The Relationship Between Spiritual Intelligence and General Health in the Elderly: The Mediating Role of Mindfulness

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Dept. of Psychology, Amin University of Management Sciences, Tehran, Iran

2 Dept. of Psychology, Azad University, Tehran Electronic Branch, Tehran, Iran

Abstract

The elderly, as one of the sensitive stages of human development, has its own unique features and conditions. Considering this issue, one of the important elements affecting the general health (GH) of the elderly appears to be their mindfulness and spiritual intelligence. Therefore, the current research was conducted with the aim of predicting GH based on spiritual intelligence through the mediating role of mindfulness in the elderly. This was a fundamental research in terms of its purpose, and a descriptive-correlational of path analysis type in terms of its method. The statistical population of the current study included all the elderly living in nursing homes in three districts of 3, 8 and 20 of Tehran, Iran in 2022, of whom 250 people were selected as the sample using convenience sampling method. The measures consisted of King's spiritual intelligence, Goldberg and Hiller's GH and Baer et al.’s mindfulness questionnaires. The data collected by SPSS-26 and AMOS-22 software were analyzed using Pearson's correlation coefficient and path analysis. The results illustrated that the hypothesized model has a good fit with the data. Moreover, the results of the path analysis to investigate the role of the mediator variable indicated that mindfulness mediates the relationship between spiritual intelligence and GH in the elderly. As all the aforementioned three predictive variables are capable of being improved, can be used in GH related interventions in order to improve GH in the elderly.
References
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Ahadi, B., Mehrinejad, S., & Moradi, F. (2016). Cognitive deficits in the elderly: The role of mindfulness and hyperexcitability. Journal of Aging Psychology, 3(2), 115-125. [Persian]
Asgari, Sh., & Shafiei, H. (2017). Predicting the quality of life of the elderly based on internal coherence, mindfulness and spiritual intelligence. Journal of Positive Psychology, 3 (11), 61-74. [Persian]
Ataei, Z., Allahvardi, A., Dehnu Alian, A., & Arzoji, A. (2017). The relationship between lifestyle and general health in the elderly of Neishabur city. Journal of Iranian Nurses, 111(31) 10-19. [Persian]
Baer, P. A., Smith, G. T., Hopkins, J., Krietemeyer, J., & Toney, L. (2006). Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness. Assessment, 13, 27-45.
Cherage, M., Molani, H. (2007). Relationship between different dimention of religiousness of isfahan university students. Training and Mind Discrimination Journal, 2)2), 2-4.
Dening, T., & Milne A.)2009(. Depression & mental health in care homes for older people. Quality in Ageing & Older Adults ,10(1) ,40-46.
Elkins, M., & Cavendish, R. (2004). Developing a plan for pediatric spiritual care. Psychological Sciences Social Sciences, 18(4),179-184.
Goldberg, P., & Hillier, F. (1979). A scaled version of the general health questionnaire. Psychological Medicine, 9, 139-145.
Flett, A., Haghbin, M., & Pychyl, T. (2016). Procrastination & depression from a cognitive perspective: an exploration of the associations among procrastinatory automatic thoughts, rumination and mindfulness. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive- Behavior Therapy, 34(3), 169-186.
Habibi, O., & Aden War, m. (2016). Structural equation modeling. first edition. Tehran: Academic Jihad.
Imanzadeh, A., & Hamerzadeh, M. (2016). Identifying facilitating and inhibiting factors of quality of life in elderly men & women (Phenomenological Research). Salamand: Iranian Journal of Geriatrics, 12(4), 445-430. [Persian]
Izadi Onji, F., Haji Bagheri, A., & Azizi Fini, A. (2018). Predicting marital satisfaction based on resilience & mental health in the elderly. Journal of Shahid Souqi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, 27(3), 1361-1371. [Persian]
Jafari, A. (2019). Relationship between health literacy and general health of employees of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Health Literacy Journal, 5(1) ,23-31.
Jafari, A., & Hosampour, F. (2016). Prediction of life satisfaction based on dimensions of spiritual intelligence and psychological capital in the elderly. Salmand: Iranian Journal of Ageing, 12(1), 103-190. [Persian]
Kaur, M. (2013). Spiritual intelligence of secondary schoolteachers in relation to their job satisfaction. International Journal of Educational Research and Technology, 4(3), 104-109.
King, D. (2008). Rethinking claims of spiritual intelligence: A definition, model, and measure. ontario (CA): Trent University.
Langlois, F., Vu, T., Chasse, K., Dupuis, G., Kergoat, M., & Bherer, L. (2013). Benefits of physical exercise training on cognition & quality of life in frail older adults. Journal of Gerontology Series B Psychological Sciences Social Sciences, 68(3), 400-404.
Madhu, J., & Prema, P. (2006). The spiritual intelligence: A contemporary concern about the regad to living status of the senior citizens. Journal of the Indian Academy of Applied Psychology, 32(3), 227-233.
Mehdikhani, Z., Habib Elahpour, M., Metabli, S., Salmani, A., & Mofi, F. (2022). Evaluation of general health indicators to predict marital satisfaction in elderly couples. National Conference on Geriatric health. Tehran Iran. [Persian]
Manjem, A., & Ebrahimi, M. (2016). The Relationship between metacognitive beliefs, mindfulness, and forgiveness and action with students' general health. Quarterly Journal of Military Medicine, 6(1), 31-42. [Persian]
Momeni, K., Amani, R., Janjani, P., Majzoobi, M. R., Forstmeier, S., & Nosrati, P. (2022). Attachment styles & happiness in the elderly: The mediating role of reminiscence styles. BMC Geriatrics, 22, Article 349. Https://Doi.Org/10.1186/S12877-022-03053-Z
Momeni, Kh., Amani, R., Janjani, P., Majzoobi, M. R., & Hadian Hamedani, K. (2021). The Relationship between attachment styles with positive & negative affect in the elderly: The Mediating role of reminiscence styles. Aging Psychology, 7(4), 407-422. [Persian]
Mortazavi, H., Golmakani, A., Armat, M., Tabatabai Chehar, M., & Hassanzadeh, A. (2016). The Relationship between spiritual intelligence & the quality of life of the elderly. North Khorasan Journal of Medical Sciences, 9(3), 453-460. [Persian]
Nemati, E., Habibi, M., Ahmadian Vargahan, F., Soltan Mohamadloo, S., & Ghanbari, S. (2017). The role of mindfulness and spiritual intelligence in students' mental health. Journal of Research and Health, 7 (1), 594-602. [Persian]
Ocampo, M. (2010). Self-Rated Health: Importance of use in elderly adults. Journal of Colombia Medical, 41(3), 275-289.
Rekha, P., & Laxmi, S. (2008). Spirituality and elderly. Journal of Well-Bing, 1(1), 34-38.
Saatchi, M., Kamkari, K., & Askarian, M. (2018). Psychological Tests. Publishing Edit. [Persian]
Saeedi, A. (2012). Comparison of spiritual intelligence and resilience of addicts and ordinary people in Ahvaz. Master's Thesis. Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz Branch, Ahvaz. [Persian]
Salmani, M., & Zoghi, L. (2022). The Relationship between loneliness, spiritual intelligence & general health with death anxiety in the elderly: The Mediating role of mindfulness. Psychology of Aging, 8(1), 55-69. [Persian]
Sisk, D. (2008). Engaging the spiritual intelligence of gifted students to build. Roeper Review, 30(1) ,24-30.
Soori, A., Shabani Moghadam, K., & Soori, R. (2016). Relationship between physical activity and quality of life of elderly women in Kermanshah province. Journal of Applied Research in Sports Management, 4(4), 84-75. [Persian]
Smith, M. (2004). Exploring the Interaction of emotional intelligence & spirituality. Traumatology, 10(4), 231-243.
Tabatabai, Sh., & Rasouli, Z. (2018). Assessing the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the General health questionnaire (GHQ-60) in the staff of the industrial sector. Iranian Occupational Health, 15 (3), 54-45. [Persian]
Tehrani, H., Rahmani, M., &Jafari, A. (2018). Health literacy & its relationship with general health of women referring to health care centers. Journal of Health Literacy ,3(3) ,191-198.
Vaughan, F. (2002). What is spiritual intelligence. Humanist Psychology, 42(2), 16-33.
Von Humboldt, S., Leal, I., & Pimenta, F. (2015). Sense of coherence, sociodemographic, lifestyle, & health related factors in older adults' subjective Well-Being. International Journal of Gerontology, 9(1), 15-19.
Wijekoon, N., Amaratunge, H., De Silva, Y., Senanayake, S., Jayawardane, P., & Senarath, U. (2017). Emotional intelligence & Academic performance of medical undergraduates: A Cross-sectional study in a selected university in Sri Lanka. BMC Medical Education, 17(1), 1-11.
Zakizadeh, H., & Harun Rashidi, H. (2022). The Effectiveness of cognitive therapy based on mindfulness on social adjustment & psychological distortions of elderly men. Psychology of Aging, 8(2), 117-105. [Persian]
Zamani, N. (2018). Investigating the relationship between general health & cognitive status in the elderly of Hamedan city in 2017. Journal of Gerontology, 3(4), 20-28. [Persian]
Zohar, M., Stroebe, M., Geurtsen, L., Mastenbroek, M., Chmoun, S., & Van der Houwen, K. (2012). Exploring death anxiety among elderly people: A literature review and empirical investigation. Omega, 64(4), 357–379.

Keywords


References
Ahmadvand, Z. (2011). Cheking the validity and reliability of the five-fact mindfulness questionnaire (FFMQ) in non-clinical iranian sampels. Master thesis in Clinical Psychology, Shahed University. [Persian]
Ahadi, B., Mehrinejad, S., & Moradi, F. (2016). Cognitive deficits in the elderly: The role of mindfulness and hyperexcitability. Journal of Aging Psychology, 3(2), 115-125. [Persian]
Asgari, Sh., & Shafiei, H. (2017). Predicting the quality of life of the elderly based on internal coherence, mindfulness and spiritual intelligence. Journal of Positive Psychology, 3 (11), 61-74. [Persian]
Ataei, Z., Allahvardi, A., Dehnu Alian, A., & Arzoji, A. (2017). The relationship between lifestyle and general health in the elderly of Neishabur city. Journal of Iranian Nurses, 111(31) 10-19. [Persian]
Baer, P. A., Smith, G. T., Hopkins, J., Krietemeyer, J., & Toney, L. (2006). Using Self-Report Assessment Methods to Explore Facets of Mindfulness. Assessment, 13, 27-45.
Cherage, M., Molani, H. (2007). Relationship between different dimention of religiousness of isfahan university students. Training and Mind Discrimination Journal, 2)2), 2-4.
Dening, T., & Milne A.)2009(. Depression & mental health in care homes for older people. Quality in Ageing & Older Adults ,10(1) ,40-46.
Elkins, M., & Cavendish, R. (2004). Developing a plan for pediatric spiritual care. Psychological Sciences Social Sciences, 18(4),179-184.
Goldberg, P., & Hillier, F. (1979). A scaled version of the general health questionnaire. Psychological Medicine, 9, 139-145.
Flett, A., Haghbin, M., & Pychyl, T. (2016). Procrastination & depression from a cognitive perspective: an exploration of the associations among procrastinatory automatic thoughts, rumination and mindfulness. Journal of Rational-Emotive & Cognitive- Behavior Therapy, 34(3), 169-186.
Habibi, O., & Aden War, m. (2016). Structural equation modeling. first edition. Tehran: Academic Jihad.
Imanzadeh, A., & Hamerzadeh, M. (2016). Identifying facilitating and inhibiting factors of quality of life in elderly men & women (Phenomenological Research). Salamand: Iranian Journal of Geriatrics, 12(4), 445-430. [Persian]
Izadi Onji, F., Haji Bagheri, A., & Azizi Fini, A. (2018). Predicting marital satisfaction based on resilience & mental health in the elderly. Journal of Shahid Souqi University of Medical Sciences, Yazd, 27(3), 1361-1371. [Persian]
Jafari, A. (2019). Relationship between health literacy and general health of employees of Isfahan University of Medical Sciences. Health Literacy Journal, 5(1) ,23-31.
Jafari, A., & Hosampour, F. (2016). Prediction of life satisfaction based on dimensions of spiritual intelligence and psychological capital in the elderly. Salmand: Iranian Journal of Ageing, 12(1), 103-190. [Persian]
Kaur, M. (2013). Spiritual intelligence of secondary schoolteachers in relation to their job satisfaction. International Journal of Educational Research and Technology, 4(3), 104-109.
King, D. (2008). Rethinking claims of spiritual intelligence: A definition, model, and measure. ontario (CA): Trent University.
Langlois, F., Vu, T., Chasse, K., Dupuis, G., Kergoat, M., & Bherer, L. (2013). Benefits of physical exercise training on cognition & quality of life in frail older adults. Journal of Gerontology Series B Psychological Sciences Social Sciences, 68(3), 400-404.
Madhu, J., & Prema, P. (2006). The spiritual intelligence: A contemporary concern about the regad to living status of the senior citizens. Journal of the Indian Academy of Applied Psychology, 32(3), 227-233.
Mehdikhani, Z., Habib Elahpour, M., Metabli, S., Salmani, A., & Mofi, F. (2022). Evaluation of general health indicators to predict marital satisfaction in elderly couples. National Conference on Geriatric health. Tehran Iran. [Persian]
Manjem, A., & Ebrahimi, M. (2016). The Relationship between metacognitive beliefs, mindfulness, and forgiveness and action with students' general health. Quarterly Journal of Military Medicine, 6(1), 31-42. [Persian]
Momeni, K., Amani, R., Janjani, P., Majzoobi, M. R., Forstmeier, S., & Nosrati, P. (2022). Attachment styles & happiness in the elderly: The mediating role of reminiscence styles. BMC Geriatrics, 22, Article 349. Https://Doi.Org/10.1186/S12877-022-03053-Z
Momeni, Kh., Amani, R., Janjani, P., Majzoobi, M. R., & Hadian Hamedani, K. (2021). The Relationship between attachment styles with positive & negative affect in the elderly: The Mediating role of reminiscence styles. Aging Psychology, 7(4), 407-422. [Persian]
Mortazavi, H., Golmakani, A., Armat, M., Tabatabai Chehar, M., & Hassanzadeh, A. (2016). The Relationship between spiritual intelligence & the quality of life of the elderly. North Khorasan Journal of Medical Sciences, 9(3), 453-460. [Persian]
Nemati, E., Habibi, M., Ahmadian Vargahan, F., Soltan Mohamadloo, S., & Ghanbari, S. (2017). The role of mindfulness and spiritual intelligence in students' mental health. Journal of Research and Health, 7 (1), 594-602. [Persian]
Ocampo, M. (2010). Self-Rated Health: Importance of use in elderly adults. Journal of Colombia Medical, 41(3), 275-289.
Rekha, P., & Laxmi, S. (2008). Spirituality and elderly. Journal of Well-Bing, 1(1), 34-38.
Saatchi, M., Kamkari, K., & Askarian, M. (2018). Psychological Tests. Publishing Edit. [Persian]
Saeedi, A. (2012). Comparison of spiritual intelligence and resilience of addicts and ordinary people in Ahvaz. Master's Thesis. Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz Branch, Ahvaz. [Persian]
Salmani, M., & Zoghi, L. (2022). The Relationship between loneliness, spiritual intelligence & general health with death anxiety in the elderly: The Mediating role of mindfulness. Psychology of Aging, 8(1), 55-69. [Persian]
Sisk, D. (2008). Engaging the spiritual intelligence of gifted students to build. Roeper Review, 30(1) ,24-30.
Soori, A., Shabani Moghadam, K., & Soori, R. (2016). Relationship between physical activity and quality of life of elderly women in Kermanshah province. Journal of Applied Research in Sports Management, 4(4), 84-75. [Persian]
Smith, M. (2004). Exploring the Interaction of emotional intelligence & spirituality. Traumatology, 10(4), 231-243.
Tabatabai, Sh., & Rasouli, Z. (2018). Assessing the validity and reliability of the Persian version of the General health questionnaire (GHQ-60) in the staff of the industrial sector. Iranian Occupational Health, 15 (3), 54-45. [Persian]
Tehrani, H., Rahmani, M., &Jafari, A. (2018). Health literacy & its relationship with general health of women referring to health care centers. Journal of Health Literacy ,3(3) ,191-198.
Vaughan, F. (2002). What is spiritual intelligence. Humanist Psychology, 42(2), 16-33.
Von Humboldt, S., Leal, I., & Pimenta, F. (2015). Sense of coherence, sociodemographic, lifestyle, & health related factors in older adults' subjective Well-Being. International Journal of Gerontology, 9(1), 15-19.
Wijekoon, N., Amaratunge, H., De Silva, Y., Senanayake, S., Jayawardane, P., & Senarath, U. (2017). Emotional intelligence & Academic performance of medical undergraduates: A Cross-sectional study in a selected university in Sri Lanka. BMC Medical Education, 17(1), 1-11.
Zakizadeh, H., & Harun Rashidi, H. (2022). The Effectiveness of cognitive therapy based on mindfulness on social adjustment & psychological distortions of elderly men. Psychology of Aging, 8(2), 117-105. [Persian]
Zamani, N. (2018). Investigating the relationship between general health & cognitive status in the elderly of Hamedan city in 2017. Journal of Gerontology, 3(4), 20-28. [Persian]
Zohar, M., Stroebe, M., Geurtsen, L., Mastenbroek, M., Chmoun, S., & Van der Houwen, K. (2012). Exploring death anxiety among elderly people: A literature review and empirical investigation. Omega, 64(4), 357–379.