Impact of a Self-Efficacy-Based Spiritual Self-Care Educational Intervention on Spiritual Health in Iranian Students: A Quasi-Experimental Design.

BACKGROUND AND AIMS: Spiritual self-care is a vital dimension of self-care. Spirituality is particularly significant during adolescence, a developmental stage in which individuals seek purpose and meaning in life. This survey aimed to assess the effect of an educational intervention focused on self-efficacy-based spiritual self-care on the spiritual health of female students. METHODS: This quasi-experimental study was conducted among 114 female secondary school students in Mashhad, Iran, in 2024. The participants were allocated to two groups: an intervention group (n = 57) and a control group (n = 57). Sherer's General Self-Efficacy Scale and Paloutzian and Ellison's Spiritual Well-Being Questionnaire were used to collect data at baseline, immediately after the intervention, and 3 months post-intervention. SPSS version 18 was used to analyze the data using descriptive and bivariate statistical methods, with statistical significance defined as p < 0.05. RESULTS: There were no significant differences (p > 0.05) between the both groups at baseline regarding the level of spiritual health and self-efficacy, and demographic characteristics. After the intervention, the group that received the intervention showed significantly higher scores for both spiritual health (p = 0.02) and self-efficacy (p = 0.01) compared to the control group. CONCLUSION: A self-efficacy-based spiritual self-care educational intervention effectively improved spiritual health among female students. These findings suggest that integrating spiritual self-care education into school-based health promotion programs may enhance adolescents' spiritual health and self-efficacy.