The Strength of Spirit: A Regression Analysis of Spirituality on Resilience in Indian Adults

Abstract

From aiding physical and psychological well-being, to providing hope and a sense of meaningfulness, the purpose of spirituality in everyday life is well documented. Studies suggest that spirituality is also an integral part of coping with life threatening diseases as well as overall resilience. Hart (1994) defined spirituality as “a way in which an individual experiences his or her faith in everyday life and the style “in which the individual refers to the final conditions of individual existence.” Resilience is defined as “the process and outcome of successfully adapting to difficult or challenging life experiences, especially through mental, emotional, and behavioural flexibility and adjustment to external and internal demands” (American Psychological Association, 2015). According to current literature, there is a strong correlation as well as cause and effect relationship between spirituality and resilience. However, very few studies have been done on Generation Z i.e those born from 1997-2012 concerning the levels of these two variables. This research explores how resilience is predicted by spirituality among Gen-Z. The study was conducted on sample a of 47 [M=24, F=22, TG=1]) aged 18-25. The regression analysis revealed that spirituality causes resilience [R2=0.229, F(1, 45)=13.349, p=0.01]. However, it is seen that there is no significant difference between males and females in both variables under study.