Widespread Religious and Spiritual Change Due to War: A Terror Management Perspective

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of war on personal religiosity and spirituality (R/S). From a Terror Management Theory perspective, mortality awareness might lead individuals to seek existential security not only by endorsing R/S, but also by adhering to cultural norms. Therefore, we expected that war would drive widespread R/S change, but the extent to which individuals increase or decrease R/S would depend on the culturally normative nature of R/S. We relied on data from 1,278 Jewish-Israeli students collected during the ongoing 2023–2025 Israel-Gaza war. Approximately half of the sample reported some change, with increases in R/S being more prevalent than decreases. However, this pattern varied by religious group affiliation and was especially true in contexts where R/S is more normative. Considering the culturally normative nature of R/S and both increases and decreases in R/S is important to contributing a fuller account of R/S change in the face of protracted stress.