scholarly journals Looking back to the future: The current relevance of Maria Montessori’s ideas about the spiritual well-being of young children

2009 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1 ◽  
Author(s):  
Virginia Anne Tregenza

Maria Montessori (1870-1952) was an Italian educator whose ideas and principles have validity in informing, understanding and responding to the challenges faced by contemporary educators . Many of her foundational principles are at the forefront of current educational thinking but are unacknowledged or unknown in mainstream education. It is argued that her ideas and principles about the spiritual wellbeing of young children have validity in the current debate. Montessori saw spirituality as innate in young children, the primary force driving their development and central to their capacity for joyful and deep engagement with their environment. She saw children’s capacity and ability to concentrate deeply as a spiritual pathway to a new level of individual consciousness and connection to the environment. These principles can inform our current thinking, understanding and response to young children’s spirituality. The conditions to bring about, support and protect what Montessori calls ‘concentration’ should be considered in pedagogical responses to the spiritual needs of young children

2015 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kanwal Shahbaz ◽  
Dr. Kiran Shahbaz

The study was aimed to find the relationship between Spiritual Wellbeing and Quality of Life among chronically ill individuals. Likewise, relationship between demographic variables with Quality of Life and Spiritual Wellbeing were also reconnoitered. Non probability purposive sampling technique was used with chronically ill patients of 15yrs to 80yrs. For measuring spiritual wellbeing Urdu version of “Spiritual Wellness Inventory” (SWI-URDU) (Hanif, 2010) was used. Alternatively, for the measurement of Quality of life WHO Quality of Life Questionnaire (WHO-QOL-BREF) was used. A sample of 200 chronically ill patients were taken from four different hospitals of Rawalpindi and Islamabad. Reliabilities of both the instruments were computed as 0.90 for SWI and 0.74 for WHO-QOL-BREF. Findings show that quality of life and Spiritual wellbeing is positively related among chronically ill individuals. Males found to score high on spiritual wellbeing than females. Individuals with less education are more spiritually inclined as compared to individuals with high education. Quality of life was scored high by individuals with higher education as compared to less education. Married individuals were having better quality of life than unmarried, separated widow and divorced. Patients with middle socio-economic status were having better quality of life than higher and lower. Quality of life was high among individuals with better monthly income than those who have low and middle monthly incomes. Spiritual well being is higher in middle adolescents (15-17) than in late (18-20) adolescents. The current research can be implemented in designing the intervention plans for the betterment of chronically ill patients. It may also help us to develop an insight that each patient with same disease but in different age group and socio-economic status has different needs and plans of treatment and care.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-75 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Foster ◽  
Anna Foster

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the emerging spirituality debate with the aim of generating and sustaining tolerance for spirituality in the workplace, with a specific focus upon the impact this can have upon work-based learners. “Spirituality” is gaining impetus worldwide as a growing number of organisations are proactively accommodating their multi-ethnic and multi-faith workforce by adapting their policies to meet employees’ spiritual needs. As yet in the UK, the majority of organisations fail to recognise neither the basic spiritual well-being of their employees nor the impact this can have upon work-based learning processes. Design/methodology/approach This study adopts a quantitative approach with questionnaires distributed to a multi-national retail UK-based organisation with an ethnically diverse national workforce. The study was tested by collecting data from managers and employees of this large, multi-million pound retail chain organisation in the UK, consisting of 55 stores and 1,249 employees, in order to gather employees’ perceptions on spirituality within their place of work regarding policies, communication and perceived source of conflict. Findings The results revealed that the majority of employees deemed spirituality was not something they felt comfortable discussing or appropriate to practice within the workplace and there were no clear policies and procedures in place to support either management or employees. Research limitations/implications This paper highlights areas for further research in the broad professional areas of spirituality in relation to organisational approaches to work-based learning. The research is from one organisation and utilising one method – qualitative research would add depth to the knowledge. Practical implications This paper highlights areas for further research in the broad professional areas of spirituality in relation to organisational approaches to work-based learning. Originality/value Employee spiritual well-being is under-researched and overlooked by organisations. Changing the current spiritual intransigence is long overdue as employees’ spiritual fulfilment leads to high-trust relationships in the workplace and can further support those engaged in work-based learning.


2019 ◽  
Vol 33 (4) ◽  
pp. 392-409
Author(s):  
Ahmad Salem Musa ◽  
Mohammad Ibrahim Al Qadire ◽  
Ma'en Aljezawi ◽  
Loai I. Tawalbeh ◽  
Sami Aloush ◽  
...  

Background and PurposeSpiritual care is an essential part of holistic patient care but is provided infrequently in practice. There is a paucity of research investigating the barriers to the provision of spiritual care among Jordanian nurses. The main purpose of this cross-sectional, correlational study was to identify these barriers and to explore the associations with nurses' personal and professional characteristics. A secondary purpose was to examine the psychometric properties of a newlydeveloped spiritual care barriers instrument.MethodsWe surveyed a convenience sample of Jordanian nurses (N = 282). Participants completed both the Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) and the Spiritual Care Barriers Scale (SCBS). We conducted an exploratory factor analysis to examine the internal structure of the SCBS, and internal consistency was assessed by Cronbach's alpha.ResultsThe most common perceived barriers were lack of private places (82.3%), absence of an imam (79.8%), insufficient time (78.8%), inadequate skills and competencies (73.7%), lack ofreligious and spiritual facilities and resources in the hospital (71.3%), and insufficient knowledge (71.3%). Nurses' personal spiritual and existential well-being were negatively associated with spiritual care barriers. Head nurses and supervisors reported lower mean scores on perceived barriers than did associate nurses. The SCBS exhibited acceptable evidence of internal consistency and validity.Implications for PracticeThe findings help Jordanian nurse decision makers in practice and education to overcome barriers to the provision of spiritual care to better meet the spiritual needs of Muslim patients.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Quying Wen ◽  
Miaorui Jiao ◽  
Huailin Wang ◽  
Yanli Hu

Abstract Aims: The purpose of this study was to test the associations between spiritual needs, perceived social support, spiritual well-being, and quality of life (QoL) and examine the multiple mediating effects of perceived social support and spiritual well-being on the relationship between spiritual needs and QoL among patients with advanced cancer.Methods: Spiritual needs, perceived social support, spiritual well-being and QoL were assessed using self-report questionnaires among 286 cancer patients in a tertiary oncology hospital. The mediation model was analysed using the SPSS PROCESS procedure, and indirect effects were evaluated with bootstrapping.Results: QoL was positively correlated with spiritual needs (r=0.315, p<0.01), perceived social support (r=0.451, p<0.01) and spiritual well-being (r=0.636, p<0.01). The relationship between spiritual needs and QoL was mediated by perceived social support (indirect effect: 0.063, confidence interval (CI) (0.018, 0.118)) and spiritual well-being (indirect effect: 0.068, CI (0.001, 0.155)) and serially mediated by spiritual needs and QoL (indirect effect: 0.072, CI (0.041, 0.113)).Conclusions: The results emphasize the importance of spiritual well-being and social support for cancer patients, especially those with more spiritual needs. They suggest that healthcare providers should develop strategies to enhance perceived social support and spiritual well-being when caring for cancer patients to improve patients’ QoL.


2020 ◽  
pp. bmjspcare-2020-002636
Author(s):  
Natasha G Michael ◽  
Irene Bobevski ◽  
Ekavi Georgousopoulou ◽  
Clare C O'Callaghan ◽  
Josephine M Clayton ◽  
...  

BackgroundWhile studies in palliative care use measures of spirituality and religious belief, there have been few validation studies of a screening tool that identifies unmet spiritual needs.MethodsA multidisciplinary research team developed and examined the usefulness, reliability and validity of a 17-item Spiritual Concerns Checklist (SCC) as a screening tool for unmet spiritual needs. A cohort of patients recruited from three palliative care services in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia completed anonymous questionnaires. Factor structure and item response theory were used to examine its properties; concurrent validity employed the Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy—Spiritual Well-Being Scale (FACIT-Sp-12).ResultsAmong 261 patients, while only 15% directly sought spiritual care, nearly 62% identified at least one spiritual concern. Existential needs (fear of the dying process 32%; loss of control 31%), regret (20%), need for forgiveness (17%), guilt (13%), loss of hope (13%) and meaning (15%) were prominent concerns. Eleven concerns were present for more than 10% of the participants and 25% of religiously orientated participants expressed >4 concerns. The 17-item SCC was unidimensional, with satisfactory reliability. Concurrent validity was evident in the reduced sense of meaning and peace on the FACIT-Sp-12.ConclusionThis preliminary Rasch analysis of the newly developed SCC has demonstrated its usefulness, reliability and validity. Our findings encourage refinement and ongoing development of the SCC with further investigation of its psychometric properties in varying populations.


Author(s):  
Anita Fernander ◽  
John F. Wilson ◽  
Michele Staton ◽  
Carl Leukefeld

This study examined the association between measures of spirituality and religiosity and characteristics of current criminal conviction in a male prison population. Spirituality was operationalized as spiritual well-being and existential well-being. Religiosity was operationalized as frequency of religious service attendance, whether an individual considered himself to be religious, and how strongly an individual believed his religious beliefs influenced his behavior. Inmates whose convictions were property related reported greater spiritual wellbeing, were more likely to consider themselves religious, and to say that religious beliefs influenced their behavior than inmates whose crimes were not property related. Inmates whose convictions were drug related were less likely to consider themselves religious, and inmates whose conviction involved violence were more likely to consider themselves religious but less likely to endorse statements that religious beliefs influenced their behavior. The distinction between religiosity and spirituality is discussed in terms of the type-of-crime hypothesis.


Author(s):  
Ellen B. Ryan ◽  
Lori Schindel Martin ◽  
Amanda Beaman

Declining communication skills in dementia threaten a person's sense of self. Building on enduring capabilities, pastoral visitors can significantly enhance spiritual well-being through the use of individualized, person-centered strategies. This article outlines the primary spiritual needs of older adults with dementia and some general strategies to improve communication based on enduring abilities. Detailed examples illustrate how these personhood-centered strategies can meet spiritual needs by connecting with individuals with dementia through life stories and through helping them to participate in religious life.


Author(s):  
Elizabeth Johnston Taylor

Spiritual care is integral to palliative care. Palliative care patients and their family members often use spiritual coping strategies, and spiritual well-being is a commonly high-ranked pursuit for those at the end of life. Appropriate spiritual care, however, must reflect the spiritual needs and preferences of the care recipient. Thus, numerous approaches to spiritual screening, history-taking, and assessment exist. Whereas the spiritual screening is proposed as a skill and expectation that nurses and others can be trained to complete, the spiritual assessment is the domain of the spiritual care expert—typically, a skilled chaplain. These diverse approaches are described here along with some additional observations that can guide the process.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-50 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Jalali ◽  
Bistoun Shabrandi ◽  
Rostam Jalali ◽  
Nader Salari

Background: Psychoactive substance abuse is a psychosocial disorder that its, emergence, continuation, and treatment are associated with personality factors, spiritual well-being, and social support. Objective: This study was conducted to investigate the relationship between personality traits with spiritual well-being and perceived social support in methamphetamine users undergoing treatment in 2016 in the clinics of Kermanshah City, Iran. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted on a sample of 117 methamphetamine users undergoing treatment in addiction clinics of Kermanshah City, Iran. The formed study population was prepared by convenience sampling according to the inclusion-exclusion criteria. Data were collected using a demographic form, NEO Five-Factor Inventory, Paloutzian and Ellison’s spiritual wellbeing scale, and perceived social support inventory of Fleming et al. The collected data were analyzed by parametric and nonparametric tests in SPSS v.23. Results: The results showed that 82.2% of participants had a moderate level of agreeableness, 88.1% had moderate neuroticism, 93.2% had moderate extraversion, 87.2% had moderate conscientiousness, and 92.2% had a moderate level of openness to experience. In addition, 76.9% of participants had a low level of spiritual well-being and the remaining 23.1% had a moderate spiritual wellness. The mean spiritual well-being and perceived social support scores of participants were 69.94±10.86 and 33.94±7.55, respectively. The findings showed a significant relationship between personality traits and spiritual well-being and social support in methamphetamine users (p = 0.05). Conclusion: The results indicate that personality traits, perceived social support, and spiritual wellbeing can be considered as risk factors for methamphetamine abuse.


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