The impact of the image of God in the concept of the Protestants from Romania upon the mental health

Abstract

In the cognitive psychology’s conception, mental health is mostly given by the way an individual relates to himself, those around him, the environment and the events occurring in his personal life, as well as in his family and community life. Religious life is an essential part for most of Romania’s population. So, the question appears: are there any patterns in a religious person’s thinking that could generate emotional and/or behavioral disorders, which could favor the appearance of some mental issues? This study wishes to point out the answer to this question, by analyzing the Protestant population of Romania. After data processing on 966 participants to the study the conclusion that came up was that in general there aren’t irrational thoughts regarding personal faith, the attitude towards God and the man’s role in relation with divinity. In a small extent, statistically not significant, there are people who believe God has an obligation to heal and listen to prayers, but the majority regards that God has no obligations towards the man.