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Religions and Public Health: Critical Insights from Religious Studies
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Religions and Public Health: Critical Insights from Religious Studies

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 May 2019) | Viewed by 10541

Special Issue Editor

Prof. Dr. John Blevins

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
Interests: religions and global health and development; religions and sexual and reproductive health; religions and global HIV; religious perspectives on health and illness

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

On behalf of the editors of the journal Religions, I invite you to submit a paper to be considered for publication in an upcoming special issue that will examine the topic of religions and public health and development. For nearly two decades now, a small but growing group of scholars and researchers who study public health and development in a variety of global contexts have joined practitioners in the field to make the case that religion is a significant social force that affects health beliefs, behaviors, policies, and programs around the world. Their efforts have largely proven successful and interest in religion has grown among researchers in the fields of public health and development studies. Reflecting the interests and priorities of these fields, many researchers have sought to measure the impact of religion in relation to public health and development goals by defining religion according to measurable, functional indicators such as religious attendance or numbers of patients served in a faith-based health facility. As a result, much of the research on the topic to date has focused on measuring the health and social development activities of local faith communities and faith-based organizations.

However, religion’s influence on public health and development is variable and complex and could be analyzed in other ways; the primary focus among researchers to date has not advanced those other approaches by and large. However, a body of scholarship that analyzes the intersection of religion and public health and development using the analytical tools of religious and theological studies is growing.  This special issue can provide a significant contribution to this effort.

Articles for this special issue should provide an analysis of the influences of religion on public health and development by describing alignments and/or tensions between these domains. We encourage papers that provide an even-handed, critical assessment on this topic by employing concepts and methodologies often employed in religious studies or related disciplines. Papers from scholars or practitioners are encouraged and papers from multiple authors representing a variety of disciplinary backgrounds are especially welcome. We seek to explore a variety of global contexts in the issue and so representation from various religious traditions and spiritual practices, geographic regions, historical periods, and disciplinary approaches will play a role in determining the papers chosen for inclusion.

Prof. Dr. John Blevins
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • religion and health
  • public health
  • global health
  • development studies
  • cultural studies and health
  • medical anthropology

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

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14 pages, 1340 KiB  
Article
Buddhists Care: Examining the Impact of Religious Elements on Reducing Discriminatory Attitudes toward People Living with HIV/AIDS
by Yao Song and Zhenzhen Qin
Religions 2019, 10(7), 409; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10070409 - 28 Jun 2019
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3585
Abstract
Faith-based programs have been long regarded as influential social approaches to form positive attitudes to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) within the last few decades. However, recent scholars argue that religions serve a double role in supporting HIV-infected people. Moreover, relevant [...] Read more.
Faith-based programs have been long regarded as influential social approaches to form positive attitudes to human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) within the last few decades. However, recent scholars argue that religions serve a double role in supporting HIV-infected people. Moreover, relevant evidence is mainly collected from studies among participants of the Western religious traditions, such as Christianity. This study applies the theory of the attitude formation model to examine Buddhist factors impacting discriminatory attitudes towards HIV/AIDS and the causal path to positive behavior intention. To investigate its underlying mechanism, Buddhist elements, as an important antecedent, were introduced in the advertisement against HIV/AIDS-related discrimination to influence people’s attitudinal reaction. Results show that Buddhist advertising could significantly increase perceived religiosity and compassion. Then, both perceived religiosity and compassion jointly increase anti-prejudical attitudes towards HIV-infected people and have a positive impact on interaction intention at the end. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Religions and Public Health: Critical Insights from Religious Studies)
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16 pages, 278 KiB  
Article
Interaction Effects of Religiosity Level on the Relationship between Religion and Willingness to Donate Organs
by Sung Man Yoon
Religions 2019, 10(1), 8; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10010008 - 24 Dec 2018
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3338
Abstract
This study aims to investigate the interaction effect of religiosity level on the relationship between religion and willingness to donate organs. Prior studies have suggested that a high level of religiosity indicates a high level of willingness to donate organs. However, these previous [...] Read more.
This study aims to investigate the interaction effect of religiosity level on the relationship between religion and willingness to donate organs. Prior studies have suggested that a high level of religiosity indicates a high level of willingness to donate organs. However, these previous works ignore the interaction effect of the level of religiosity and the doctrinal characteristics of each religion regarding one’s own body preservation. Organ donation is an act of transplanting part of one’s own body after death to another person and is influenced by the viewpoint of the post-mortem world and the attitude toward the preservation of the body. Therefore, this study analyzes the effects of religious characteristics and belief levels on the relationship between religion and organ donation. Results show that Christianity, such as Catholicism and Protestantism, positively affects the willingness to donate organs as compared with Buddhism. Religiosity level also exerts an interaction effect that strengthens the relationship between Christianity and willingness to donate organs. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Religions and Public Health: Critical Insights from Religious Studies)

Other

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8 pages, 217 KiB  
Commentary
Boundary Crossing: Meaningfully Engaging Religious Traditions and Religious Institutions in Public Health
by Katelyn N.G. Long, Ryan J. Gregg, Tyler J. VanderWeele, Doug Oman and Lance D. Laird
Religions 2019, 10(7), 412; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel10070412 - 29 Jun 2019
Cited by 10 | Viewed by 3229
Abstract
Interest in religion and spirituality continues to grow among public health practitioners, researchers, and scholars. While there have been several recent landmark publications and efforts to understand the intersections of religion, spirituality, and public health, work remains to be done. In this commentary, [...] Read more.
Interest in religion and spirituality continues to grow among public health practitioners, researchers, and scholars. While there have been several recent landmark publications and efforts to understand the intersections of religion, spirituality, and public health, work remains to be done. In this commentary, we outline three challenges that impede more substantive engagement with religion and spirituality from the public health perspective; namely, the controversial aspects of religion, the perception of religion as a private matter, and limited academic space for coursework around religion and spirituality within public health training. We then describe a series of recommendations that might foster better scholarship and praxis at the crossroads of public health, religion, and spirituality: forming interdisciplinary teams, engaging a wider body of literature, building relationships with faith-inspired colleagues and communities, and considering the goals and ends of communities we serve. We remain hopeful that through ongoing dialogue and academic humility, work exploring the features of religion, spirituality, and public health will yield richer understanding of our shared humanity and the features that give rise to life. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Religions and Public Health: Critical Insights from Religious Studies)
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