People involved in religious community less depressed, suicidal, drug dependent

Nice to hear something good about religion for a change!

http://www.adherents.com/misc/religion_suicide.html

RESULTS: Religiously unaffiliated subjects had significantly more lifetime suicide attempts and more first-degree relatives who committed suicide than subjects who endorsed a religious affiliation. Unaffiliated subjects were younger, less often married, less often had children, and had less contact with family members. Furthermore, subjects with no religious affiliation perceived fewer reasons for living, particularly fewer moral objections to suicide. In terms of clinical characteristics, religiously unaffiliated subjects had more lifetime impulsivity, aggression, and past substance use disorder. No differences in the level of subjective and objective depression, hopelessness, or stressful life events were found.

CONCLUSIONS: Religious affiliation is associated with less suicidal behavior in depressed inpatients. After other factors were controlled, it was found that greater moral objections to suicide and lower aggression level in religiously affiliated subjects may function as protective factors against suicide attempts. Further study about the influence of religious affiliation on aggressive behavior and how moral objections can reduce the probability of acting on suicidal thoughts may offer new therapeutic strategies in suicide prevention.

 

And this is because religion takes the mind off the self and engages the concept of things greater than our desires. At the same time it calls for humility within introspection, a self-examination that taps into the psyche to look inward and act outward.

 

Some people also use the statistic of high suicide rates among homosexual youths as evidence that heterosexuality is better for your health.

In reality of course, it's exclusion, isolation, and feeling rejected by your community that is what leads to depression and suicide, imo.

Organised religion does create a good support structure though, but so can any social club.

 

Sweeping again huh?

“Statistics show religious people are far more likely to blow themselves up in an attempt to kill others.”

One can always use information in an irresponsible way to come to whatever conclusion they like.

The down trodden are always more likely to commit suicide, commit crime, abuse themselves or others, etc. It’s not religion in and of itself that helps people cope with their lives and as we all know mixing religion with people who are angry and feel like they have nothing to lose can produce horrific results.

In fact it’s because of the later that I am certain religion is not the best solution to peoples suffering. It especially creates problems when the people who are suffering are suffering because of religion like women living in the middle east.

 

Interesting study.


From the same source.

"Concerning suicide rates, this is the one indicator of societal health in which religious nations fare much better than secular nations."

"It is important to keep in mind that atheism and agnosticism have no inherent proscription against suicide, so higher rates of suicide among agnostics and atheists should in no way be considered a failure of these belief systems. Indeed, compassionate tolerance for suicide and euthenasia are widely regarded as hallmarks of many secular societies."

 

It's easy to be more suicidal and depressed when huge portions of the population tell you that you are evil and deserve to be tortured for all eternity.

 

Or it scares the living daylights out of people when they're kids, so they grow up with that fear permanently in the backs of their minds. There are plenty of people who would give suicide more consideration if they didn't have the nagging fear of eternal damnation stopping them.

By the way, I'm not saying that's a bad thing. Something that keeps people from killing themselves is generally a good thing. It would be nice if religion could do that without all the other baggage it brings.

 

Interesting. Believing in the 'wrong god' is just as effective as believing is the 'correct god'.

 

I think as many people bring their own baggage to religion, as religion foisting baggage upon the person.

Like any philosophy of life and any aspect of life, it's a two way street.

 

Thank you Dr. Pennywise for that powerful and insightful explanation of how God saves us from ourselves.

However:
"RESULTS: Religiously unaffiliated subjects had significantly more lifetime suicide attempts and more first-degree relatives who committed suicide than subjects who endorsed a religious affiliation. Unaffiliated subjects were younger, less often married, less often had children, and had less contact with family members. Furthermore, subjects with no religious affiliation perceived fewer reasons for living, particularly fewer moral objections to suicide. In terms of clinical characteristics, religiously unaffiliated subjects had more lifetime impulsivity, aggression, and past substance use disorder. No differences in the level of subjective and objective depression, hopelessness, or stressful life events were found. "
http://www.adherents.com/misc/religion_suicide.html

Might want to look into a refund for the online Psychology degree.