Theory and measurement of attachment to God have largely been developed from a western Christian perspective. However, the relevance of the attachment construct for Muslims should be examined if it is to contribute to a greater understanding of Islamic spirituality and psychological health. In this paper, we explore similarities and differences between Islamic and Christian understandings of human-divine relationships. We consider evidence of a common core of attachment themes of relevance to both religions, and whether different dimensions are emphasised in religious writings of the two traditions. This theoretical work is foundational for cross-cultural/cross-religious research. We argue that a core difference between the two faiths is that Muslims approach God in a less direct, more mediated fashion than Christians. Such differences have important implications for the wording of self-report assessment items and approaches to interventions designed to increase the security of Christians' and Muslims' attachment to God and mental health.
In our on-going pilot study of adjustment to severe burns injury in an adult cohort we have had the opportunity to obtain an Adult Attachment Interview (AAI) from some participants. The semi-structured interview was modified from the basic AAI with probes for the setting of severe burns as a trauma and for our interest in the utility of spiritual modes of coping. Some probes were inserted to ascertain whether God or a Higher Power functioned as an attachment figure in the past or during the present situation of recovery from a severe burn. While the study is still in progress and the full data set is not yet available, a number of the interviews suggest that for certain individuals their spiritual relationship with God is central to their current sense of self and their coping strategies. For some their secure state of mind, founded in a sense of lovability and support, rather than a religious identification, fosters a sense of humility and coping. We will present excerpts from AAIs that illustrate the concept of a spiritual relationship functioning as a secure base and the sense of being loved that is associated with an autonomous/secure state of mind. This state of mind appears to be associated with tolerance, forgiveness, humility and an ability for appearance-reality distinctions, often despite difficult early life experiences. This flexibility of mind and its fruit of resilience is predicted by attachment theory. Our early observation is that such a state of mind is associated with good adjustment but we await the completion of data collection and full quantitative and qualitative analysis to fully appraise our hypothesis.
In recent years the psycho-spiritual construct identified as 'attachment to God' (ATG) has become as an important variable of interest to theorists, especially in the context of the spirituality-health relationship. The theoretical merits of ATG for interpreting religious experiences, beliefs and practices have been outlined, with on-going research continuing to clarify the nature and extent of the ATG-psychological health link. For example, it has now become clear that ATG functions psychologically in a manner similar to, but independent of human attachment in predicting a range of health outcomes. Concurrently, categorical and dimensional measures of ATG have been developed, these informed by human attachment measurement models. This chapter reports on on-going research being undertaken by a group of Australian researchers whose disciplines include psychology, medicine, education, theology and philosophy. It provides an overview of theological, theoretical and conceptual, measurement and assessment, clinical and psychotherapeutic research completed or which is currently in progress, including studies exploring the attachment to God (ATG)-psychological health/adjustment relationship. What is highlighted in this chapter is a series of inter-connected methodological resources developed in our research, vis-a-vis the (i) Development of the God Attachment Interview Schedule (GAIS); (ii) Formulation of ATG profiles (i.e., explicit ATG representations) and ATG states of minds (i.e. implicit ATG representations); (iii) Development of relational markers for assessing explicit ATG representations and discourse markers for assessing implicit ATG representations; and (iv) Recent attempts to ground key theoretical elements (safe haven and secure base functions of attachment to God) in the lived experiences of Christian persons. Data informing this body of work comes from (i) thirty-one predominately Australian Christians ranging in age from 18 to 77 years who participated in in-depth, semi-structured interviews, responding to questions about their retrospective and current relationship with God and (ii) approximately 1000 Australian Christians who completed a range of psychological and spiritual measures. Narrative data and qualitative analyses were managed using both NVivo, while quantitative data and analyses was undertaken using SPSS and SEM. Some theoretical, methodological and clinical insights gleaned from this body of work are discussed.
The increasing use of a more holistic approach to client care, one that considers the spiritual domain of human experience is discussed. The need for psychologists is to examine any perceptions that may prevent them from considering the spiritual domain of human experience when formulating and delivering psychological care.
Assessment of attachment to God (ATG) has generally focused on tapping the construct via self-report measures. Little, if any attention has been paid to assessing ATG via independent ratings of Christians’ relationship with God narratives, obtained at interview. The current study addressed this deficit. It documents the development of a template for assessing Christians’ relationship with God narratives for specific ATG experiences. Three theoretically-derived ATG profiles, labeled as secure-autonomous, insecure-anxious/preoccupied and insecure-dismissing ATG were operationally defined as a series of relational markers. Thirty-one Christians participated in a God Attachment Interview Schedule (GAIS), a semi-structured interview which taps Christians’ past and present relationship with God experiences. Participants’ narratives were analyzed using the template, this revealing relational evidence supportive of the hypothesized relational markers. Validation of the template is an important milestone in the development of a scoring protocol to assign an overall ATG profile based on the narrated experiences of Christians.
This single-case study explored associations between relational trauma experienced during childhood and relationally focused spiritual difficulties encountered during adulthood. Fifteen initial therapy transcripts of a 57-year-old female Christian with complex trauma were analyzed. Relational experiences included: (a) “eating their young” (early developmental context); (b) “broken-winged chick” (sense of self); (c) “wounded sparrow” (self in relation to God); (d) “faltering in flight” (relationship with God); and (e) “at the fringe of the flock” (relationship with Christian community). Childhood relational trauma was far reaching in its long-term psycho-spiritual effects, adversely impacting sense of personhood, relational capacity, reflective functioning, and broader coping.
Psychospiritual health and well-being are established as foundational for coping with life, as is having a secure and stable sense of self and affective self-regulation. Their absence adversely affects functioning across all spheres of life. There is evidence that creative arts professionals, due to a range of situational/professional and personal/psychological factors, are at risk of compromised health and well-being, especially those with unresolved trauma. Referencing the Australian acting context with a particular focus on student actors, this chapter explores how inclusion of psychospiritual education during tertiary drama training would lead to greater awareness, appreciation, and application of health-related knowledge and practices, thereby supporting the broader health, well-being, development, and maturation of individual actors. Noting the contribution that counselors and counselor educators can make to this educative process, in particular, the chapter (a) considers the place and importance of psychological stability in the context of creative expression (i.e., a lively self); (b) challenges the idea that creativity arising from psychological instability or fragility leads to sustainable professional life (i.e., the emotional vulnerability myth); and (c) recommends the inclusion of psychospiritual education and counseling in creative arts training programs for the purpose of facilitating career longevity and professional quality of life.
Junior doctors have high rates of burnout resulting in downstream impacts on patient care. The aim of this study is to capture cross-sectional data on a cohort of psychiatry trainees. These data will be used to inform a wider project investigating psychiatry trainee mental health and wellbeing.This paper reports on the 2019 baseline data of psychiatry trainees enrolled in a formal education course at the University of Sydney, Australia. The data were collected with an online survey using a range of validated mental health and wellbeing scales. This descriptive study involved psychiatry trainees as co-designers.Our research findings are in keeping with the existing literature on the poor mental health and wellbeing of doctors with significantly higher levels of anxiety and exhaustion found in female trainees and carers. Despite this, the cohort had high scores on the flourishing scale.Concern around the wellbeing of junior doctors in Australia appears justified. We need to move beyond focussing on individual action to systems-based approaches to improving wellbeing and ongoing sustainability of the psychiatry trainee workforce in NSW.
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