Handbook of Religion and Health

By Verna Benner Carson, Dana E. King, Harold G. Koenig, et al.

The Handbook of Religion and Health has become the seminal research text on religion, spirituality, and health, outlining a rational argument for the connection between religion and health. For the past two decades, this handbook has been the most cited of all references on religion and health. This Third Edition is the most scientifically rigorous edition to date, covering the best research published through 2021 with an emphasis on prospective studies and randomized controlled trials.

This volume examines research on the relationship between religion and health outcomes, surveys the historical connections between religion and health, and discusses the distinction between the terms ''religion'' and ''spirituality'' in research and clinical practice. It reviews research on religion and mental health, literature on the mind-body relationship, and develops a model to explain how religious involvement may impact physical health through the mind-body mechanisms. It also explores the direct relationships between religion and physical health, covering such topics as immune and endocrine function, heart disease, hypertension and stroke, neurological disorders, cancer, and infectious diseases; and examines the consequences of illness including chronic pain, disability, and quality of life. Additionally, most of its 34 chapters conclude with clinical and community applications making this text relevant to both health care professionals and clergy.

This book is the most insightful and authoritative resource available to anyone who wants to understand the relationship between religion and health.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0190088850
• ISBN13: 9780190088859
• Release Date: November 2023
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Length: 1112 Pages
• Weight: 4.83 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.2" x 7.3" x 10.1"

Customer Reviews

A good reference book

If health is your field of practice this book will increase you awareness on the importance of holistic approach to health care. If you are researching in the area of religion and spirituality, then this is a must read for your literature review.

The Ultimate Resource!

This is the most comprehensive collection of studies in the field of religion, spirituality and healthcare. Extremely easy to read and nicely organized for easy use. As a researcher myself in the field of spirituality and healthcare, I have found this book to be a "must have" resource for our own work. I would strongly recommend this book wihtout reservation!

An Amazing Book

As a scientist with great faith---and a survivor of three separate cancers---I came to this book with a lot of faith and treatment experience. This is an amazing summary of the literature relating religion and health. There are many, many associations between religious commitment and practice and health, with major implications for crafting healthful lifestyles and treatment of illness. This book is scientifically credible, inspirational from a religious perspective, and interesting throughout. 5 stars only because that is the top star value!!

Well worth the money

This book was well worth the money. There is so much information on religion and health, from a detailed history on religion and medicine to specific subjects like well-being, depression, heart disease, stroke, immune function, and lots on cancer. I think anybody with a health background or a religion background would find this book helpful.

The current Bible of the field

ANDREW J. WEAVER, Ph.D. (aweaver@healthcarechaplaincy.org), a United Methodist pastor and research psychologistThis handbook reviews and discusses the extensive research on the relationships between religion and a variety of mental and physical health outcomes, including depression, anxiety, heart disease, hypertension, stroke and cancer, as well as the destructive behaviors such as smoking, substance abuse, and risky sexual activity. This is a comprehensive and useful summary of the field of religion and health by three recognized experts who can write plain English. This will quickly become one of the Bibles of the field. RECOMMENDED WITHOUT RESERVATION.