The influence of spiritual-religious coping on the quality of life of Brazilian parents who have lost a child by homicide, suicide, or accident

ABSTRACT

Spiritual-religious coping (SRC) may be significant for the quality of life of Brazilian parents who have lost a child due to homicide, suicide or accidental causes. Forty parents responded to the: SRC Scale, the WHOQOL Spirituality Religiousness and Personal Beliefs, the Duke University Religion Index, and interviews. The results indicated that SRC can collaborate in bereavement by traumatic loss, especially the Positive SRC feature “offering help to others,” which can help promote well-being, construction of meaning and pursuit of meaning in life. A total of 70% reported being involved in social projects or volunteering as a resource in the grieving process.

KEYWORDS:

• Spiritual religious coping
• bereavement
• quality of life
• spirituality
• religiosity
• mental health
• religious frequency
• volunteering

Acknowledgments

We would like to acknowledge the financing received from CAPES (Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior), and the contributions of Dr. Maria Helena Pereira Franco, Dr. Antônio Maspoli Gomes, Dr. Frederico Camelo Leão.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (00889834/0001-08).