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Spirituality is defined as a search for the sacred and religion refers to the practice of spirituality within the context of formal institutions. A person searching for the sacred has a desire for self-transcendence (i.e., going beyond one's normal self) or to form connections with a higher power, a divine being, or ultimate reality. Although the correlations tend to be modest, there is now a large body of research demonstrating that engaging in religious/spiritual endeavors is associated with higher levels of health and well-being. In a review of the well-being research, Diener et al. concluded that subjective well-being is positively associated with how certain one is of one's religious beliefs and one's degree of participation in prayer and other devotional practices. They noted that participation in religion has psychological benefits, such as among other things, providing meaning and social support.
George and his colleagues concluded from their review of the health and religiosity research that the practice of religion (e.g., attendance at religious services) was the strongest predictor of speed of recovery from illness or surgery, and that those who reported greater religiosity had lower rates of illness, and had fewer deaths from heart attacks and cancer, which translated into an overall longer life-span. Researchers found that the benefits could not be explained by behavioral factors (smoking, drinking, exercising, and socioeconomic status), negative affect, and social support. The authors suggested that religiosity/spirituality may enhance disease resistance perhaps through reducing sympathetic nervous system responsiveness to stress, but once a disease takes hold, it no longer has a positive effect on preventing early mortality. Though the exact mechanisms for the health benefits has yet to be determined, the boost in well-being could be due to a number of factors including social support, meaning, and religious-oriented coping and practices.
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