The Mediating Role of Optimism and Pessimism on the Relationship between Spirituality and Depression among Elderly Cancer Patients

Article information

Korean J Health Promot. 2016;16(2):127-133

Publication date (electronic) : 2016 January 20

doi : https://doi.org/10.15384/kjhp.2016.16.2.127

Ilsung Nam ¹^,, Hyunsook Yoon ², Yojin Kim ², Yeon-Ok Lim ³, Hyunjoo Lee ⁴, Kyoungwon Choi ⁵

¹Department of Social Welfare, Sungkonghoe University, Seoul, Korea

²Department of Social Welfare, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea

³Hallym University Institute of Aging, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea

⁴Department of Social Welfare, Hallym Polytechnic University, Chuncheon, Korea

⁵Department of Social Welfare, Graduate School of Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea

Corresponding author: Ilsung Nam, PhD Department of Social Welfare, Sungkonghoe University, 320 Yeondong-ro, Guro-gu, Seoul 08359, Korea Tel: +82-2-2610-4109, Fax: +82-2-2610-4373 E-mail: ilsungn@gmail.com

Received 2016 January 17; Accepted 2016 June 13.

Abstract

Background

Numerous studies have demonstrated that spirituality has protective effects on depression. However, there are only few studies on the theoretical mechanism showing how spirituality effects on depression. Thus, to find mediating variables explaining the relationship between the spirituality and depression may help to develop appropriate program for reducing depression in elderly cancer patients. In this study, we examined the effect of optimism and pessimism as their mediating effects on depression.

Methods

This study is to verify the relationships between spirituality and depression along with the mediating effects of optimism and pessimism among 600 South Korean elderly cancer patients who participated in a community-based study about their mental health.

Results

Optimism and pessimism are linked with spirituality and depression. Higher spirituality levels were associated with increased optimistic thinking, and then optimistic thinking is associated with low possibility of depression, whereas lower spirituality levels were associated with more pessimistic thinking, and in turn pessimistic thinking is associated with high depression scores.

Conclusions

Understanding optimism and pessimism affecting depression level is critical for developing spirituality-based programs to reduce depression in elderly cancer patients.

Keywords: Spirituality; Optimism; Pessimism; Depression; Neoplasms

Table 1.

Regression results predicting depression of spirituality without controlling for optimism constructs

Table 2.

Structural equation model with endogeneous variables (optimism and pessimism) predicting depression

Table 3.

Indirect effects of spirituality on depression through optimism and pessimism

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