Spiritualität in der psychoonkologischen und palliativpsychologischen Behandlung

The relevance of spirituality as a health-related variable has increasingly become the focus of attention in theory, research and application within academic psychology and other health-related disciplines since around the beginning of the 1990s. In line with the nature of the subject, the possible inclusion of the spiritual dimension of human experience is particularly important in the case of life-shortening and serious illnesses. The clinical approaches of psycho-oncology and palliative psychology have been developed for the psychological support of such courses. This article provides an overview of the key developmental steps on the way to a professional and spiritually sensitive approach in the fields of psychology, psychotherapy and psychiatry. It then goes on to identify the treatment potential that an approach based on the individual’s understanding of spirituality holds for psycho-oncological and palliative psychology practice. Finally, helpful guidelines for addressing the spirituality of those affected are derived specifically for these fields of application.