Religion and psychiatry

There has been not quite a sea change, but a slow steady increase in the number of articles touching upon religious issues in the psychiatric literature. The breadth of topics is much the same as before, ranging from studies of the association (and presumed causal relationship) between religious (and spiritual) beliefs and practices and recovery rates from various illnesses, to the characteristics of individuals who do and do not place religion centrally in their lives, to discussions of the value of collaborations between clerical and psychological practitioners. Many studies still tack on a few religious variables as their measure of religiosity (church attendance and denomination) within a broader medical study, thus limiting confidence in the significance of findings. Nevertheless, even these studies provide interest and direction for future research.