The Sept. 11 attacks of three years ago made many American students look to a higher power for comfort and support, according to a new study.
The new study conducted by researchers at the UW and the University of Michigan found a strong link between spiritual support and positive attitudes following the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
The study, titled "Prayers, Spiritual Support and Positive Attitudes in Coping With the September 11 National Crisis," was conducted approximately three months after the terrorist attack and involved 457 undergraduate and graduate students at the UW, the University of Nevada and the University of Pennsylvania.
Subjects representing a wide range of religions were involved in the study, which found that two thirds of respondents used prayer to deal with the effects of Sept. 11. The most common types of prayer were found to be for the victims' families, the security of the respondents' own social circles and for global peace.
Unlike a study 10 years ago about the Oklahoma City bombing, geography did not seem to affect the participants' response to Sept. 11. While the surveyed campuses were spread across the country, the results from the different campuses were virtually the same.
Amy Ai, professor in the UW Department of Social Work and the lead author of the study, attributed these results to the national impact scale of the attacks.
"We think this is very unique to 9/11 because 9/11 is very common to every American," said Ai.
Although the researchers originally wanted to conduct their survey in New York City, such a survey turned out to be unfeasible in the months following the terrorist attacks.
While there have been plenty of studies on the link between spiritual support and positive outlook, Ai said. "Very little research has explained why and how it works."
To help explain the phenomenon, the researchers employed a new statistical device developed for the study, known as the Spiritual Support Scale, a 12-item scale that itemizes and assesses spirituality. Ai said she believes that the Spiritual Support Scale fills a gap in current research in the field of spirituality and mental health.
"This is a true frontier in psychological study. They (psychologists) don't have a good instrument with good psychometric proprieties," said Ai.
The study is also significant because many studies on the topic of spiritual support and mental health have been limited to the "Bible belt" states, and therefore are not considered to be applicable to the West Coast.
Ai is also working on an ongoing study at the University of Michigan dealing with the connection between prayer and optimism for patients awaiting cardiac surgery.
She has been involved in research on the link between spirituality and mental health for the past 10 years.
The study was funded by the Newano Peace Foundation and will be published soon in the Journal of Personality.