Center for Health Policy and Inequalities Research, Duke Global Health Institute, Duke University, 310 Trent Drive, Durham, NC, 27705, USA.
Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 27705, USA.
J Relig Health. 2023 Jun;62(3):1597-1615. doi: 10.1007/s10943-022-01699-y. Epub 2022 Dec 12.
Clergy are tasked with multiple interpersonal administrative, organizational, and religious responsibilities, such as preaching, teaching, counseling, administering sacraments, developing lay leader skills, and providing leadership and vision for the congregation and community. The high expectations and demands placed on them put them at an increased risk for mental distress such as depression and anxiety. Little is known about whether and how clergy, helpers themselves, receive care when they experience mental distress. All active United Methodist Church (UMC) clergy in North Carolina were recruited to take a survey in 2019 comprising validated depression and anxiety screeners and questions about mental health service utilization. Bivariate and Poisson regression analyses were conducted on the subset of participants with elevated depressive and anxiety symptoms to determine the extent of mental health service use during four different timeframes and the relationship between service use and sociodemographic variables. A total of 1,489 clergy participated. Of the 222 (15%) who had elevated anxiety or depressive symptoms or both, 49.1% had not ever or recently (in the past two years) seen a mental health professional. Participants were more likely to report using services currently or recently (in the past two years) if they were younger, had depression before age 21, or "very often" felt loved and cared for by their congregation. The rate of mental health service use among UMC clergy is comparable to the national average of service use by US adults with mental distress. However, it is concerning that 49% of clergy with elevated symptoms were not engaged in care. This study points to clergy subgroups to target for an increase in mental health service use. Strategies to support clergy and minimize mental health stigma are needed.
神职人员承担着多项人际管理、组织和宗教职责，例如讲道、教学、咨询、管理圣礼、培养平信徒领袖技能，以及为会众和社区提供领导和愿景。他们面临着更高的期望和要求，因此更容易出现精神困扰，如抑郁和焦虑。目前还不太清楚神职人员在经历精神困扰时是否以及如何寻求帮助。2019 年，北卡罗来纳州所有在职的循道卫理联合教会（UMC）神职人员都被招募来参与一项调查，该调查包括经过验证的抑郁和焦虑筛查以及关于心理健康服务利用的问题。对具有较高抑郁和焦虑症状的参与者子集进行了双变量和泊松回归分析，以确定在四个不同时间段内使用心理健康服务的程度，以及服务使用与社会人口变量之间的关系。共有 1489 名神职人员参与。在 222 名（15%）出现焦虑或抑郁症状或两者兼有者中，有 49.1%的人从未或最近（在过去两年内）看过心理健康专业人员。如果参与者年龄较小、在 21 岁之前患有抑郁症，或者“经常”感到被会众所爱和关心，他们更有可能报告目前或最近（在过去两年内）使用服务。循道卫理联合教会神职人员的心理健康服务使用率与美国有精神困扰的成年人的全国平均服务使用率相当。然而，令人担忧的是，49%出现症状的神职人员没有接受治疗。这项研究指出了需要提高心理健康服务使用率的神职人员亚群体。需要制定支持神职人员和减少心理健康污名化的策略。
