Conference paper

RELIGIOUS MORAL BELIEFS AS MENTAL HEALTH PROTECTIVE FACTOR OF WAR VETERANS SUFFERING FROM PTSD, DEPRESSIVENESS, ANXIETY, TOBACCO AND ALCOHOL ABUSE IN COMORBIDITY

Mevludin Hasanović orcid.org/0000-0002-5884-0884 ; University Clinical Centre Tuzla, School of Medicine University of Tuzla, Bosnia and Hercegovina
Izet Pajević orcid.org/0000-0003-2943-3283 ; University Clinical Centre Tuzla, School of Medicine University of Tuzla, Bosnia and Hercegovina

Abstract

Introduction: Our aim was to investigate is there association between level of religious moral beliefs and severity of PTSD symptoms, depresiion symptoms, anxiety and severity of alcohol abuse we tested 152 war veterans on presence of PTSD, depression symptoms, anxiety, alcohol misuse and level of religious moral belifes.
Subject and Methods: we used Harvard trauma questionnarie (HTQ), Hopkins Check Scale SBCL 25, check list for alcohol misuse MAST. Subjects were assessed with regard to the level of belief in some basic ethnical principles that arise from religous moral values. The score of religous moral belief index was used to correlate with severity of PTSD symptoms, depression symptoms, anxiety and severity of alcohol misuse.
Results: Mean age of tested subjects was 40.8 (SD=6.6) years. The score of the moral belief index was negatively correlated to PTSD symptom severity and depressiveness (Pearson's r=0.325, p<0.001; r=-0.247, p=0.005, respectively). Besides that the score of moral belief index negatively correlated with presented anxiety (Pearson's r=-0.199, p=0.026). Related to severity of tobacco and alcohol misuse we found negative association of these with the moral belief index (Pearson's r=-0.227, p=0.011; r=-0.371, p<0.001, respectively).
Conclusion: A higher index of religious moral beliefs in war veterans enables better control distress, providing better mental health stability. It enables post traumatic conflicts typical for combatants' survivors to be more easily overcome. It also causes healthier reactions to external stimuli. A higher index of religious moral beliefs of war veterans provides a healthier and more efficient mechanism of tobacco and alcohol misuse control. In this way, it helps overcoming postwar psychosocial problems and socialization of the personality, leading to the improvement in mental health.

Keywords

religious moral belief; war veterans; PTSD; depression; anxiety; tobacco and alcohol misuse; mental health stability

Hrčak ID:

55675

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/55675

Publication date:

30.6.2010.

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