Family Spirituality and Family Health Among Korean-American Elderly Couples

Spirituality has been regarded as an individual and private matter; consequently, research on spirituality as a family phenomenon has been largely neglected. In addition, most published research has been focused on Western cultures. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of family s...

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Publié dans:Journal of religion and health
Auteurs: Kim, Suk-Sun (Auteur) ; Koenig, Harold G. 1951- (Auteur)
Collaborateurs: Kim-Godwin, Yeoun Soo (Autre)
Type de support: Électronique Article
Langue:Anglais
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Publié: Springer Science + Business Media B. V. [2016]
Dans: Journal of religion and health
Sujets non-standardisés:B Family health
B Family spirituality
B Elderly couples
B Korean-Americans
Accès en ligne: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Résumé:Spirituality has been regarded as an individual and private matter; consequently, research on spirituality as a family phenomenon has been largely neglected. In addition, most published research has been focused on Western cultures. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of family spirituality and how it influences health among Korean-American elderly couples who are the first generation to reside in the Southeastern USA. A thematic and interpretive data analysis method was used. Thirteen elderly couples (N = 26) participated in in-depth individual interviews in Korean with the primary author. Interviews were audio-taped, transcribed, and then translated by two bilingual researchers with a background in Korean and American culture. Three main themes of family spirituality were identified: (1) family togetherness, (2) family interdependence, and (3) family coping. Also, participants reported that family spirituality strengthened family health by fostering family commitment, improving emotional well-being, developing new healthy behaviors, and providing healing experiences. This finding implies that healthcare providers need to assess family spiritual issues of elderly couples to maximize their strengths for coping with health problems. As our society becomes more culturally diverse, healthcare providers should seek to understand family spirituality from different cultural perspectives to develop a more holistic approach to care.
ISSN:1573-6571
Contient:Enthalten in: Journal of religion and health
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1007/s10943-015-0107-5