Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Religious Ritual and Wellbeing

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Applied Jewish Values in Social Sciences and Psychology

Abstract

Contrary to the typically negative view of ritual found in key psychological texts, this chapter draws on a new trend according to which religious ritual offers a range of positive mental health benefits, from reduced anxiety to meaning in life and sense of community. Adopting a phenomenological perspective, it examines two key rituals: the tranquillity and fulfilment respondents ascribed to Sabbath observance and the strengthening of identity from wearing a headdress for Jewish and Muslim women.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Log in via an institution
Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  • Aune, K., Scott-Baumann, A., Cheruvallil-Contractor, S., Hannan, R., & Hussain, D. (2013). Muslim women’s activism: Call for papers. doi:http://www.derby.ac.uk/education/centre-for-society-religion-and-belief/. Accessed 11 March 2014.

  • Benson, H., & Stark, M. (1996). Timeless healing. New York: Fireside.

    Google Scholar 

  • Belzen, J. A. (2010). Towards a cultural psychology of Religion. New York: Springer.

    Google Scholar 

  • Berry, J. W. (1997). Immigration, acculturation and adaptation. Applied Psychology: An International Review, 46, 5–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boswell, R. (2005). Say what you like: Dress, identity and heritage in Zanzibar. International Journal of Heritage Studies, 12, 440–457.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Breakwell, G. M. (1986). Coping with threatened identities. London: Methuen.

    Google Scholar 

  • Breakwell, G. M. (2010). Resisting representations and identity processes. Papers on Social Representations, 19, 6.1–6.11.

    Google Scholar 

  • Day, J. (1993). Speaking of belief: Language, performance and narrative in the psychology of religion. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 3, 213–230.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dein, S., & Loewenthal, K. M. (2013). The mental health benefits and costs of Sabbath observance among Orthodox Jews. Journal of Religion and Health, 52, 1382–1390.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Elliott, R., Fischer, C. T., & Rennie, D. L. (1999). Evolving guidelines for publication of qualitative research studies in psychology and related fields. British Journal of Clinical Psychology, 38, 215–229.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Erikson, E. H. (1963). Childhood and society. New York: Norton.

    Google Scholar 

  • Fowler, J. W. (1981). Stages of faith the psychology of human development and the quest for meaning. San Francisco: Harper & Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Freud, S. (1907). Obsessive acts and religious practices. Collected papers, 1907/1924. London: Hogarth Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goldberg, A. (1986). The Sabbath as dialectic: Implications for mental health. Journal of Religion and Health, 25, 237–244.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Heelas, P., & Woodhead, L. (2005). The spiritual revolution: Why religion is giving way to spirituality. Oxford: Blackwell.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hinde, R. A. (1999). Why gods persist: A scientific approach to religion. London: Routledge.

    Google Scholar 

  • Humphreys, M., & Brown, A. D. (2002). Dress and identity: A Turkish case study. Journal of Management Studies, 39, 927–952.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, J. (1992). Religious ritual and mental health. In J. F. Schumaker (Ed.), Religion and mental health. New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koenig, H., King, D., & Carson, V. (Eds.). (2012). Handbook of religion and health. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Loewenthal, K. M. (1988). Religious development and experience in Habad-Hasidic women. Journal of Psychology and Judaism, 12, 5–20.

    Google Scholar 

  • Loewenthal, K. M. (2012). Religious identity, challenge, and clothing: Women’s head and hair covering in Islam and Judaism. British Psychological Society Social Psychology Section conference, St Andrews University: Symposium: Conceptual and methodological developments in the study of cultural identities.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lofland, J., & Skonovd, N. (1981). Conversion motifs. Journal for the Scientific Study for Religion, 20, 373–385.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Marcia, J. E. (1966). Development and validation of ego-identity statuses. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 3, 119–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maslow, A. H. (1964). Religions, values and peak experiences. Columbus: Ohio State University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Pargament, K. (1997). The psychology of religious coping: Theory, research, practice. New York: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Peek, L. (2005). Becoming Muslim: The development of a religious identity. Sociology of Religion, 66, 215–242.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pennebaker, J. W. (1997). Writing about emotional experiences as a therapeutic process. Psychological Science, 8, 162–166.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pruyser, P. (1968). A dynamic psychology of religion. New York: Harper and Row.

    Google Scholar 

  • Scobie, G. W. (1975). Psychology of religion. New York: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Staples, C. L., & Mauss, A. L. (1987). Conversion or commitment? A reassessment of the Snow & Machalek approach to the study of conversion. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 26, 133–147.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. (1986). The social identity theory of intergroup behaviour. In S. Worchel & W. G. Austin (Eds.), Psychology of intergroup relations. Chicago: Nelson.

    Google Scholar 

  • Turner, V. (1975). Dramas, fields, and metaphors: Symbolic action in human society. Ithaca: Cornell University.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank the TAG Institute for Social Development for their generous financial support of the research in the first study and to Daniel Fleishman (New York University Stern School of Business) for conducting many of the interviews. Lamis Al-Solaim generously conducted interviews on some Muslim participants in the second study. We thank all the research participants for their time and for sharing their experience. The first study was reported more fully in Dein and Loewenthal (2013), and the second study was first reported in Loewenthal (2012).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Royal Holloway, University of London, Egham, UK

    Prof. Kate Miriam Loewenthal

  2. Glyndwr University, Wrexham, Wales, UK

    Prof. Kate Miriam Loewenthal

  3. New York University in London, London, UK

    Prof. Kate Miriam Loewenthal

  4. Heythrop College, University of London, London, UK

    Prof. Kate Miriam Loewenthal

  5. University College London, University of London, London, UK

    Dr. Simon Dein

  6. Durham University, Durham, UK

    Dr. Simon Dein

Authors
  1. Prof. Kate Miriam Loewenthal
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Dr. Simon Dein
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Kate Miriam Loewenthal .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Tag Institute for Social Development , NEW HAVEN, Connecticut, USA

    Michael Ben-Avie

  2. Tag Institute for Social Development, London, United Kingdom

    Yossi Ives

  3. University of London, London, United Kingdom

    Kate Loewenthal

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer International Publishing Switzerland

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Loewenthal, K., Dein, S. (2016). Religious Ritual and Wellbeing. In: Ben-Avie, M., Ives, Y., Loewenthal, K. (eds) Applied Jewish Values in Social Sciences and Psychology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-21933-2_8

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation