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Religiosity and prevalence of suicide, psychiatric disorders and psychotic symptoms in the French general population

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Abstract

We aimed to examine the association between religious beliefs and observance and the prevalence of psychiatric disorders, psychotic symptoms and history of suicide attempts in the French general population. The cross-sectional survey interviewed 38,694 subjects between 1999 and 2003, using the MINI. Current religious beliefs and observance were identified by means of two questions: “are you a believer?” and “are you religiously observant?”. We studied the association between religiosity and psychiatric outcomes using a multivariable logistic regression model adjusted for sociodemographic characteristics, including migrant status. Religious beliefs were positively associated with psychotic symptoms and disorders [OR = 1.37, 95% CI (1.30–1.45) and OR = 1.38, 95% CI (1.20–1.58)], unipolar depressive disorder [OR = 1.15, 95% CI (1.06–1.23)] and generalized anxiety disorder [OR = 1.13, 95% CI (1.06–1.21)], but negatively associated with bipolar disorder [OR = 0.83, 95% CI (0.69–0.98)], alcohol use disorders [OR = 0.69, 95% CI (0.62–0.77)], substance use disorders [OR = 0.60, 95% CI (0.52–0.69)] and suicide attempts [OR = 0.90, 95% CI (0.82–0.99)]. Religious observance was positively associated with psychotic symptoms and disorders [OR = 1.38, 95% CI (1.20–1.58) and OR = 1.25, 95% CI (1.07–1.45)], but negatively associated with social anxiety disorder [OR = 0.87, 95% CI (0.76–0.99)], alcohol use disorders [OR = 0.60, 95% CI (0.51–0.70)], substance use disorders [OR = 0.48, 95% CI (0.38–0.60)] and suicide attempts [OR = 0.80, 95% CI (0.70–0.90)]. Among believers, religious observance was not associated with psychotic outcomes. Religiosity appears to be a complex and bidirectional determinant of psychiatric symptoms and disorders. In this respect, religiosity should be more thoroughly assessed in epidemiological psychiatric studies, as well as in clinical practice.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Département Médico-Universitaires de Psychiatrie Et D’addictologie Des Hôpitaux Universitaires Henri-Mondor, Hôpital Albert Chenevier, Groupe Hospitaliers Henri-Mondor, CHU de Créteil Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), DMU IMPACT, 40 rue de Mesly, 94 000, Créteil, France

    Maria Alice Brito, Franck Schürhoff & Baptiste Pignon

  2. Paris University, Paris, France

    Maria Alice Brito, Pierre A. Geoffroy & Hugo Peyre

  3. Lille Neurosciences and Cognition, Lille University Hospital, University of Lille, and National Institute of Health and Medical Research, U1172, Lille, France

    Ali Amad, Pierre Thomas & Guillaume Vaiva

  4. Fédération Régionale de Recherche en Santé Mentale (F2RSM) Hauts-de-France, rue André Verhaeghe, 59000, Lille, France

    Ali Amad & Pierre Thomas

  5. Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King’s College London, 16 De Crespigny Park, Camberwell, London, UK

    Ali Amad

  6. Service Universitaire D’Addictologie de Lyon (SUAL), CH Le Vinatier, Bron France , CRNL, Inserm U1028-CNRS UMR5292, UCBL, Université de Lyon, Lyon, France

    Benjamin Rolland

  7. Department of Psychiatry and Addictive Medicine, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris (AP-HP), University Hospital Bichat, 46 rue Henri Huchard, 75018, Paris, France

    Pierre A. Geoffroy

  8. Université de Paris, NeuroDiderot, Inserm, 75019, Paris, France

    Pierre A. Geoffroy

  9. Psychiatry and Addiction Medicine Department, CHU Lille, Lille, France

    Pierre A. Geoffroy

  10. Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Department, Assistance Publique-Hôpitaux de Paris, Robert Debré Hospital, Paris, France

    Hugo Peyre

  11. EPSM Lille Métropole, Centre Collaborateur de L’Organisation Mondiale de La Santé Pour La Recherche Et La Formation en Santé Mentale, Équipe Eceve Inserm UMR 1123, 211 rue Roger Salengro, 59 260, Hellemmes, France

    Jean-Luc Roelandt & Imane Benradia

  12. Centre National de Ressources Et Résilience Pour Les Psychotraumatismes (Cn2r), Lille Paris, France

    Guillaume Vaiva

  13. Laboratoire Neuro-Psychiatrie Translationnelle, Inserm, U955, Institut Mondor de Recherche Biomédicale, 94000, Créteil, France

    Franck Schürhoff & Baptiste Pignon

  14. Fondation FondaMental, 94000, Créteil, France

    Franck Schürhoff & Baptiste Pignon

  15. Faculté de Médecine, UPEC, Université Paris Est Créteil, 94000, Créteil, France

    Franck Schürhoff & Baptiste Pignon

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  1. Maria Alice Brito
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  2. Ali Amad
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Correspondence to Baptiste Pignon.

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The authors assert that all procedures contributing to this work comply with the ethical standards of the relevant national and institutional committees on human experimentation and with the Helsinki Declaration of 1975, as revised in 2008. Legal authorization was obtained by the “Commission Nationale Informatique et Liberté” (CNIL) and the “Comité consultatif sur le traitement de l'information en matière de recherche” (CCTIRS), with number 98.126.

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Brito, M.A., Amad, A., Rolland, B. et al. Religiosity and prevalence of suicide, psychiatric disorders and psychotic symptoms in the French general population. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 271, 1547–1557 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-021-01233-3

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