AUTHOR=Gilbertson Madison Kawakami , Brady Shannon T. , Ablorh Tsotso , Logel Christine , Schnitker Sarah A. 

TITLE=Closeness to God, Spiritual Struggles, and Wellbeing in the First Year of College

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Psychology

VOLUME=Volume 13 - 2022

YEAR=2022

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/psychology/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.742265

DOI=10.3389/fpsyg.2022.742265

ISSN=1664-1078

ABSTRACT=Spirituality is an important, but oft-overlooked, aspect of the self that may affect college students’ well-being and belonging. Few studies have systematically examined closeness to God and spiritual struggles as predictors of college student well-being during early college, which is a critical window for identity development. Moreover, research exploring interactions between spiritual struggles and closeness to God in predicting well-being outcomes is scarce. We address these gaps in the literature with an analytic sample comprised of 839 first-year college participants who identify as religious. The results of correlational analyses and linear mixed effect models are presented. Closeness to God was associated with greater well-being and belonging, and spiritual struggles were associated with lower well-being and belonging. In exploratory analyses, a moderating effect of closeness to God on the relation between spiritual struggles and negative outcomes was observed. Implications for higher education and college student development are discussed.