713080211730;res=IELHSS
Melkman, E., Mor-Salwo, Y., Mangold, K., Zeller, M., & Benbenishty, R. (2015). Care leavers as helpers: Motivations for and benefits of helping others. Children and Youth Services
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