Relationship between Synthetic Happiness and Psycho-Spiritual Well-Being of Catholic Priests in the Archdiocese of Abuja, F.C.T., Nigeria

The study examined the relationship between synthetic happiness and psycho-spiritual wellbeing of Catholic priests in the Archdiocese of Abuja, Nigeria. Correlational survey design was used for the study. The target population was 361 priests. A sample size of 191 was determined using the Krejcie and Morgan (1970) table of specifications. The study used the stratified random sampling to obtain the actual sample size. Out of the 191 questionnaires, a total of 186 were reported, while five were deemed invalid. The study used synthetic happiness questionnaire (SHQ) and psycho-spiritual well-being scale (P-SWBS) for data collection. The study used descriptive statistics and inferential statistics of Pearson’s product moment coefficient to test the relationship between the independent and dependent variables. The results of the study showed a highly significant positive correlation between synthetic happiness and psycho-spiritual well-being (r = .672, p < .001); the coefficient of determination (R2 = 452) indicated that synthetic happiness was associated with 45.2% of the variance in psycho-spiritual well-being. The study recommended that the Abuja Archdiocesan hierarchy should provide opportunities for trauma healing sessions for healing of wounds and hurts among priests in the Archdiocese. Equally important is the incorporation of the psycho-spiritual program into the curriculum for training of seminarians (future priests) within the seminaries in Abuja ecclesiastical province.

Adaptability, Accomplishment, Engagement, Relationship

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