The contribution of religious and existential well-being to depression among African American heterosexuals with HIV infection

Abstract

The AIDS crisis has challenged black churches to examine how to provide spiritual support to individuals who are living with HIV. The dilemmas facing some black churches have been specifically related to providing support without embracing homosexuality. The doctrine guiding some black churches has caused psychological discomfort for both homosexual and heterosexual HIV infected individuals because of the stigma associated with HIV. Previous research showed that heterosexuals reported more distress than homosexuals. The purpose of this study was to examine a subset of African Americans (n = 49) who were heterosexual. Data were drawn from a larger data set (N = 117) collected in California. All participants were HIV seropositive or had AIDS. A questionnaire examining existential and religious well-being, demographic variables, and depression was administered. Religious well-being and existential well-being together explained 32% of the variance in depression. Implications for mental health nurses are discussed.