Paper

Thalia Acosta

11/30/2020

REL 2011

Research Proposal

Can religion help boost your depression?

Three supporting questions:

1- Can religion help minimize depression traits?

2- What are the differences between positive and negative religious coping? How does it affect you mentally?

3- Can religion help restore your faith?

Preliminary annotated bibliography

Can religion help minimize depression and anxiety traits?

Bonelli, Raphael et al. “Religious and spiritual factors in depression: review and integration of the research.” Depression research and treatment vol. 2012 (2012): 962860. doi:10.1155/2012/962860

This article does a great job in showing how religion practices can minimize depression traits. From the amount of individuals tested on this study, a great percentage of them showed less depression when introduced to religious beliefs. Religious beliefs help individuals better cope with stressful life situations because it gives you a purpose to keep fighting in life. This study shows that religions is effective in minimizing depression.

What are the differences between positive and negative religious coping? How does it affect you mentally?

Hebert, Randy et al. “Positive and negative religious coping and well-being in women with breast cancer.” Journal of palliative medicine vol. 12,6 (2009): 537-45. doi:10.1089/jpm.2008.0250

This article talks about the difference between negative and positive religious coping and how it affects your mental health. During this study, negative religious coping showed that it affects your mental health by causing depression and lowering life satisfaction. However, this study states that positive religious coping can help you stay positive longer and help improve your mental health. Positive religious coping can stimulate personal growth and be an important counterbalance to psychological distress.

Can religion help restore your faith?

Behere, Prakash B et al. “Religion and mental health.” Indian journal of psychiatry vol. 55,Suppl 2 (2013): S187-94. doi:10.4103/0019-5545.105526

This study focuses on how religion can help you restore your faith and better your depression state. It states how religion is important when it comes to staying hopeful for the future and it has a positive association with good mental health. This article talks about the importance of faith and beliefs systems to mental health and how it pays an important role in making humans feel less helpless and more powerful.