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Spirituality and child development: a concept analysis

Joanna Smith1, Wilfred McSherry

  • 1Lecturer, Child Health, School of Healthcare Studies, Baines Wing, University of Leeds, Leeds, UK. hcsjsm@leeds.ac.uk

Journal of Advanced Nursing
|January 15, 2004
PubMed

Insights

Fostering spiritual growth is crucial for children

Area of Science:

  • Pediatric healthcare
  • Child development
  • Spiritual care

Background:

  • Spiritual growth is essential for children's full development.
  • Implementing spiritual care in pediatric practice faces challenges.
  • Understanding spirituality and its expression in children, considering developmental stages, is complex.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To explore spiritual awareness in children across developmental stages.
  • To provide examples of spiritual belief expression in children.
  • To identify implications for clinical practice in child health.

Main Methods:

  • A concept development model ('significance', 'use', 'application') was applied.
  • The study framework is relevant to child health due to limited evidence on spiritual needs.
  • Review of five primary research papers meeting inclusion criteria.

Main Results:

  • Reviewed papers provided examples of spiritual beliefs and manifestations in children.
  • Examples illustrated the diverse and complex nature of children's thinking.
  • Findings underscore the variability in how children express spirituality.

Conclusions:

  • Healthcare professionals need education on children's spiritual needs.
  • Development of assessment tools for children's spiritual needs is recommended.
  • Effective communication with children and respect for family beliefs are vital for care.
Abstract

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