Rush Institute for Healthy Aging, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL 60612, USA.
Aging Ment Health. 2010 Sep;14(7):779-89. doi: 10.1080/13607861003713265.
The objectives of this study were to describe the levels of daily spiritual experiences (DSEs) in community-dwelling older adults, to compare the levels of spiritual experiences with the levels of prayer and religious service attendance, and to examine the demographic and psychosocial correlates of spiritual experiences. The data came from 6534 participants in the Chicago Health and Aging Project, an ongoing population-based, biracial (65% African American) study of the risk factors for incident Alzheimer's disease among older adults. A 5-item version of the Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES) was used in the study. Multivariable linear regression models were used to examine the relationship between sociodemographic and psychosocial factors and DSES scores.
The majority of the participants reported having spiritual experiences at least daily. In the bivariate analyses, African Americans and women had higher DSES scores than Whites and men, respectively (p's < 0.001). Prayer and worship were moderately associated with DSES scores. In the multivariable analyses, African American race, older age, female gender, better self-rated health, and greater social networks were associated with higher DSES scores, while higher levels of education and depressive symptoms were associated with lower DSES scores.
We observed high levels of spiritual experiences and found that the DSES is related to, but distinct from the traditional measures of religiosity. We found associations between DSES, demographic, and psychosocial factors that are consistent with the findings for other religiosity and spirituality (R/S) measures. Future research should test whether DSES contributes to our understanding of the relationship between R/S and health in older adults.
本研究旨在描述社区居住的老年人日常精神体验（DSE）的水平，比较精神体验水平与祈祷和宗教服务参与水平，并探讨精神体验的人口统计学和心理社会相关性。数据来自芝加哥健康老龄化项目的 6534 名参与者，该项目是一项正在进行的基于人群的、多种族（65%为非裔美国人）的研究，旨在研究老年人中阿尔茨海默病发病的风险因素。该研究使用了每日精神体验量表（DSES）的 5 项版本。多变量线性回归模型用于检验社会人口统计学和心理社会因素与 DSES 评分之间的关系。
大多数参与者报告每天至少有一次精神体验。在单变量分析中，非裔美国人和女性的 DSES 评分分别高于白人和男性（p 值均<0.001）。祈祷和敬拜与 DSES 评分中度相关。在多变量分析中，非裔美国人种族、年龄较大、女性、自我报告健康状况较好和社交网络较大与 DSES 评分较高相关，而较高的教育水平和抑郁症状与 DSES 评分较低相关。
我们观察到高水平的精神体验，并发现 DSES 与传统的宗教信仰测量相关，但又有所不同。我们发现 DSES 与人口统计学和心理社会因素之间存在关联，这些关联与其他宗教信仰和精神（R/S）测量的结果一致。未来的研究应检验 DSES 是否有助于我们理解 R/S 与老年人健康之间的关系。
