The Role of Demographic Factors in the Spiritual Health of the Students of Iran University of Medical Sciences

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Student Research Committee, Faculty of Mental Health & Behavioral Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

2 Department of Mental Health, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

3 Faculty of Mental Health & Behavioral Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

4 Student Research Committee, Faculty of Mental Health & Behavioral Sciences Branch, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

5 Spiritual Health Research Center, Mental Health Department, School of Behavioral Sciences and Mental Health (Tehran Institute of Psychiatry), Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

Introduction: Spiritual health has a substantial effect on other aspects of health. Due to the important role of university students in the development of a country, it is necessary to examine the correlates of different dimensions of health using appropriate tools in this community. This study aimed to determine the role of demographic variables in the spiritual health of the students of Iran University of Medical Sciences.
Method: In this descriptive and cross-sectional study, the statistical sample comprised 473 students selected by convenience sampling method. To collect data, a researcher-made demographic questionnaire and the spiritual health questionnaire, which has been developed by Amiri et al., were used. The collected data were analyzed through SPSS software.
Results: According to the Mann-Whitney U test, there was a significant difference between the mean scores of spiritual health in women (78.51) and men (70.41). This difference was also significant between married (80.42) and single (74.81) students. This is while there was no significant differences between various groups in terms of other demographic factors.
Conclusion: It can be concluded that women and married students have higher spiritual health in comparison to men and single ones. This is while other demographic variables such as age, education, employment position, and place of residence could not predict the level of spiritual health in university students.

Keywords


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