The Relationship Between Religious Attachment and Spiritual Care Competencies in Nursing Students: a Cross-Sectional Study in Turkey


KILINÇ İŞLEYEN E., Kartal A.

Journal of Religion and Health, vol.64, no.5, pp.4111-4128, 2025 (AHCI, SSCI, Scopus) identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 64 Issue: 5
  • Publication Date: 2025
  • Doi Number: 10.1007/s10943-025-02442-z
  • Journal Name: Journal of Religion and Health
  • Journal Indexes: Arts and Humanities Citation Index (AHCI), Social Sciences Citation Index (SSCI), Scopus, Academic Search Premier, IBZ Online, Periodicals Index Online, ATLA Religion Database, CINAHL, Index Islamicus, Psycinfo
  • Page Numbers: pp.4111-4128
  • Keywords: Nursing students, Psychosocial, Religion attachment, Spiritual care competence
  • Uşak University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

In this study, it was aimed to determine the effect of religious attachment in nursing students on their spiritual care competence levels. This cross-sectional study was conducted with Turkish nursing students in 2022 (n = 348). The sociodemographic information form, spiritual health scale-short form (SHS-SF), and spiritual care competence scale (SCCS-T) were used for data collection. A significant relationship was found between religious attachment and SCCS-T (r = 0.211; p = 0.000). The study results showed that the SCCS-T scores of the students who took courses/training on spiritual care were higher (p < 0.05). The predictors of the spiritual care competence of the nursing students were religious attachment (β = 1.002) and spiritual care course/training (β = 7.957). The study findings indicate that nursing students’ spiritual care competence was related to their religious attachment. In general, nursing students with a higher level of religious attachment have a higher perception of spiritual care competence. The results emphasize the integration of psychosocial-related concepts into the nursing curriculum to increase nursing students’ spiritual care competence.