The Relationship Between Religious Exposure and Psychological Well-being with Loneliness in the Elderly

One of the major challenges to the elderly in the modern world is loneliness. Feeling lonely is experienced in all age groups, though it is a stronger feeling at old ages. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between religious exposure and psychological well-being with loneliness in the elderly. The statistical population of the study included all elderly people covered by the Welfare Office and Imam Khomeini Relief Committee in Maragheh. According to Morgan's table and using a convenience sampling method, 168 individuals were selected accordingly. Golman religious coping questionnaire (2011), Russell's loneliness questionnaire (1966), and psychological well-being survey by Tabesei Zanjani (2004) were used for collecting data. The results were analyzed using Pearson correlation and simultaneous regression tests. Results showed an inverse and significant relationship between loneliness and subcategories of psychological well-being (p≤0.01). The results also reported that loneliness had an inverse and significant relationship with active coping subscales, passive coping and negative feelings toward God (p≤0.05). The results of simultaneous regression showed that psychological well-being and religious coping were both negative predictors for loneliness. Though, psychological well-being with a beta coefficient of -0.479 is a better predictor of loneliness. It was deduced from the results of the study that religious beliefs play an important role in preventing and reducing loneliness. In addition, a higher level of psychological well-being prevents loneliness occurring.