Faith as a Resource in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis Is Associated with a Positive Interpretation of Illness and Experience of Gratitude/Awe
Table 1
Characteristics of 213 patients with MS.
Variables*
Mean/%
Gender, %
Women
78
Men
22
Age, years (mean, SD)
Family status, %
Married
56
Living with partner
17
Divorced
8
Single
19
Educational level, %
Secondary (Hauptschule)
22
Junior high school (Realschule)
33
High school (Gymnasium)
36
Other
9
Religious orientation, %
Christian
74
Other
8
None
18
Spiritual/religious self-perception, %
Neither religious nor spiritual (R−S−)
54
Not religious but spiritual (R−S+)
16
Religious but not spiritual (R+S−)
19
Both religious and spiritual (R+S+)
20
Employment status, %
At pension
32
Unable to work
7
Unemployed
3
House work
8
Self-employed
4
Employed (business)
46
Course of MS, %
Relapsing remitting
51
Progressive relapsing
25
Chronic progressive
23
EDSS score (mean, SD; range)
(0–7.5)
0.0–1.5 (%)
10
2.0–3.5 (%)
29
4.0–6.5 (%)
33
7.0–10 (%)
2
No information (%)
26
Self-perceived health affection (mean ± SD, range)
(0–90)
Data refer to the responding patients (i.e., 8 individuals did not state their gender, or 20 individuals did not provide information on their course of MS).
