The relationship between spiritual intelligence and self-efficacy in patients with acute coronary syndrome admitted to cardiac care unit

This study aimed to address whether spiritual intelligence was correlated with self-efficacy in patients with acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Background. Patients experiencing acute coronary syndrome (ACS) are often required to enhance their empowerment skills to manage their signs and symptoms in an effective manner. In this sense, self-efficacy has been considered as a useful factor to develop self-care practices and minimize the risks of coronary artery disease (CAD).

Using a descriptive-correlational research design, a total number of 136 patients admitted to cardiac care units (CCUs) of the hospitals affiliated to Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran, were selected through the convenience sampling. The data were further collected via the demographic characteristics information questionnaire, King’s Spiritual Intelligence Self-Report Inventory (SISRI, 2008), and the Cardiac Self-Efficacy Questionnaire (CSEQ) developed by Sullivan et al. (1998), and then analyzed using the SPSS version 22.

Most patients in this study (61.8 percent) were male, married (69.1 percent) with a mean age of 58.85. Moreover, the score of spiritual intelligence was 47.18. The patients received a mean score of 13.72 in the “critical existential thinking” subscale and a mean score of 10.19 in the “personal meaning production” subscale. The mean scores for the “transcendental awareness” and “conscious state expansion” subscales were also 9.70 and 9.47, respectively (p=0.01).

It was concluded that higher levels of spiritual intelligence could improve self-efficacy in patients affected with ACS; therefore, adopting strategies to boost this type of intelligence could augment resilience in such individuals.