Religious beliefs, illness and death: family's perspectives in illness experience

Authors

  • Regina Szylit Bousso Universidade de São Paulo; Escola de Enfermagem
  • Kátia Poles Centro Universtisário de Lavras
  • Taís de Souza Serafim Universidade de São Paulo; Escola de Enfermagem
  • Mariana Gonçalves de Miranda Universidade de São Paulo; Escola de Enfermagem

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1590/S0080-62342011000200014

Keywords:

Death, Thanatology, Religion, Attitude to death, Family

Abstract

The objectives of this study were to identify predominant themes in religion, illness and death in the life histories of families and examine the relationship between religion creeds, illness and death in the discourse of families that have an ill person. The theoretical framework used in this study was Symbolic Interactionism and the method was Oral History. Participants were seventeen families with nine different religions, who had experienced the death of a relative. Data analysis showed that following a religion is a relevant part of the lives of many families and cannot be neglected in the illness context. Results point to the importance of understanding the meaning that religion has to the families in the health-disease process, so nurses can work on the promotion of health.

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Published

2011-04-01

Issue

Section

Original Article

How to Cite

Bousso, R. S., Poles, K., Serafim, T. de S., & Miranda, M. G. de. (2011). Religious beliefs, illness and death: family’s perspectives in illness experience. Revista Da Escola De Enfermagem Da USP, 45(2), 397-403. https://doi.org/10.1590/S0080-62342011000200014