Factors Affecting the Spiritual Health of Iranian Children

Spiritual health is a process of human development that is commensurate with the individual’s spiritual capacities, abilities, insights, and tendencies. Several factors can affect the spiritual health of children, and they vary based on the context and culture of society. The aim of this study was to accurately identify the factors affecting the spiritual health of children in the context of Iranian society. This qualitative study was conducted using conventional content analysis and semistructured interviews. Participants were 17 children aged 6 to 12 years, 4 parents, and 5 researchers and specialists that were selected by purposeful sampling. Graneheim and Lundman’s content analysis approach was used to analyze the data with MAXQDA14 software. During the analysis of the text of the interviews, two themes of positive factors in the educational system with five categories (Emotional-educational factors, Behavioral-educational factors, Parents’ personality style in the educational system, Education/Training, and Effective socio-environmental factors) and negative factors in the educational system with three categories (Incorrect psycho-behavioral factors of parents, Incorrect parental educational factors, and Ineffective environmental-social contexts) were obtained. The triangle of family, education, and environment seems to play a very important role in the spiritual health of children. How to teach parents about spiritual health and its importance in their lives and the lives of their future children should be considered by activists in this field. Considering the important role of the school as the second home, educators, teachers, and educational programs are essential to achieving these goals.