The Relationship Between Perceived Social Support and Spiritual Well-Being in Patients With Multiple Sclerosis.
Fatemeh Nazari, Vahid Shaygannejad, Leila Mardanian Dehkordi
PMID 40357588WHAT IT FOUND
In people with MS, emotional support was linked to higher spiritual well-being, while informational and instrumental support were not.
Age was also associated with higher spiritual well-being. This is an association, not proof that support improves well-being.
Key findings
01Spiritual well-being was positively related to total perceived social support (r = 0.236, p = 0.009) and emotional support (r = 0.314, p = 0.001), but not to informational support (r = 0.161, p = 0.094) or instrumental support (r = 0.132, p = 0.173).
02Most participants had average spiritual well-being (69.7%) and average perceived social support (49.6%).
03Emotional support and age were associated with higher spiritual well-being in the model: chance increased 59.2% per unit increase in emotional support and 34.1% per age score.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
The sample came from one hospital in one city and was selected by convenience sampling, so it may not represent people with MS elsewhere. It was cross-sectional, so it cannot show that social support causes spiritual well-being or that age causes it. The methods say 120 women were studied, but Table 1 lists 85 female and 35 male participants, so the sex composition is unclear. The paper reports 15 refusals and analyses 120 of 135 completed questionnaires, which may introduce selection bias. Participants had EDSS below 5.5, so more severely affected people were excluded.
Declared interests
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not read the 59.2% increase as proof that adding emotional support raises spiritual well-being. The study measured associations at one time point and did not test a support intervention.