Effects of complementary spiritual therapy on stress, anxiety, burnout syndrome and hematological parameters of professionals in a public hospital: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVES: This randomized controlled trial evaluated the stress, anxiety, and burnout of professionals exposed to complementary spiritist therapy (CST), which consists in therapeutic resources as prayer, Spiritist passe, fluidic water and spiritual education or control. METHODS: Seventy-six professionals were randomized to CST or control: to maintain the routine for 5 weeks. The ISSL scale, anxiety and depression Beck's indices, Maslach instrument, subjective well-being and WHOQOL-BREF were used at baseline and five-week. Blood count and cytokine dosage were collected at baseline, one-week and five-week. Analysis using the intention to treat approach. RESULTS: The means of variation of stress (exhaustion phase) between baseline and five-week were -1.50 ± 3.31 in the CST and 0.72 ± 3.50 in the control (p=0.036), effect size for CST group was d=0.65, which is considered medium effect. CST showed decrease in emotional exhaustion and negative affects, and increase in lymphocytes, erythrocyte parameters and platelets between the baseline and five-week (p<0.05). Reduction in IL-1ß and increase in total lymphocyte count were observed with 2-3 sessions per week, but that does not maintain when the number of sessions is decreased. Participants receiving ≥7 sessions reduced emotional exhaustion, depersonalization and stress, and improved hematological parameters throughout the study (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS: CST may be effective in reducing stress (exhaustion phase) compared to control. Higher frequency of interventions promotes better psychic state, evidenced by large effect size for emotional exhaustion in burnout, and improves hematological parameters of professionals.

Homeopatia e espiritismo: de Hanemman a Kardec / Homeopathy and spiritism: from Hanemman to Kardec

No Brasil, a partir de 1979 a homeopatia passou a constar no Conselho de Especialidades Médicas da Associação Médica Brasileira e em 1980, do rol de especialidades do Conselho Federal de Medicina, deixando de fazer parte das medicinas alternativas e passando a constituir parte do que hoje se chama medicina integrativa. Na Medicina Veterinária foi a primeira especialidade a ser reconhecida pelo conselho Federal no ano de 2000. Porém, existe uma ligação da homeopatia com a doutrina espírita. Assim, a presente pesquisa possui como proposta compreender como se deu a evolução da doutrina espírita e das bases da homeopatia convencional e Veterinária como terapia alternativa de tratamento. Para isso possui como objetivo geral analisar a homeopatia e sua ligação com o espiritismo e a fé versus ciência, conceituar brevemente terapias alternativas e homeopatia, analisar o espiritismo de Kardec da França ao Brasil.Sugerir que o uso da Homeopatia é realmente eficiente no tratamento de patologias , usando para isso exemplos da Medicina Veterinária .Se usou de metodologia de revisão bibliográfica sobre o tema da homeopatia e sua ligação com o espiritismo, com abordagem qualitativa e procedimentos descritivos.

In Brazil, from 1979 onwards, homeopathy became part of the Council of Medical Specialties of the Brazilian Medical Association and, in 1980, of the list of specialties of the Federal Council of Medicine, ceasing to be part of alternative medicine and becoming part of what today It's called integrative medicine. In Veterinary Medicine, it was the first specialty to be recognized by the Federal Council in 2000. However, there is a connection between homeopathy and the spiritist doctrine. Thus, the present research proposes to understand how the evolution of the spiritist doctrine and the bases of conventional homeopathy and Veterinary medicine as an alternative treatment therapy took place. For this, it has the general objective of analyzing homeopathy and its connection with spiritism and faith versus science, briefly conceptualizing alternative therapies and homeopathy, analyzing Kardec's spiritism from France to Brazil. Demonstrating that the use of Homeopathy is really efficient in the treatment of pathologies, using examples from Veterinary Medicine. A bibliographic review methodology was used on the subject of homeopathy and its connection with spiritism, with a qualitative approach and descriptive procedures.

O curandeiro charlatão e o messias de Campos: o caso do Professor Mozart, 1924-1939 / Charlatan healer and messiah from Campos: the case of Professor Mozart, 1924-1939

Resumo Em 1924, um personagem despontou na imprensa brasileira: o "Professor Mozart". Seu nome era Mozart Dias Teixeira e, durante as décadas de 1920 e 1930, ele praticou curas em diversas cidades do país, provocando controvérsias entre setores da sociedade. O artigo analisa o caso, dividindo-se em três eixos: introduz o personagem e o debate sobre os seus métodos de cura, mostra como as polêmicas inspiraram produções artísticas que transitaram no seio da população e, por fim, discute a questão do charlatanismo e o problema da liberdade profissional e de culto. O estudo pretende ser uma contribuição à historiografia do espiritismo, do ocultismo e das ciências psíquicas no Brasil.

Abstract In 1924, a new figure appeared on the pages of Brazilian newspapers: "Professor Mozart." In the 1920s and 1930s, Mozart Dias Teixeira practiced healing in several Brazilian cities, sparking controversy among certain segments of society. A threefold analysis of the case is presented: describing the man himself and the debate surrounding his healing methods; showing how the controversies inspired the production and circulation of art among the population; and discussing the issues of charlatanism and professional and religious freedom. The study intends to contribute to the historiography on spiritism, occultism, and psychic sciences in Brazil.

Julian Ochorowicz's experiments with Eusapia Palladino 1894: The temporality of mass media and the crisis of local credibility.

Julian Ochorowicz (1850-1917) belonged to the first generation of psychologists who regarded this discipline as a scientific, positive endeavor. At the same time, he was a representative of psychic sciences, following a strictly positivist attitude to researching psychic phenomena. This article discusses the key event of his career, experiments with the famous medium Eusapia Palladino, in Warsaw, between late 1893 and early 1894. Ochorowicz's séances with Palladino attracted wide local and international attention and improved his standing as an internationally leading psychic researcher. In Warsaw, however, these experiments were fiercely controversial and, as a result, Ochorowicz was discredited and left the city. As I argue, this dissociation of credibilities was the outcome of a changing media landscape in the late nineteenth century. While Ochorowicz's strategy of boundary-work and asserting his credibility aimed at scholarly media, it proved fatal when facing intensive, daily coverage in the popular press.

Vínculos entre homeopatia e espiritismo no Rio Grande do Sul na passagem para o século XX / Ties between homeopathy and Spiritism in Rio Grande do Sul at the turn of the twentieth century

Resumo A prática da homeopatia teve importante desenvolvimento no Brasil na passagem para o século XX. Especialmente do Rio Grande do Sul, estado na região Sul do Brasil, homeopatas conseguiram introduzir suas práticas vinculando-se a uma perspectiva científica que organizou uma proposta de curso superior, mas também a um movimento religioso que divulgava o uso da homeopatia por meio de receituário recebido por médiuns. Esses dois movimentos possuíam adeptos que atuavam em frentes diversas, oferecendo os medicamentos homeopáticos gratuitamente ou divulgando suas ideias em periódicos e outros meios. O artigo analisa esses contextos de interação dos homeopatas e de práticos espíritas na primeira metade do século XX, procurando entender como essas perspectivas se aproximaram e permitiram permanências.

Abstract The practice of homeopathy developed significantly in Brazil at the turn of the twentieth century. Especially in Rio Grande do Sul, the southernmost state in Brazil, homeopaths were able to introduce their practices by linking them to a scientific perspective that organized a plan for advanced training as well as to a religious movement which disseminated the use of homeopathy through prescriptions received by mediums. These two movements had supporters who worked on several fronts, offering homeopathic medicines for free or spreading their ideas in magazines and other vehicles. The article analyzes these contexts in which homeopaths and Spiritist practices interacted during the first half of the twentieth century in an attempt to understand how these perspectives approached each other and permitted continuity.

Effect of Complementary Spiritist Therapy on emotional status, muscle tension, and wellbeing of inpatients with HIV/AIDS: A randomized controlled trial - single-blind.

Background Complementary Spiritist Therapy includes prayer, Spiritist "passe", fluid therapy (fluidic water or magnetized water), and spiritual education, among other therapeutic resources. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effects of Complementary Spiritist Therapy with conventional treatment on emotional status, muscle tension and wellbeing of hospitalized patients with HIV/AIDS. Methods Patients were randomly assigned into either the experimental (3 days [10 mins per day/session] of Complementary Spiritist Therapy alongside conventional treatment; n=20) or control (conventional treatment alone; n=21) group. The primary outcome were positive and negative affects evaluated by the Subjective Wellbeing Scale. The secondary outcome were muscle tension, and wellbeing were assessed by visual analogue scales. Results Significant reductions in negative effects (p=0.045), and muscle tension (p=0.022), along with significant increases in wellbeing (p=0.041) were recorded in the experimental group (Complementary Spiritist Therapy). Conclusions Reductions in negative effects and muscle tension, along with increased perceived wellbeing, were observed in hospitalized patients with HIV/AIDS exposed Complementary Spiritist Therapy combined conventional treatment compared to conventional treatment alone.

Cultura científica, magnetismo y espiritismo durante fines del siglo XIX en Buenos Aires: un análisis desde Ovidio Rebaudi / Scientific culture, magnetism and spiritualism during the end of the 19th century in Buenos Aires: an analysis from Ovidio Rebaudi

El objetivo de este artículo es analizar a un personaje remarcable del escenario cultural y científico de Buenos Aires de fines de siglo, el director de la Revista Magnetológica: Ovidio Rebaudi (1860-1931), renombrado químico así como adherente al espiritismo y el magnetismo. La vida y obra del mismo, oriundo de Paraguay y radicado en Argentina, resulta de utilidad para comprender cómo actores de filiación científica practicaban y defendían, al mismo tiempo, la hipnosis y el magnetismo. De hecho, Rebaudi dedicó gran parte de su vida a estudiar y conceptualizar acerca de los fenómenos sobrenaturales, llevando a cabo también curaciones magnéticas y diversas experiencias espiritistas, siempre dotando sus prácticas de cientificidad. El presente artículo analiza a este personaje de fin de siglo que abogaba, al mismo tiempo, por las prácticas científicas y por el estudio de lo sobrenatural. Entendemos que dicho análisis servirá para iluminar las zonas de mixtura y entrelazamiento entre terrenos tan disímiles como el científico y el de las energías y fluidos magnéticos.

The aim of this paper is to analyze a remarkable character of Buenos Aires cultural and scientific scenario during the end of the century, the producer of the Revista Magnetológica (Magazine of magnetism) Ovidio Rebaudi (1860-1931), a well-known chemist and follower of magnetism and spiritualism. The life and work of this chemist, native of Paraguay and resident of Argentina, seem useful to understand how scientific actors held and protect hypnotic and magnetic practices. In fact, Rebaudi dedicated a great part of his life to the study and conceptualization of supernatural phenomena, performing magnetic healings and diverse spiritualist experiments, enduing their practices with scientific attributes. This paper intends to analyze this end-of-the-century character, who pleaded for scientific practices on the one hand, and for supernatural studies on the other. We understand that this analysis could enlighten some mixture zones and interweaved soils between the scientific and the magnetic grounds.

Doctors Who Integrate Spirituality and CAM in the Clinic: The Puerto Rican Case.

This article describes Puerto Rican physicians' personal and clinical utilization of complementary and alternative medicines (CAM), its effects, and use as they identified as either Spiritist, spiritual or religious. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 74 doctors in Puerto Rico. Major themes and relationships among them were charted using the qualitative data analysis program MAXQDA, open coding and grounded theory. Thirty-one doctors spoke of CAM and its use as related to their spiritual or religious perspectives. Spiritual or Spiritist doctors were more inclined than religious doctors to utilize CAM. Seeking closer relationships with patients was related to a spiritually oriented goal of healing (as distinct from curing) as a reason to recommend CAM.

Espiritismo y psiquiatría en buenos aires a fines del siglo XIX. Un análisis de la obra de Wilfrido Rodríguez de la Torre (1889) / Spiritism and psychiatry in buenos aires at the end of 19th century. An inquiry on the works of wilfrido rodríguez de la torre

El artículo analiza los textos del médico Wilfrido Rodríguez de la Torre, especialmente su libro Espiritismo i locura publicado en 1889 en Buenos Aires, apenas unos meses antes del temprano fallecimiento del autor. En primera instancia, ensayaremos una reseña biográfica del profesional, atendiendo a algunas de sus publicaciones anteriores. En segunda instancia, describiremos las ideas y evidencias más importantes esgrimidas en el libro de 1889. En tercera instancia, cotejaremos los enunciados del autor acerca del espiritismo con textos de otros doctores de la época, principalmente José Meléndez y José María Ramos Mejía. Esa comparación habrá de servirnos, de un lado, para comprender la reacción de los espiritistas porteños al libro de Rodríguez de la Torre, y de otro, para plantear algunas hipótesis sobre la construcción de la categoría de neurosis en la medicina mental de fines de siglo.

The aim of this paper is to analyze Wilfrido Rodríguez de la Torre's writings, mostly of all his book Espiritismo I locura (Spiritism and madness) published in 1889 in Buenos Aires, hardly a few months before the author's early death. Firstly, a brief biographical notice will be outlined, paying special attention to his earlier publications. Secondly, the most substantial ideas and facts developed in the book will be described. Thirdly, a comparison between the author's thoughts on spiritism and other medical writings (José Meléndez and José María Ramos Mejía) will be made. That comparison will help, on the one hand, to understand the reaction of Buenos Aires spiritists to Rodríguez de la Torre's book, and on the other, to propose some ideas about the construction of neurosis category in the fin-de-siècle mental medicine.

Effect of the Spiritist "passe" energy therapy in reducing anxiety in volunteers: A randomized controlled trial.

BACKGROUND: In Brazil, one of the most used energy therapies is the Spiritist "passe", which is practiced by Spiritist healers. Although experimental studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of different energy therapies in reducing anxiety and pain, little is known about the effect of the Spiritist "passe" on health outcomes. Therefore, the present study aimed at evaluating the effectiveness of "passe" energy therapy in reducing anxiety symptoms. METHODS/DESIGN: In this prospective, randomized controlled trial, participants were randomly allocated into two groups: Intervention (8 weekly Spiritist "passe" sessions, n=23), and Control (8 weekly sham Spiritist "passe" sessions, n=27). Anxiety was assessed using the Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI-trait). RESULTS: Of 97 individuals screened, 50 were included in the final analysis. Decreasing STAI-trait anxiety scores were observed in both groups throughout the study (p<0.0001). By the end of the study, 17% and 63% of intervention and control participants, respectively, still met the criterion for anxiety (p=0.001). However, anxiety reduction was more accentuated in the Spiritist "passe" group (p=0.02). CONCLUSION: In this small pilot study, anxiety was more markedly reduced in participants receiving the Spiritist "passe" than in controls, warranting larger trials. TRIAL REGISTRATION: NCT02376959.

Mental and Physical Health and Spiritual Healing: An Evaluation of Complementary Religious Therapies Provided by Spiritist Centers in the City of São Paulo, Brazil.

The present study aims to describe the characteristics of the complementary religious treatment conducted by Spiritist centers in the city of São Paulo (Brazil), to understand how physical and mental health problems are addressed and how the directors of these centers differentiate between persons with spiritual experiences from those with psychiatric disorders. From 365 Spiritist centers, which received the questionnaire, 55 (15.1 %) were included in the final analysis. There were on average 261 people per week attending spiritual sessions in each center, totalizing approximately 15,000 attendees per week in all 55 centers. The most common treatment performed in these centers was disobsession (Spirit release therapy) (92.7 %); the least common was the 'spiritual surgery', present in only 5.5 %. The most frequent health problems reported by attendees were depression (45.1 %), cancer (43.1 %) and diseases in general (33.3 %). Concerning the directors' awareness to differentiate between spiritual experiences and psychiatric disorders, we found some remarkable divergent opinions. In conclusion, the Spiritist centers are an important health related support system for the city of São Paulo, responsible for a significant share of the city's total health consultations. The most common conditions the patients suffer from were depression and cancer.

Why 'spiritism'?

Some of the early representatives of psychoanalysis had a lifelong interest in certain 'occult' phenomena. Although several theories were born for the purpose of understanding the interest of Sigmund Freud, Carl Gustav Jung or Sándor Ferenczi in spiritualism and related phenomena, interpreters usually ignore the changing cultural meaning and significance of modern occult practices like spiritualism. The aim of the present essay is to outline the cultural and historical aspects of spiritualism and spiritism in Hungary, and thus to shed new light on the involvement of Ferenczi - and other Hungarian psychoanalysts like Géza Róheim, István Hollós, and Mihály Bálint - in spiritualism and spiritism. The connections between spiritualism and the Budapest School of Psychoanalysis will be discussed, highlighting the cultural and scientific significance of Hungarian spiritualism and spiritism in the evolution of psychoanalysis. Taking into account the relative lack of the scientific research in the field of spiritism in Hungary, it can be pointed out that Ferenczi undertook a pioneering role in Hungarian psychical research.

Spiritual Treatment for Depression in Brazil: An Experience From Spiritism.

BACKGROUND: Spiritism has been strongly connected with mental health in Brazil. However, there is a lack of descriptions of spiritual treatment provided by thousands of Brazilian Spiritist centers. The present study aims to describe the spiritual care for depression provided by one large Spiritist center in São Paulo, Brazil. METHODS: This is a descriptive study carried out in 2012 at "São Paulo Spiritist Federation." Authors visited the "spiritual intervention sections," observed the therapies provided, listened to the "spirits' communication," and interviewed two patients. RESULTS: The assistance consists on a 90-min "Spiritual healing" session which includes educational lectures, "disobsession" (spirit release therapy), "passe" (laying on of hands) and person advice. Both patients had remitted depression when they were interviewed. CONCLUSIONS: Further studies would be necessary to report other religious/spiritual treatments in order to improve our understanding of the available practices used by patients and optimize the integration of conventional care with spiritual treatments.

A guerra dos mundos ou as relações institucionais entre a homeopatia e a medicina científica / War of Worlds or The institutional relations between Homeopathy and Scientific Medicine

O Objetivo deste trabalho é tratar da Homeopatia e da Medicina Científica, e de sua convivência institucional, considerando principalmente o cenário posterior à década de 1980, quando de sua assimilação pela Medicina Oficial brasileira. O que se pretende demonstrar, fundamentalmente, é que a Medicina Científica e a Homeopatia são essencialmente diferentes, e acima de tudo demonstrar que este caso particular de relações institucionais deve ser entendido sob pelo menos duas perspectivas, de uma epistemológica, e de outra sociológica. Essas duas perspectivas são essenciais para entender a moderna relação institucional entre Homeopatia e Medicina Científica, que acontece num contexto de assimilação institucional da Homeopatia pela Medicina Oficial. Ainda que essa integração nunca possa vir à ser concretizada completamente, essa assimilação é resultado de uma grande mudança no universo simbólico das culturas ocidentais, principalmente dos conceitos e valores ligados ao imaginário da saúde. Neste novo contexto simbólico, a ciência como instituição é ressignificada e e devidamente recontextualizada, em termos de cultura popular e senso comum (universo simbólico da vida cotidiana), de modo que passa a poder acomodar os mais diversos tipos de conhecimentos em seu universo. É sob a perspectiva do processo de racionalização e desencantamento do mundo que essas instituições são analisadas e a compreensão dos universos simbólicos mantidos por cada grupo é o objetivo central desse trabalho.(AU)

This study deals with Homeopathy and Scientific Medicine and focus its institutional relationship, especially considering the latter scenario to the 1980s decade, after its assimilation by brazilian Official Medicine. It intends to demonstrate that Scientific Medicine and Homeopathy are fundamentally and essentially different things and, above all, demonstrate that this particular case of institutional relations should be understood in, at least, two perspectives: epistemological, and sociological. These perspectives are essential to understand the modern relationship between Homeopathy and Official Medicine -­ which takes place in a context of institutional assimilation of homeopathy by the Official Medicine (although this integration could never come to be fully realized). This assimilation is the result of a change in the symbolic universe of western cultures, especially the concepts and values linked to the health imaginary. In this new symbolic context, science, as an institution, is resignified and recontextualized in terms of popular culture and common sense (the symbolic universe of everyday life), allowing to accommodate all different types of knowledge in this new resigninified universe of science. Its from the process of rationalization and disenchantment of the worlds perspective that these institutions are analyzed, and the understanding of the symbolic universes maintained by each group is the central objective of this work.(AU)

Hypnosis in Spain (1888-1905): from spectacle to medical treatment of mediumship.

Towards the end of the nineteenth century, some Spanish physicians sought to legitimize hypnotherapy within medicine. At the same time, hypnotism was being popularized among the Spanish population through stage hypnosis shows. In order to extend the use of medical hypnotherapy, some physicians made efforts to demarcate the therapeutic use of hypnotic suggestion from its application for recreational purposes, as performed by stage hypnotists. However, in the eyes of some physicians, the first public session to legitimize hypnotherapy turned out to be a complete failure due to its similarities with a stage hypnosis performance. Apart from exploring this kind of hitherto little-known historical cases, we explore the role of spiritists in legitimizing medical hypnosis. At a time when Spanish citizens were still reluctant to accept hypnotherapy, the spiritists sponsored a charitable clinic where treatment using hypnosis was offered. We conclude that the clinic was effective in promoting the use of hypnotherapy, both among physicians as clinical practice, and as a medical treatment for patients from the less privileged classes of Spanish society.

Effect of Spiritist "passe" (Spiritual healing) on growth of bacterial cultures.

BACKGROUND: Biofield therapies are approaches that harness energy fields to influence the human body. These therapies encompass Reiki, Qigong, Therapeutic Touch, Johrei and Spiritist "passe", among others. The aim of this study was to evaluate bacterial growth in two groups of cultures subjected to biofield therapy (Spiritist "passe" and laying on of hands (LOH)) in four situations (no intention, intention to inhibit bacterial growth, intention to promote growth, and influence of a negative factor) and compare them with a "no LOH/no treatment" group. METHODS: Bacterial cultures (Escherichia coli ATCC) were randomized and allocated into three groups: Spiritist "passe", "LOH", and "no LOH". Bacterial growth was assessed using the McFarland Nephelometer Scale. A One-way ANOVA was performed to determine group differences in bacterial growth at 48h, and at 1 week after each situation. RESULTS: A total of 11 Spiritist "passe" healers, 10 LOH laymen and "no LOH" tubes were assessed. Under the intention to inhibit bacterial growth condition, statistically significant differences were found between the Spiritist "passe" and "no LOH" Groups (p=0.002 after 48h, and p=0.008 after one week) and also between the Spiritist "passe" and "LOH" Groups (p=0.005 after 48h, and p=0.009 after one week). No statistically significant difference was detected for the other situations tested (no intention, intention to promote growth and influence of a negative factor). CONCLUSIONS: We concluded that Spiritist "passe" effectively inhibited growth in bacterial cultures compared to LOH with intention or no LOH. Further studies comparing different intentions and types of LOH in cultures of cells and microorganisms are warranted.

Spiritist delusions and spiritism in the nosography of French psychiatry (1850-1950).

At the turn of the twentieth century there was a wave of delusions which had a direct link to spiritism in their form and content. These so-called spiritist or mediumistic delusions were the object of detailed study, and clinicians assigned them a place in nosography, especially in France. This work of classification was carried out as a function of the convictions and paradoxes that these delusions aroused; it also made it possible to question the relationship between pathology and belief. It is therefore important to emphasize certain ideological views of psychiatry on para-normality. We observed both a reductionist discourse concerning these domains, and at the same time their utilization in the construction of psychiatric knowledge.

O Centro Espírita Redemptor e o tratamento de doença mental, 1910-1921 / The Centro Espírita Redemptor and the treatment of mental illness, 1910-1921

O espiritismo é uma doutrina religiosa que surgiu na França durante o século XIX por meio da obra de Allan Kardec. No Brasil, assumiu certa originalidade: o espiritismo racional e científico cristão, liderado por Luiz de Mattos, foi uma de suas vertentes doutrinárias nacionais. Luiz de Mattos criou o Centro Espírita Redemptor onde, durante alguns anos, acompanhou o tratamento dos doentes mentais. O artigo analisa as características do tratamento espírita racional e científico cristão à doença mental e as estratégias que Luiz de Mattos adotou para defender sua forma de tratamento. Apresenta ainda algumas semelhanças e diferenças entre o tratamento espírita e o médico.

Spiritism is a religious doctrine originated in France during the nineteenth century through the works of Allan Kardec. In Brazil, it assumed an original configuration: rational and scientific Christian spiritism, pioneered by Luiz de Mattos, was one of the national doctrinal variants. Luiz de Mattos created the Centro Espírita Redemptor where, for some years, he monitored the treatment of the mentally ill. The article analyzes the characteristics of rational and scientific Christian spiritism treatment applied to mental illness and the strategies that Luiz de Mattos adopted to defend his form of treatment. Some similarities and differences between spiritist and medical treatment are also outlined.

Reuniões mediúnicas espíritas: explorando significados e efeitos para seus participantes / Spiritist mediumnic meetings: exploring meanings and effects for the participants

Mediunidade e comunicação com espíritos têm um papel relevante na cultura brasileira e estão presentes em diversas religiões. Trabalhos na área de Psiquiatria relacionam mediunidade com saúde mental e investigam o tratamento espírita de psicopatologias. Estudos no campo da Psicologia da Religião apontam que práticas religiosas provocam diferentes repercussões nos indivíduos e ressaltam a importância de investigá-las. Entretanto, na literatura psicológica, observa-se que o efeito das práticas mediúnicas não foi ainda suficientemente explorado. O objetivo deste trabalho é investigar os efeitos da participação dos médiuns em reuniões mediúnicas dentro do Espiritismo. Utilizando o método qualitativo fenomenológico, os significados da experiência mediúnica e da participação nessas reuniões foram explorados por meio dos relatos de três médiuns em entrevistas abertas. Procurou-se investigar se os efeitos auxiliam ou não os indivíduos a se adaptarem e funcionarem dentro de seus contextos sociais, buscando contribuir para um melhor entendimento desse fenômeno religioso(AU)

Mediumnic phenomena and communication with spirits play a relevant role in the Brazilian culture, and are present in several religions. Some works in the field of Psychiatry relate mediumnic phenomena with mental health and investigate the spiritist treatment of psychopathologies. Studies in Psychology of Religion point out that religious practices result in different effects in the individuals, and highlight the importance of studies to investigate such effects. However, in the psychological literature, the effects of mediumnic practices have not been sufficiently explored. Given this context, the goal of the present work is to investigate the effects of the participation of gifted people in mediumnic meetings within Spiritism. By adopting a qualitative phenomenological method, the meanings associated to the mediumnic experience and to the participation in such meetings were explored by means of interviews conducted with three mediums, participants in mediumnic practices within Spiritism. The work investigates whether these effects help the individuals to adapt and work out in their social context. It contributes to better understand this religious phenomenon(AU)

Reuniões mediúnicas espíritas: explorando significados e efeitos para seus participantes / Spiritist mediumnic meetings: exploring meanings and effects for the participants

Mediunidade e comunicação com espíritos têm um papel relevante na cultura brasileira e estão presentes em diversas religiões. Trabalhos na área de Psiquiatria relacionam mediunidade com saúde mental e investigam o tratamento espírita de psicopatologias. Estudos no campo da Psicologia da Religião apontam que práticas religiosas provocam diferentes repercussões nos indivíduos e ressaltam a importância de investigá-las. Entretanto, na literatura psicológica, observa-se que o efeito das práticas mediúnicas não foi ainda suficientemente explorado. O objetivo deste trabalho é investigar os efeitos da participação dos médiuns em reuniões mediúnicas dentro do Espiritismo. Utilizando o método qualitativo fenomenológico, os significados da experiência mediúnica e da participação nessas reuniões foram explorados por meio dos relatos de três médiuns em entrevistas abertas. Procurou-se investigar se os efeitos auxiliam ou não os indivíduos a se adaptarem e funcionarem dentro de seus contextos sociais, buscando contribuir para um melhor entendimento desse fenômeno religioso.

Mediumnic phenomena and communication with spirits play a relevant role in the Brazilian culture, and are present in several religions. Some works in the field of Psychiatry relate mediumnic phenomena with mental health and investigate the spiritist treatment of psychopathologies. Studies in Psychology of Religion point out that religious practices result in different effects in the individuals, and highlight the importance of studies to investigate such effects. However, in the psychological literature, the effects of mediumnic practices have not been sufficiently explored. Given this context, the goal of the present work is to investigate the effects of the participation of gifted people in mediumnic meetings within Spiritism. By adopting a qualitative phenomenological method, the meanings associated to the mediumnic experience and to the participation in such meetings were explored by means of interviews conducted with three mediums, participants in mediumnic practices within Spiritism. The work investigates whether these effects help the individuals to adapt and work out in their social context. It contributes to better understand this religious phenomenon.