Religiosity and Spirituality Among Persons With Spinal Cord Injury: Attitudes, Beliefs, and Practices

A total of 157 persons with spinal cord injury completed the Spirituality and Spinal Cord Injury Survey in relation to their spiritual and/or religious attitudes, beliefs, and practices in terms of adapting to their disability. Factor analysis accounting for 69% of the variance revealed four factors related to Spiritual Help and Improvement (36%), Spiritual Decline (22%), Punishment/Atonement (6%), and Body/Mind Improvements (5%). Participants were further classified by time since injury, which statistically indicated that some individuals tend to become more focused on religious or spiritual practices and beliefs regarding cure soon after injury; however, these behaviors and beliefs tend to dissipate over time. The majority of participants expressed overall satisfaction with God or a Spiritual Power (G/SP) and that G/SP helped them cope, gave them meaning, and was a source of happiness in their lives. Implications for rehabilitation counselors and educators are discussed.