Abstract
Kazakhstan is a large, Central Asian country of the former Soviet republic with a population of about 19 million people, mostly Muslim with moderate religious practices. The present cross-sectional study examines religious affiliation and religiosity association with female university student quality of life and health behavior. The survey cohort consisted of 1,466 female students from three universities. Among the respondents, 82.0% were Muslim and 18.0% belonged to other faiths or no religious affiliation; and 78.8% reported being religious and 21.2% secular. Muslim students reported better psycho-emotional and/or financial well-being, quality of life, as well as lower levels of substance use (i.e., tobacco, alcohol, and prescription drugs) (p<.001). Among all survey respondents, substance use was found associated with living on or off campus compared to being with parents or family members. Regardless of religious affiliation, secular students were found to have lower levels of quality of life, as well as psycho-emotional and financial well-being. Additional research is needed across locations and over time as well as an enlarged study cohort to generalize the study findings. However, religious affiliation and religiosity tend to be associated with health, well-being and quality of life conditions among female university students in Kazakhstan. The study to be presented provides current information about religiosity that may be useful for higher education policy and program decision making in Kazakhstan and elsewhere.
Presenters
Alexander ReznikSenior Research Associate, Regional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research (RADAR) Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Israel, HaDarom, Israel Gulnar Seidulla
doctoral student, Al-Farabi Kazakh National University, Kazakhstan Svetlana Stelmakh
Aigerim Mynbayeva
Richard Isralowitz
Details
Presentation Type
Theme
Public Health Policies and Practices
KEYWORDS
Kazakhstan, Religion, Religiosity, Female university students, Well-being, Quality of life
