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01-06-2006

Trends in the Scientific Study of Religion, Spirituality, and Health: 1965–2000

Authors: Andrew J. Weaver, Kenneth I. Pargament, Kevin J. Flannelly, Julia E. Oppenheimer

Published in: Journal of Religion and Health | Issue 2/2006

Abstract

The present study examined the degree to which interest in religion, spirituality, and health has changed in psychology and the behavioral sciences over the past few decades. To accomplish this, searches were conducted on the PsycINFO database between the years 1965 and 2000. Three basic searches were conducted combining the word “health” with the following search terms: 1. (religion OR religious OR religiosity) NOT (spiritual OR spirituality); 2. (spiritual OR spirituality) NOT (religion OR religious OR religiosity); and 3. (religion OR religious OR religiosity) AND (spiritual OR spirituality). The rate per 100,000 articles was then calculated for each of the three search-terms: religion, spirituality, religion and spirituality. A significant upward trend across years was found for the rate of articles dealing with spirituality, r(34) = .95, p<.001, and religion and spirituality, r(34) = .86, p<.001. A significant downward trend was found for articles that only addressed religion, r(34) = −.64, p<.001. The consequences of these trends are discussed.

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Title: Trends in the Scientific Study of Religion, Spirituality, and Health: 1965–2000
Authors: Andrew J. Weaver
Kenneth I. Pargament
Kevin J. Flannelly
Julia E. Oppenheimer
Publication date: 01-06-2006
Publisher: Springer US
Published in: Journal of Religion and Health / Issue 2/2006
Print ISSN: 0022-4197
Electronic ISSN: 1573-6571
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-006-9011-3

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