Islamic Spiritual Therapy and Improvement of Mental Health in Hospital Nurses: A Quasi-Experimental Study
Volume 11, Issue 2, Spring 2026, Pages 893-899
https://doi.org/10.30491/hpr.2026.502464.1467
Mojtaba Gharabaghi, Mohammad Ali Akhavan, Fatemeh Agha Sheikh Hassan, Fatemeh Mehrabi
Abstract Background: Hospital nurses face psychological challenges and occupational burnout due to the demanding nature of their profession. Variables such as resilience, openness to experience, identity styles, and expansion of spiritual experiences have been shown to reduce these problems, but have mainly been studied in non-Muslim societies using non-Islamic approaches. This study addresses this gap by examining the effectiveness of Islamic spiritual therapy on these variables in hospital nurses.
Objectives: To investigate the effectiveness of Islamic spiritual therapy on resilience, openness to experience, identity styles, and expansion of spiritual experience in hospital nurses.
Methods: This was a semi-experimental study with a pre-test-post-test design and a control group. The sample consisted of 30 nurses working in public hospitals in Tehran, Iran, selected using convenience sampling and randomly assigned to experimental and control groups. The experimental group received 10 sessions of 90-minute Islamic spiritual therapy, while the control group received no intervention. Data were collected using the Connor and Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEOPI-R) for openness to experience, the Berzonsky Identity Styles Questionnaire (ISI-6G), and the Underwood and Teresi Daily Spiritual Experiences Scale (DSES). Data were analyzed using analysis of covariance (ANCOVA).
Results: The results showed that Islamic spiritual therapy had a significant effect on resilience, openness to experience, identity styles (informational, normative, avoidant/confused, and commitment), and the expansion of spiritual experience in hospital nurses (P < 0.05).
Conclusion: Islamic spiritual therapy enhances resilience, openness to experience, identity styles, and spiritual experiences in hospital nurses. It can reduce burnout and promote holistic (physical-psychological-spiritual) care in hospital settings. Future research should include larger sample sizes and follow-up assessments.