Abstract
The effectiveness of faith-based health and wellness interventions is moderated by the attitudes, perceptions, and participation of key leaders within faith-based organizations. This qualitative study examined perceptions about the link between health, spirituality, and religion among a volunteer sample of faith leaders (n = 413) from different denominations. The major themes included: influences on health and wellness promotion and a relationship between spirituality and health. The results indicated that perceptions about the link among health, spirituality, and religion vary among faith leaders, regardless of denomination. Future faith-based interventions should be developed with consideration for denomination as a socially and culturally relevant factor.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
American College of Sports Medicine. (2009). American college of sports medicine guidelines for exercise testing and prescription (8th ed.). Philadelphia: Lippincott Williams & Wilkins.
ARDA. (2000). US membership reports. Denominational groups, 2000. University Park: Association of Religion Data Archives.
Bopp, M., & Fallon, E. A. (in press). Health and wellness programming in faith-based organizations: A description of a nationwide sample. Health Promotion Practice.
Bopp, M., & Fallon, E. A. (under review). Individual and institutional influences on faith-based health and wellness programming. Health Education Research.
Bopp, M., Lattimore, D., Wilcox, S., Laken, M., McClorin, L., Swinton, R., et al. (2007). Understanding physical activity participation in members of an African American church: A qualitative study. Health Education Research, 22(6), 815–826.
Bopp, M., Wilcox, S., Laken, M., Hooker, S. P., Parra-Medina, D., Saunders, R., et al. (2009). 8 steps to fitness: A faith-based, behavior change physical activity intervention for African Americans. Journal of Physical Act Health, 6(5), 568–577.
Breen, G.-M. (2008). Interpersonal, intragroup conflict between southern baptist pastors: A qualitative inquiry examining contributing factors. Pastoral Psychology, 56(3), 249–268.
Butterfross, F. D., Kegler, M. C., & Francisco, V. T. (2008). Mobilizing organizations for health promotion: Theories of organizational change. In K. Glanz, B. K. Rimer, & K. Viswanath (Eds.), Health behavior and health education (4th ed., pp. 338–340). San Francisco: Josey-Bass.
Campbell, M. K., Motsinger, B. M., Ingram, A., Jewell, D., Makarushka, C., Beatty, B., et al. (2000). The North Carolina Black Churches United for better health project: intervention and process evaluation. Health Educational Behaviour, 27(2), 241–253.
Campbell, M. K., James, A., Hudson, M. A., Carr, C., Jackson, E., Oakes, V., et al. (2004). Improving multiple behaviors for colorectal cancer prevention among African American church members. Health Psychology, 23(5), 492–502.
Campbell, M. K., Hudson, M. A., Resnicow, K., Blakeney, N., Paxton, A., & Baskin, M. (2007). Church-based health promotion interventions: Evidence and lessons learned. Ann Rev Public Health, 28, 213–234.
Catanzaro, A. M., Meador, K. G., Koenig, H. G., Kuchibhatla, M., & Clipp, E. C. (2007). Congregational health ministries: a national study of pastors’ views. Public Health Nursing, 24(1), 6–17.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2001). Increasing physical activity: a report on the recommendations of the task force on community preventive services. MMWR Recommendations and Reports, 50, 1–14.
DeHaven, M. J., Hunter, I. B., Wilder, L., Walton, J. W., & Berry, J. (2004). Health programs in faith-based organizations: Are they effective? American Journal of Public Health, 94(6), 1030–1036.
Demark-Wahnefried, W., McClelland, J. W., Jackson, B., Campbell, M. K., Cowan, A., Hoben, K., et al. (2000). Partnering with African American churches to achieve better health: lessons learned during the Black Churches United for Better Health 5 a day project. Journal of Cancer Education, 15(3), 164–167.
Duan, N., Fox, S. A., Derose, K. P., & Carson, S. (2000). Maintaining mammography adherence through telephone counseling in a church-based trial. American Journal of Public Health, 90(9), 1468–1471.
Duru, O. K., Sarkisian, C. A., Leng, M., & Mangione, C. M. (2010). Sisters in motion: a randomized controlled trial of a faith-based physical activity intervention. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 58(10), 1863–1869.
Hawkins, R. P., Kreuter, M., Resnicow, K., Fishbein, M., & Dijkstra, A. (2008). Understanding tailoring in communicating about health. Health Education Research, 23(3), 454–466.
Hillebrand, H. J. (2009). The protestant reformation (Revised ed. ed.). New York: Harper Perennial.
Kim, K. H., Linnan, L., Campbell, M. K., Brooks, C., Koenig, H. G., & Wiesen, C. (2006). The word (wholeness, oneness, righteousness, deliverance): A faith-based weight-loss program utilizing a community-based participatory research approach. Health Educ Behav, 35(5), 634–650.
Krukowski, R. A., Lueders, N. K., Prewitt, T. E., Williams, D. K., & Smith West, D. (2010). Obesity treatment tailored for a catholic faith community: a feasibility study. Journal of Health Psychology, 15(3), 382–390.
Miniño, A. M., Xu, J. Q., & Kochanek, K. D. (2010). Deaths: Preliminary data for 2008. National vital statistics reports (Vol. 59). Hyattsville, MD: National Center for Health Statistics.
Newport, F. (2010). Americans’ church attendance inches up in 2010. From http://www.gallup.com/poll/141044/americans-church-attendance-inches-2010.aspx. Retrieved 22 Nov 2010.
Noar, S. M., Benac, C. N., & Harris, M. S. (2007). Does tailoring matter? Meta-analytic review of tailored print health behavior change interventions. Psychological Bulletin, 133, 673–693.
Padela, A., Killawi, A., Heisler, M., Demonner, S., & Fetters, M. D. (2010). The role of imams in American Muslim health: Perspectives of Muslim community leaders in southeast Michigan. Journal of Religious Health.
Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative research & evaluation methods (3rd ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Peterson, J., Atwood, J. R., & Yates, B. (2002). Key elements for church-based health promotion programs: Outcome-based literature review. Public Health Nursing, 19(6), 401–411.
Pew Research Center. (2008a). U.S. religious landscape survey. Religious affiliation: Diverse and dynamic. Washington, DC: Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
Pew Research Center. (2008b). U.S. Religious landscape survey. Religious beliefs and practices: Diverse and politically relevant. Washington, DC: Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
Proeschold-Bell, R. J., & LeGrand, S. (2010). High rates of obesity and chronic disease among United Methodist clergy. Obesity (Silver Spring), 18(9), 1867–1870.
Resnicow, K., Baranowski, T., Ahluwalia, J. S., & Braithwaite, R. L. (1999). Cultural sensitivity in public health: Defined and demystified. Ethnicity and Disease, 9(1), 10–21.
Schorling, J. B., Roach, J., Siegel, M., Baturka, N., Hunt, D. E., Guterbock, T. M., et al. (1997). A trial of church-based smoking cessation interventions for rural African Americans. Preventive Medicine, 26(1), 92–101.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2010). Healthy people 2020. From www.healthypeople.gov. Retrieved 10 Dec 2010.
Voorhees, C. C., Stillman, F. A., Swank, R. T., Haegerty, P. J., Levine, D. M., & Becker, D. M. (1996). Heart, body, and soul: Impact of church-based smoking cessation interventions on readiness to quit. Preventive Medicine, 25, 277–285.
Wilcox, S., Laken, M., Anderson, T., Bopp, M., Bryant, D., Carter, R., et al. (2007). The health-e-AME faith-based physical activity initiative: Description and baseline findings. Health Promot Pract, 8(1), 69–78.
Wilcox, S., Laken, M., Parrott, A. W., Condrasky, M., Saunders, R., Addy, C. L., et al. (2010). The faith, activity, and nutrition (FAN) program: design of a participatory research intervention to increase physical activity and improve dietary habits in African American churches. Contemporary Clinical Trials, 31(4), 323–335.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Webb, B., Bopp, M. & Fallon, E.A. A Qualitative Study of Faith Leaders’ Perceptions of Health and Wellness. J Relig Health 52, 235–246 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-011-9476-6
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-011-9476-6