This study reports on comparisons of health and social outcomes among monks, prisoners, and other members of a cohort of Open University adults in Thailand. These are very unique population subgroups enrolled in long-distance learning who participated in the Thai Health-Risk Transition study in 2005. Restricted analyses for men aged 20–39 years (711 monks, 195 prisoners, and 29,713 other cohort members) were reported on here. Monks were more likely to be younger, to have lower incomes, and to reside in rural Northeastern parts of Thailand. Prisoners were slightly older and the majority came from rural areas although they are currently residing in detention facilities in provincial urban areas. However, it was notable that prisoners were substantially less likely to have lived in rural areas as children when compared to monks or other cohort members. Monks were notably more likely to enroll in political science (which includes local administration) and educational studies, while prisoners were more likely to be enrolled in law, management sciences, and agriculture.
We have found certain conditions such as tuberculosis or malaria much more common among prisoners, while goiter and liver diseases were more common among monks. This could be due to prison living arrangements for the former and region of residence for the latter. Physical health reported here also supports other existing studies. In another study, goiter and digestive diseases were concentrated among the lower-income groups due to low iodine intake in the poor Northeastern region as well as some dietary habits of eating raw food common in the region (Sriamporn et al. 2005; Yiengprugsawan et al. 2009). Another Thai study conducted in the South reported knee osteoarthritis is common among elderly monks (Tangtrakulwanich et al. 2006).
In addition, other studies have found that conditions of detention from overcrowding may exacerbate health decline and these include infectious disease transmission and deteriorated mental health (Allen and Rich 2007; MacDonald 2008; Rutherford and Duggan 2009). Providing health care is challenging in a prison which is designed for correction and rehabilitation, but this does not have to conflict with the aims of providing basic physical and mental health care (Arnold 2009; Lines 2008; Watson et al. 2004). The physical health problems noted among prisoners in our study are all amenable to prevention and treatment.
The relationship between religion, health, and well-being has been the focus of a number of empirical studies over the last 20 years. A positive finding here was the minimal differences in spirituality and religion reported among prisoners and other cohort members, especially the importance of religion when facing problems and the importance of karma. The results here were in line with a US study which indicates that people who identify as religious tend to report better health and happiness, regardless of religious activities or financial status (Green and Elliott 2009). However, it is worth noting the apparent modifying role of culture between religiosity and psychological well-being as evidenced in a cross-cultural survey of undergraduate university students in five countries where religiosity correlates positively with psychological well-being in Bosnia and the USA but the correlation is negative for Serbia and not significant in Slovenia and Japan (Lavric and Flere 2008).
Generally, religious belief is seen to be health promoting and to help alleviate physical, mental, or spiritual illnesses (Nelson 2009). In Thailand, a recent study also derived from the Thai Cohort Study used in this report found that spirituality and religion were important for overall personal well-being and life satisfaction as a whole (Yiengprugsawan et al. 2010). A large study of 1,200 Buddhists who engaged in practices such as meditation found they were psychologically mindful and tended to have good health (Wiist et al. 2010). Another study in Thailand has noted ‘suffering’ defined in Buddha’s four noble truths appears on the surface similar to psychological stress and has found that meditation can help in coping with a variety of stressors (Tyson and Pongruengphant 2007).
Those convicted to prolonged incarceration or even those sentenced to death often seek religious support for comfort and meaning when faced with such extreme stress. And for those behind bars, religious belief and practice promotes tolerance and helps them find inner peace. Thus, in Thailand, spiritual leaders regardless of their religious affiliation are allowed to visit jail inmates every few weeks and on religious days are permitted to conduct ceremonies and rituals to help prisoners cope with their confinement (Department of Correction 2010). The majority of Thais are Buddhist but there are also small numbers of Christians and Muslims. Common religious activities in prisons include chanting, meditating, and praying according to various traditions.
Evidence that highlights the potential healing and empowering role of religion arises from rehabilitation programs in Thailand. For example at Saphan temple in Bangkok, Abbot Sophon Pattananusit noted that after 2 months living in the temple: “about 30 percent of the addicts go back to drugs, compared to about 30 percent who show some improvement and get stronger. The other 30 percent seem to be cured completely” (Ehrlich 2010). More evidence of the utility of religion for prisoner reform is revealed by Christmas concerts involving as many as 300 prisoners from 5 prisons. The Department of Correction and Thai Christian Prison Ministry have noted positive outcomes with “…changes in some prisoners’ behaviour [with] music as healing therapy for them” (Kowitwanij 2004). This helps prisoners live with one another and have a good prospect of integrating back into society. The Thai prison system is very aware of the power of religion to rehabilitate prisoners and maintains a large religion division within the national treatment program available to all 200 prisons and 218,000 prisoners throughout the kingdom.
We have found here that for social outcomes, prisoners were found to be economically deprived and had a lower sense of safety and community belonging. This will not be surprising considering their circumstances but it is a state of mind that could be addressed by trust-building programs within the prisons that would help them to integrate back into society after being released. It is noteworthy that areas of STOU enrollment were quite different for monks and prisoners; yet for both groups their choices seem to have been good ones given their situations. It is also noteworthy that the personal well-being indicators for prisoners were much lower than for monks or other cohort members. It is possible that prison programs could use social outcomes such as those we measured in order to monitor the needs for and impact of social welfare programs within the prison system. Findings here regarding spirituality and religion indicators are striking as there is almost no disparity reported between prisoners and other cohort members. Thus, prisoners can be reached through spiritual programs at least as much as other members of the study cohort.
This study has brought together two seemingly very extreme population subgroups to compare their health and social well-being. These groups had in common restricted living arrangements and aspirational distance-learning university enrollment. STOU is not only giving prisoners and monks opportunities to learn but is also assisting with their productive contributions to society. Positive future prospects were found in quotes from graduating prisoners, monks, and other cohort members in the STOU graduation yearbook. Examples of graduate quotes include the following: “changing crisis to opportunity, it is not too late to start again after the detention to contribute to society”, “[I] will use what I learnt in the future when [I am] free”, “mistake in the past is a good lesson for the future”, “perseverance will help achieving our goal”, “education is a basis in life”, and “[we are] on the way to realizing our dreams”. Designed as longitudinal prospective research on health and its determinants, this project has already followed cohort members for 4 years and the study continues. Results arising will be helpful in providing insights into the health and well-being transitions of these monks and prisoners in the years to come.
การศึกษาครั้งนี้รายงานเกี่ยวกับการเปรียบเทียบของสุขภาพและผลลัพธ์ทางสังคมในหมู่พระสงฆ์นักโทษและสมาชิกคนอื่น ๆ ของการศึกษาของผู้ใหญ่ที่มหาวิทยาลัยเปิดในประเทศไทย เหล่านี้เป็นกลุ่มย่อยของประชากรไม่ซ้ำกันมากเข้าเรียนในระยะยาวThis study reports on comparisons of health and social outcomes among monks, prisoners, and other members of a cohort of Open University adults in Thailand. These are very unique population subgroups enrolled in long- -การศึกษาทางไกลที่เข้าร่วมในสุขภาพdistance learning who participated in the Thai Health- -ความเสี่ยงการศึกษาการเปลี่ยนผ่านในปี Risk Transition study in 2005. Restricted analyses for men aged 20- –39 พระสงฆ์มีแนวโน้มที่จะเป็นน้องที่จะมีรายได้ลดลงและจะอาศัยอยู่ในส่วนภาคตะวันออกเฉียงเหนือในชนบทแห่งประเทศไทย นักโทษที่มีอายุมากกว่าเล็กน้อยและส่วนใหญ่มาจากพื้นที่ชนบทแม้ว่าพวกเขาจะพำนักอยู่ในขณะนี้สิ่งอำนวยความสะดวกการคุมขังในพื้นที่เขตเมืองจังหวัด แต่ก็เป็นที่น่าสังเกตว่านักโทษได้อย่างมีนัยสำคัญโอกาสน้อยที่จะได้อาศัยอยู่ในพื้นที่ชนบทเป็นเด็กเมื่อเทียบกับพระสงฆ์หรือสมาชิกในกลุ่มอื่น ๆ พระสงฆ์เป็นที่สะดุดตามีแนวโน้มที่จะลงทะเบียนเรียนในสาขาวิทยาศาสตร์ทางการเมือง เราพบเงื่อนไขบางอย่างเช่นวัณโรคหรือโรคมาลาเรียมากขึ้นที่พบบ่อย ในหมู่นักโทษในขณะที่โรคคอพอกและโรคตับเป็นเรื่องปกติมากขึ้นในหมู่พระสงฆ์ ซึ่งอาจจะเกิดจากการจัดที่อยู่อาศัยคุกอดีตและในภูมิภาคที่อยู่อาศัยสำหรับหลัง สุขภาพกายรายงานที่นี่นอกจากนี้ยังสนับสนุนการศึกษาที่มีอยู่อื่น ๆ ในการศึกษาอื่นคอพอกและโรคทางเดินอาหารมีความเข้มข้นในกลุ่มรายได้ต่ำเนื่องจากการบริโภคไอโอดีนในระดับต่ำในภาคตะวันออกเฉียงเหนือที่ไม่ดีเช่นเดียวกับบางพฤติกรรมการบริโภคอาหารการกินอาหารสดที่พบบ่อยในภูมิภาค อีกการศึกษาไทยดำเนินการในภาคใต้รายงานโรคข้อเข่าเสื่อมเป็นเรื่องธรรมดาในหมู่พระสงฆ์ผู้สูงอายุ นอกจากนี้การศึกษาอื่น ๆ ได้พบว่าสภาพการควบคุมตัวจากความแออัดยัดเยียดอาจทำให้รุนแรงลดลงและสุขภาพเหล่านี้รวมถึงการส่งผ่านโรคติดเชื้อและการเสื่อมโทรมของสุขภาพจิต การให้การดูแลสุขภาพเป็นสิ่งที่ท้าทายในคุกซึ่งถูกออกแบบมาสำหรับการแก้ไขและการฟื้นฟูสมรรถภาพ แต่นี้ไม่ได้มีการขัดแย้งกับจุดมุ่งหมายของการให้การดูแลสุขภาพกายและสุขภาพจิตระดับล่าง ปัญหาสุขภาพกายตั้งข้อสังเกตในหมู่นักโทษในการศึกษาของเราทุกคนคล้อยตามการป้องกันและการรักษาความสัมพันธ์ระหว่างศาสนา การค้นพบในเชิงบวกที่นี่เป็นความแตกต่างที่น้อยที่สุดในจิตวิญญาณและศาสนารายงานในหมู่นักโทษและสมาชิกในกลุ่มอื่น ๆ โดยเฉพาะอย่างยิ่งความสำคัญของศาสนาเมื่อเผชิญกับปัญหาและความสำคัญของกรรม ผลที่นี่อยู่ในสอดคล้องกับการศึกษาในสหรัฐอเมริกาซึ่งบ่งชี้ว่าคนที่ระบุว่าศาสนามีแนวโน้มที่จะรายงานสุขภาพที่ดีขึ้นและมีความสุขโดยไม่คำนึงถึงกิจกรรมทางศาสนาหรือฐานะการเงิน แต่ก็เป็นที่น่าสังเกตบทบาทการแก้ไขที่ชัดเจนของวัฒนธรรมระหว่างศาสนาและจิตใจความเป็นอยู่เป็นหลักฐานในการสำรวจข้ามวัฒนธรรมของนักศึกษามหาวิทยาลัยระดับปริญญาตรีในห้าประเทศที่มีศาสนามีความสัมพันธ์เชิงบวกกับทางด้านจิตใจความเป็นอยู่ในบอสเนียและสหรัฐอเมริกา แต่ ความสัมพันธ์เป็นเชิงลบสำหรับเซอร์เบียและไม่ได้มีนัยสำคัญในสโลวีเนียและญี่ปุ่น โดยทั่วไปความเชื่อทางศาสนาเห็นจะส่งเสริมสุขภาพและเพื่อช่วยบรรเทาร่างกายจิตใจหรือโรคทางจิตวิญญาณ ในประเทศไทยการศึกษาล่าสุดยังมาจากหมู่การศึกษาไทยที่ใช้ในการรายงานนี้พบว่าจิตวิญญาณและศาสนามีความสำคัญให้ดีส่วนบุคคลโดยรวม- ความเป็นอยู่และความพึงพอใจในชีวิตโดยรวม การศึกษาขนาดใหญ่ 39 years (711 monks, 195 prisoners, and 29,713 other cohort members) were reported on here. Monks were more likely to be younger, to have lower incomes, and to reside in rural Northeastern parts of Thailand. Prisoners were slightly older and the majority came from rural areas although they are currently residing in detention facilities in provincial urban areas. However, it was notable that prisoners were substantially less likely to have lived in rural areas as children when compared to monks or other cohort members. Monks were notably more likely to enroll in political science (which includes local administration) and educational studies, while prisoners were more likely to be enrolled in law, management sciences, and agriculture.
We have found certain conditions such as tuberculosis or malaria much more common among prisoners, while goiter and liver diseases were more common among monks. This could be due to prison living arrangements for the former and region of residence for the latter. Physical health reported here also supports other existing studies. In another study, goiter and digestive diseases were concentrated among the lower-income groups due to low iodine intake in the poor Northeastern region as well as some dietary habits of eating raw food common in the region (Sriamporn et al. 2005; Yiengprugsawan et al. 2009). Another Thai study conducted in the South reported knee osteoarthritis is common among elderly monks (Tangtrakulwanich et al. 2006).
In addition, other studies have found that conditions of detention from overcrowding may exacerbate health decline and these include infectious disease transmission and deteriorated mental health (Allen and Rich 2007; MacDonald 2008; Rutherford and Duggan 2009). Providing health care is challenging in a prison which is designed for correction and rehabilitation, but this does not have to conflict with the aims of providing basic physical and mental health care (Arnold 2009; Lines 2008; Watson et al. 2004). The physical health problems noted among prisoners in our study are all amenable to prevention and treatment.
The relationship between religion, health, and well-being has been the focus of a number of empirical studies over the last 20 years. A positive finding here was the minimal differences in spirituality and religion reported among prisoners and other cohort members, especially the importance of religion when facing problems and the importance of karma. The results here were in line with a US study which indicates that people who identify as religious tend to report better health and happiness, regardless of religious activities or financial status (Green and Elliott 2009). However, it is worth noting the apparent modifying role of culture between religiosity and psychological well-being as evidenced in a cross-cultural survey of undergraduate university students in five countries where religiosity correlates positively with psychological well-being in Bosnia and the USA but the correlation is negative for Serbia and not significant in Slovenia and Japan (Lavric and Flere 2008).
Generally, religious belief is seen to be health promoting and to help alleviate physical, mental, or spiritual illnesses (Nelson 2009). In Thailand, a recent study also derived from the Thai Cohort Study used in this report found that spirituality and religion were important for overall personal well-being and life satisfaction as a whole (Yiengprugsawan et al. 2010). A large study of 1,200 Buddhists who engaged in practices such as meditation found they were psychologically mindful and tended to have good health (Wiist et al. 2010). Another study in Thailand has noted ‘suffering’ defined in Buddha’s four noble truths appears on the surface similar to psychological stress and has found that meditation can help in coping with a variety of stressors (Tyson and Pongruengphant 2007).
Those convicted to prolonged incarceration or even those sentenced to death often seek religious support for comfort and meaning when faced with such extreme stress. And for those behind bars, religious belief and practice promotes tolerance and helps them find inner peace. Thus, in Thailand, spiritual leaders regardless of their religious affiliation are allowed to visit jail inmates every few weeks and on religious days are permitted to conduct ceremonies and rituals to help prisoners cope with their confinement (Department of Correction 2010). The majority of Thais are Buddhist but there are also small numbers of Christians and Muslims. Common religious activities in prisons include chanting, meditating, and praying according to various traditions.
Evidence that highlights the potential healing and empowering role of religion arises from rehabilitation programs in Thailand. For example at Saphan temple in Bangkok, Abbot Sophon Pattananusit noted that after 2 months living in the temple: “about 30 percent of the addicts go back to drugs, compared to about 30 percent who show some improvement and get stronger. The other 30 percent seem to be cured completely” (Ehrlich 2010). More evidence of the utility of religion for prisoner reform is revealed by Christmas concerts involving as many as 300 prisoners from 5 prisons. The Department of Correction and Thai Christian Prison Ministry have noted positive outcomes with “…changes in some prisoners’ behaviour [with] music as healing therapy for them” (Kowitwanij 2004). This helps prisoners live with one another and have a good prospect of integrating back into society. The Thai prison system is very aware of the power of religion to rehabilitate prisoners and maintains a large religion division within the national treatment program available to all 200 prisons and 218,000 prisoners throughout the kingdom.
We have found here that for social outcomes, prisoners were found to be economically deprived and had a lower sense of safety and community belonging. This will not be surprising considering their circumstances but it is a state of mind that could be addressed by trust-building programs within the prisons that would help them to integrate back into society after being released. It is noteworthy that areas of STOU enrollment were quite different for monks and prisoners; yet for both groups their choices seem to have been good ones given their situations. It is also noteworthy that the personal well-being indicators for prisoners were much lower than for monks or other cohort members. It is possible that prison programs could use social outcomes such as those we measured in order to monitor the needs for and impact of social welfare programs within the prison system. Findings here regarding spirituality and religion indicators are striking as there is almost no disparity reported between prisoners and other cohort members. Thus, prisoners can be reached through spiritual programs at least as much as other members of the study cohort.
This study has brought together two seemingly very extreme population subgroups to compare their health and social well-being. These groups had in common restricted living arrangements and aspirational distance-learning university enrollment. STOU is not only giving prisoners and monks opportunities to learn but is also assisting with their productive contributions to society. Positive future prospects were found in quotes from graduating prisoners, monks, and other cohort members in the STOU graduation yearbook. Examples of graduate quotes include the following: “changing crisis to opportunity, it is not too late to start again after the detention to contribute to society”, “[I] will use what I learnt in the future when [I am] free”, “mistake in the past is a good lesson for the future”, “perseverance will help achieving our goal”, “education is a basis in life”, and “[we are] on the way to realizing our dreams”. Designed as longitudinal prospective research on health and its determinants, this project has already followed cohort members for 4 years and the study continues. Results arising will be helpful in providing insights into the health and well-being transitions of these monks and prisoners in the years to come.
การแปล กรุณารอสักครู่..