Sacred moments: Implications on well-being and stress

Abstract

This research provides a theoretical, empirical, and qualitative examination of the role of cultivating sacred moments in daily life on subjective well-being (SWB), psychological well-being (PWB), and stress. Seventy-three participants were randomly assigned to two groups: (a) a 3-week intervention group where members were instructed in cultivating sacred moments, or (b) a 3-week control group where members were instructed in writing about daily activities. Findings indicate that the intervention was equally as effective as an adapted therapeutic writing intervention. There were significant effects over time across multiple assessments related to SWB, PWB, stress, and daily spiritual experiences after the 3-week intervention and again 6 weeks later. Qualitative analysis complemented and enriched the findings of these results. This study introduces a new intervention into the field of clinical psychology and extends the findings of prior research. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Clin Psychol 63: 1001–1019, 2007.