Page 77 - JCBP-3-2

Journal of Clinical and
Basic Psychosomatics Coping with a crisis

Mental health is defined as “the ability of an individual mental health issues such as anxiety and depression. 13,14 In
to fulfill his or her obligations to self and society while this realm, Lin et al. surveyed 1787 adults aged 19 – 32
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living in mutual harmony with the physical and social about their social media use and depression. They found
environment.” 3,p.2 The connection between spirituality and that participants in the highest quartile of social media
mental health has captured the attention of researchers use – whether measured by total daily time spent, weekly
and practitioners alike in recent years. For example, site visits, or global frequency scores – had significantly
4
5
Manoi et al. found a statistically significant relationship higher odds of depression compared to those in the lowest
between religion/spirituality and positive mental health quartiles for these measures. 15
among Canadian adults ranging from ages 25 – ≥65. The Spirituality and resilience are closely intertwined, often
relationship was most pronounced among adults over age complementing and reinforcing each other. Spiritual
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65. The researchers observed that older adults’ capacity practices such as prayer, meditation, and mindfulness
for resilience, which is defined as “the ability to overcome serve as powerful coping mechanisms during times of
adversity,” stems from being grounded in their religion/ stress and hardship by promoting emotional regulation,
spirituality. The researchers’ findings also corroborated reducing negative emotions, and fostering a sense of inner
5,6
previous studies showing that older adults tend to seek peace, all of which contribute to resilience. In addition,
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meaning and purpose as a way to cope with challenging spiritual communities provide a strong support network,
experiences such as depression and loneliness. Research offering a sense of belonging and connection with others
7
further indicates that the spiritual dimension becomes who share similar beliefs. This support network offers
particularly significant when individuals face emotional encouragement, empathy, and practical assistance,
stress, physical illness, or death, and that spirituality is a further enhancing individuals’ resilience in the face of
critical resource for coping with these challenges, playing challenges. Researchers have long identified the power
an important role in enhancing quality of life. Finally, of spirituality in confronting mental and physical health
8,9
studies have shown that higher levels of spirituality are issues as well as mortality. Perhaps the most challenging
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associated with better outcomes when assessing depressive experience facing people worldwide in recent history was
symptoms, anxiety, optimism, and happiness among the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.
adults. The capacity for spirituality to improve life In light of evidence supporting the protective factors of
10
satisfaction and mental health outcomes lies within the spirituality and resilience, this study sought to examine
realm of social support which can be gleaned through faith spiritual coping and resilience in relation to social media
communities. 10 use, anxiety, depression, and stress among a Midwestern
As human beings, we long for connection and campus community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
community with others. Lacking social connections Research questions for this study were as follows:
can be detrimental to our overall mental health. Social (a) What practices (as measured by spiritual coping and/
media often replaces real-world human connections. The or social media use) did the campus community use to
impact of time spent on social media on mental health cope with the stressors of the pandemic?
is a topic of ongoing research. Furthermore, the research (b) How did the coping mechanisms used intersect with
on the relationship between time spent on social media overall feelings of mental health (as measured by
and feelings of belonging or community is complex and depression, anxiety, stress, and overall resilience)?
nuanced, with findings that vary depending on factors (c) Did statistically significant differences exist between
such as individual differences, the nature of social media faculty/staff and students in relation to spiritual coping,
use, and the platforms involved. 11-13 Some studies suggest resilience, social media use, anxiety, depression, and
that social media use can facilitate feelings of belonging stress?
and connection, particularly when individuals engage in (d) Did spiritual coping, resilience, social media use,
meaningful interactions with others and use platforms anxiety, depression, and stress differ by gender across
to maintain relationships with friends, family, and the campus community?
communities. For example, frequent interactions with
close friends and supportive online communities may 2. Methods
enhance feelings of belonging and social support. 11,12 On
the other hand, excessive use of social media can sometimes 2.1. Study design
result in superficial or passive interactions that lack depth The present study used a descriptive research design to
and authenticity. Research demonstrates that spending investigate the potential relationships among the main
too much time engaging with social media can actually study variables of spiritual coping, resilience, social media
make a person feel more lonely and isolated, exacerbating use, anxiety, depression, and stress.

Volume 3 Issue 2 (2025) 71 doi: 10.36922/jcbp.4563