Ilsung Nam1, Hyunsook Yoon2, Yojin Kim2, Yeon-Ok Lim3, Hyunjoo Lee4, Kyoungwon Choi5

1Department of Social Welfare, Sungkonghoe University, Seoul, Korea 2Department of Social Welfare, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea 3Hallym University Institute of Aging, Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea 4Department of Social Welfare, Hallym Polytechnic University, Chuncheon, Korea 5Department of Social Welfare, Graduate School of Hallym University, Chuncheon, Korea


Background: Numerous studies have demonstrated that spirituality has protective effects on depression. However, there are only few studies on the theoretical mechanism showing how spirituality effects on depression. Thus, to find mediating variables explaining the relationship between the spirituality and depression may help to develop appropriate program for reducing depression in elderly cancer patients. In this study, we examined the effect of optimism and pessimism as their mediating effects on depression.
Methods: This study is to verify the relationships between spirituality and depression along with the mediating effects of optimism and pessimism among 600 South Korean elderly cancer patients who participated in a community- based study about their mental health.
Results: Optimism and pessimism are linked with spirituality and depression. Higher spirituality levels were associated with increased optimistic thinking, and then optimistic thinking is associated with low possibility of depression, whereas lower spirituality levels were associated with more pessimistic thinking, and in turn pessimistic thinking is associated with high depression scores.
Conclusions: Understanding optimism and pessimism affecting depression level is critical for developing spirituality- based programs to reduce depression in elderly cancer patients.
Korean J Health Promot 2016;16(2):127-133

Keywords: Spirituality, Optimism, Pessimism, Depression, Neoplasms