Reaching out to the divine: An examination of God images and prayer functions

Religion is an important component in the lives of many United States citizens (Gallup, Inc., 2010). Previous research suggests God images may moderate the relationship between prayer and mental health variables (Bradshaw et al, 2008; Dixon & Cook, 2010) This study investigated the nature of the relationships between God images, prayer functions, and multiple aspects of mental health including satisfaction with life, positive affect, negative affect, anxiety, depression, and stress. Data were collected from a community sample using an internet survey. The results from this research support previous findings of significant relationships between prayer functions and God images and also suggest new and previously unrecognized relationships between these variables. Results from this research affirm that particular prayer functions and images of God are associated with multiple aspects of mental health. Results also support that God images may moderate the relationships between prayer functions and various mental health variables. In addition, results indicate that all God image dimensions, considered together, account for a significant amount of variance in some mental health variables, and that prayer functions, similarly considered as a set, account for a significant amount of variance beyond that of God images in many of the same mental health variables. These findings highlight the potential impact God images and prayer functions may have on the lives of religious people, and suggest the importance of assessing for and possibly targeting God images and prayer functions while developing treatment plans and conducting therapy with religious clients.