Faith in God has positive effect on treating mental illness

Faith in God has positive effect on treatment outcomes for mentally ill people
Examiner
MENTAL ILLNESS
APRIL 27, 2013
BY: CAROLA FINCH

A study by McLean Hospital, a Harvard Medical School affiliate, suggests that people who are receiving short-term treatment for psychiatric illness have better outcomes if they believe in God.

The study was announced on April 27, 2013, and was published in the current issue of Journal of Affective Disorders (PMID 23051729, DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2012.08.030). David H. Rosmarin, PhD, McLean Hospital clinician and instructor in the Department of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School, examined individuals in McLean’s Behavioral Health Partial Hospital program to investigate the relationship between patients' level of belief in God, treatment expectations, and treatment outcomes.

"Our work suggests that people with a moderate to high level of belief in a higher power do significantly better in short-term psychiatric treatment than those without, regardless of their religious affiliation,” Rosmarin. said. Belief was associated with not only improved psychological wellbeing, but decreases in depression and intention to self-harm."
read more here