Browsing by Author "Krok, Dariusz"

Now showing 1 - 12 of 12
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    Disclosure to God as a Mediator Between Private Prayer and Psychological Well-Being in a Christian Sample
    (Springer Nature, 2021) Zarzycka, Beata; Krok, Dariusz
    Although a number of studies have reported the psychological and physical benefits of prayer, only a few have examined the means by which prayer affects health. Winkeljohn Black et al. (J Relig Health 54(2):540-553, 2015. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-014-9840-4) found disclosure to God as a mediator in the relationship between prayer and mental health. In their study, the authors used Poloma and Pendleton’s (Rev Relig Res 31(1):46-53, 1989. https://doi.org/10.2307/3511023, ) model of prayer. This study examined whether disclosure to God as a mediator can be upheld with Laird et al.’s (Int J Psychol Relig 14(4):251–272, 2004) prayer model. The study included 285 Polish adults (50.2% of women), aged between 18 and 60 years. The Multidimensional Prayer Inventory, the Revised Distress Disclosure Index, and the Psychological Well-Being Scale were applied to the research. The results showed that the prayer of thanksgiving correlated positively and the prayer of supplication negatively with well-being. Two indirect effects were significant, indicating disclosure to God as a mediator of the confession — well-being link and the supplication — well-being link.
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    Interpersonal Forgiveness and Meaning in Life in Older Adults: The Mediating and Moderating Roles of the Religious Meaning System
    (MDPI, 2021) Krok, Dariusz; Zarzycka, Beata
    Forgiving others may play an important role in achieving meaning in life as it offers a valuable platform for deliberate moral acts of acceptance of positive affect, behaviour, and cognition towards a transgressor. The aim of this paper was to analyse the relationship between forgiveness and presence, and the search for meaning in life, as well as the mediating role of the religious meaning system in this relationship among older adults. A total of 205 older adults, 112 women and 93 men, participated in the study. The mean age was 72.59. The Transgression-Related Interpersonal Motivations Scale, the Meaning in Life Questionnaire, and the Religious Meaning System Questionnaire were employed in the research; revenge and avoidance revealed negative correlations with presence, whereas benevolence showed positive correlations, but not with the search for meaning in life. The religious meaning system was confirmed as a mediator in the relationships between forgiveness (revenge, avoidance, and benevolence) and both presence and the search for meaning. The findings point to the significant role played by religious beliefs and behaviour in the domain of purpose and goals. Additionally, testing the mediation and moderation effects sheds new light on the interaction of compassion- and goal-oriented mechanisms in older adults’ meaning in life.
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    Multidimensional Prayer Inventory: Psychometric Properties and Clinical Applications
    (MDPI, 2022) Zarzycka, Beata; Krok, Dariusz; Tomaka, Kamil; Rybarski, Radosław
    Prayer is one of the most important aspects of religious/spiritual life. The psychological literature has identified various types of prayer and a few methods for measuring it. The Multidimensional Prayer Inventory (MPI) has received much attention from researchers since it allows for the capture of the most universal forms of prayer, characteristic of the Judeo-Christian tradition: Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication, and Reception. The aim of this article was to examine psychometric properties and clinical applications of the Polish MPI. In four studies, we established the internal structure of the MPI using Principal Component Analysis (PCA, study 1) and Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA, study 2), examined its validity and reliability in relation to religiousness (study 3), and analysed its clinical application (study 4). The Polish MPI has been confirmed as a reliable and valid measure of five types of prayer for use in research settings.
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    Parental Attachment Styles and Adolescent Deconversion: The Mediating Role of Problematic Facebook Use
    (2022) Zarzycka, Beata; Grupa, Michał; Krok, Dariusz; Rynasiewicz, Agata
    Previous studies have demonstrated links between parental attachment styles and religiosity. However, only a few studies have focused on how attachment styles may affect deconversion. This study analyzed the relationships between parental attachment styles and deconversion among adolescents. The mediating role of problematic Facebook use will also be examined. Participants were 550 high school students aged between 14 and 19 (M = 16.36, SD = 1.28). The Experiences in Close Relationships Scale, the Bergen Facebook Addiction Scale, and the Adolescent Deconversion Scale were applied to the research. The results showed that the anxious and avoidant attachment styles correlated positively, whereas the secure attachment style correlated negatively with deconversion. Problematic Facebook use was a mediator in the parental anxious attachment-deconversion relationship. The findings supported that anxious parental relationships may significantly contribute to leaving religion in adolescents.
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    Religiosity, Meaning-Making and the Fear of COVID-19 Affecting Well-Being Among Late Adolescents in Poland: A Moderated Mediation Model
    (Springer Nature, 2021) Krok, Dariusz; Zarzycka, Beata; Telka, Ewa
    Adolescents have come to be greatly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and the ensuing containment measures in recent months. The aim of the present study was to examine the relations among religiosity, meaning-making, fear of COVID-19, and subjective well-being within a moderated mediation model. Three hundred and sixteen late adolescents (173 women and 143 men) in Poland volunteered to take part in the study. The results show that meaning-making mediated relationships between religiosity and life satisfaction, religiosity and positive affect, and religiosity and negative affect. In addition, these mediation effects were moderated by the fear of COVID-19. Specifically, the indirect effects were stronger for adolescents with high fear than for those with low fear, which indicates that fear of COVID-19 serves as a ‘warning’ factor.
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    Religious Struggle and Psychological Well-Being: The Mediating Role of Religious Support and Meaning Making
    (MDPI, 2020) Zarzycka, Beata; Tychmanowicz, Anna; Krok, Dariusz
    Although a variety of studies have found robust links between religious/spiritual (r/s) struggle and poorer well-being, only a few have examined the means by which r/s struggle affects mental well-being. The present paper aims to examine religious support and meaning making as mediators of the relationship between r/s struggle and well-being. The study included 226 adults, 108 women and 118 men, aged between 17 and 78 years. We applied the Religious and Spiritual Struggle Scale, Religious Support Scale, Meaning Making Scale, and Psychological Well-Being Scale. The results demonstrated that both religious support and meaning making were mediators in the relationship between r/s struggles and well-being. During moral or demonic struggles, many people reportedly feel supported by their religion, make meaning based on these positive religious experiences, and in turn experience greater well-being. Conversely, during divine, ultimate meaning, and interpersonal struggles people may feel like God does not support them, which may lead to difficulties reframing their religious experience, and adversely influence well-being. The findings from this study underscore the multifaceted character of r/s struggle: during different types of r/s struggle people may feel that religion is a source of support for them or, by contrast, they may feel deprived of religious support, which can lead to an increase or decrease of well-being, respectively.
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    Risk of Contracting COVID-19, Personal Resources and Subjective Well-Being among Healthcare Workers: The Mediating Role of Stress and Meaning-Making
    (MDPI, 2021) Krok, Dariusz; Zarzycka, Beata; Telka, Ewa
    The latest research suggests that the relationships between the risk of contracting COVID-19, personal resources and subjective well-being have rather an indirect character and can include the occurrence of mediating factors related to meaning-making processes and stress experiences. Protection motivation theory offers a theoretical paradigm that enables these associations to be thoroughly investigated and understood. The current study aimed to examine the mediating roles of meaning-making and stress in the relationship of risk of contracting COVID-19 and personal resources (self-efficacy and meaning in life) with subjective well-being among healthcare workers. A total of 225 healthcare workers from hospitals, medical centres and diagnostic units completed a set of questionnaires during the first few months of the COVID-19 lockdown period (March–May 2020). The results revealed that greater self-efficacy and meaning in life were associated with higher cognitive and affective dimensions of subjective well-being, whereas a lesser risk of contracting COVID-19 was only associated with the higher affective dimension. The central finding demonstrated different mediating roles of stress and meaning-making in the relationship of risk of contracting COVID-19 and personal resources with the cognitive and affective dimensions of subjective well-being. This confirmed the applicability of meaning-oriented and stress management processes for understanding how healthcare workers’ well-being is affected during the COVID-19 pandemic.
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    Risk Perception of COVID-19, Meaning-Based Resources and Psychological Well-Being amongst Healthcare Personnel: The Mediating Role of Coping
    (MDPI, 2020) Krok, Dariusz; Zarzycka, Beata
    The well-being of healthcare personnel during the COVID-19 pandemic depends on the ways in which they perceive the threat posed by the virus, personal resources, and coping abilities. The current study aims to examine the mediating role of coping strategies in the relationship between risk perception of COVID-19 and psychological well-being, as well as the relationship between meaning-based resources and psychological well-being amongst healthcare personnel in southern Poland. Two hundred and twenty-six healthcare personnel who worked in hospitals, outpatient clinics, and medical laboratories during the first few months of the coronavirus pandemic (March–May 2020) filled in questionnaires measuring risk perception of COVID-19, meaning-based resources, coping, and psychological well-being. The results demonstrate that risk perception was negatively related to psychological well-being, whereas meaning-based resources were positively associated with well-being. Two coping strategies—problem-focused and meaning-focused coping—mediated the relationship between risk perception and psychological well-being as well as the relationship between meaning-based resources and psychological well-being. This indicates that perception processes and personal factors do not directly influence healthcare personnel’s psychological well-being, but rather they do indirectly through coping processes.
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    Social Comparison Orientation, Problematic Facebook Use, and Deconversion in Adolescents: Mediating Role of Self-Consciousness
    (2022-05-16) Zarzycka, Beata; Razmus, Wiktor; Krok, Dariusz
    Adolescence is a time of biological, psychological, and social changes, which make youth inclined to undergo religious/spiritual (r/s) transformations. Deconverting, which is going from being religious to leaving religion, is an instance of religious transformation as much as turning toward religion. In Poland, since 1996, the number of adolescents involved in religion has been systematically decreasing. This study aimed to analyze how social factors, namely social comparison orientation and problematic Facebook use, affect deconversion processes in adolescents. The authors hypothesized that self-consciousness can help explain the mechanism of these relationships. In total, 550 respondents aged between 14 and 18 (M = 16.32, SD = 1.22) participated in the research. The Adolescent Deconversion Scale, Social Comparison Survey, Self-Consciousness Scale, and Problematic Facebook Use Scale were used. The results confirmed private self-consciousness as a mediator in the relationships between social comparison orientation and problematic Facebook use with deconversion processes in adolescents. 
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    The perception of COVID-19, the Light Triad, harmony and ethical sensitivity in late adolescents: The role of meaning-making and stress
    (Springer Nature, 2023) Krok, Dariusz; Zarzycka, Beata; Telka, Ewa
    The experiences of inner harmony and ethical sensitivity among late adolescents during the COVID-19 pandemic depend on the interplay of perceptive factors, personal resources and cognitive and stress mechanisms. Using a sample from Poland, the present study examined the relationships between the perceptions of COVID-19 and the Light Triad and the characteristics of inner harmony and ethical sensitivity from the mediational perspective of meaning-making and perceived stress. Three hundred and sixteen late adolescents were recruited in the cross-sectional study. They filled in questionnaires measuring the perception of COVID-19, the Light Triad, meaning-making, stress, inner harmony and ethical sensitivity, from April to September 2020. The perception of COVID-19 was negatively related to ethical sensitivity, whereas the Light Triad was positively related to inner harmony and ethical sensitivity. Perceived stress and meaning-making mediated the relationships between the perceptions of COVID-19, the Light Triad and the characteristic of inner harmony. Perception processes and the Light Triad dimensions directly influence ethical sensitivity, as well as indirectly affect inner harmony through meaning-making processes and perceived stress. This noticeably highlights the vital role played by meaning structures and emotional reactions in the experience of inner peace and calmness.
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    The Religious Meaning System and Resilience in Spouse Caregivers of Cancer Patients: A Moderated Mediation Model of Hope and Affect
    (Springer Nature, 2021) Krok, Dariusz; Zarzycka, Beata; Telka, Ewa
    The character of the relationship between religiosity and resilience depends to a large extent on mediation and moderation mechanisms which rely on cognitive and emotional processes. Research conducted within hope theory and the broaden and build theory indicates that hope and affect can mediate and moderate this relationship. The present study explored whether the relationship of the religious meaning system with resilience in spouse caregivers of cancer patients can be mediated by hope and simultaneously moderated by positive and negative affect. A total of 241 spouse caregivers completed a set of questionnaires. The results revealed that hope mediated the relationship between the religious meaning system and resilience. Furthermore, positive affect but not negative affect moderated the indirect effect of the religious meaning system to resilience through hope.
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    Total Pain and Illness Acceptance in Pelvic Cancer Patients: Exploring Self-Efficacy and Stress in a Moderated Mediation Model
    (MDPI, 2022) Krok, Dariusz; Telka, Ewa; Zarzycka, Beata
    Cancer patients experience pain not only in its physical dimension, but also in a broader context that includes psychological, social, and spiritual aspects due to a higher level of anxiety and stress. The present prospective, longitudinal study examined the relationship between total pain and illness acceptance among pelvic cancer patients, taking into consideration the moderated mediation effects of self-efficacy and stress. The study involved a sample of pelvic cancer patients receiving radiotherapy treatment. Assessments were completed at T1 (before radiotherapy), T2 (after 3–4 weeks), and T3 (after radiotherapy) to assess the psychosocial dynamics of illness acceptance (N = 267). The more physical, psychological, social, and spiritual pain symptoms the patients experienced, the less they accepted negative health conditions and the effects of their illness. Stress moderated the indirect effect between total pain dimensions and illness acceptance through self-efficacy, but it did not moderate the relationship between total pain and illness acceptance. The relationships between total pain dimensions and illness acceptance thus depend on both the mediating effect of self-efficacy and the moderating effect of stress. This highlights the need to control one’s motivation and behaviour and manage emotional strain or tension.