title: Cultural and Religious/Spiritual Beliefs and the Impact on Health that Fear to Death has on Gender and Age, Among a Romani Minority Group from Southern Spain.
abstract: The Romani cultural minority living in Spain has cultural values and beliefs, religious/spiritual expressions and a particular vision of death. The relationship between these aspects and health is unknown. A sample of 150 people responded to a socio-demographic questionnaire and well-being measures of religious/spiritual experience, paranormal beliefs and fear of death. Age, a negative sense of life, fear of the death of others, being a woman and having low paranormal beliefs have a negative impact on health. Results allow for extending the relationships found in the general population to the Romani population as well. The novelty is that, in the latter, paranormal beliefs protect against disease. Additionally, fear of the death of others damages health more than fear of one's own death. These results make sense in the context of the Romani culture and religion.
authors.affiliation: Universidad de Málaga, Málaga, Spain. epirestrepo@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Eugenio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Restrepo-Madero
authors.affiliation: Universidad de Málaga, Málaga, Spain.
authors.forename: María Victoria
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Trianes-Torres
authors.affiliation: Universidad de Granada, Granada, Spain.
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Muñoz-García
authors.affiliation: Universidad de Málaga, Málaga, Spain.
authors.forename: Rafael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Alarcón
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D001293:Attitude to Death / Q000208:ethnology*; D003466:Cultural Characteristics; D054242:Emigrants and Immigrants / Q000523:psychology; D005239:Fear / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008913:Minority Groups / Q000523:psychology; D012069:Religion and Psychology; D006178:Romani People / Q000523:psychology*; D012737:Sex Factors; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013030:Spain; D029181:Spirituality
keywords: Fear of death; Gypsy; Health; Paranormal beliefs; Romani; Spirituality; Women