Sex-Specific Impact of Spiritual Beliefs and Sleep Quality on Degree of Psychological Distress.

The purpose of this study was to test a set of hypotheses suggesting sleep quality and spiritual beliefs differed according to degree of psychological distress and biological sex. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index measured sleep quality, the Beliefs and Values Scale measured spiritual beliefs, and the Kessler-6 Psychological Distress Scale measured distress. A factorial MANOVA tested the model. Higher sleep quality and greater spiritual beliefs were associated with lower levels of distress. Women exhibited lower sleep quality than men, whereas spiritual beliefs were equivalent between sexes. To decrease psychological distress, interventions should improve sleep quality and increase spiritual engagement.