” There is an important figure of conservative idea that is now almost or entirely absent on the abilities of many eminent colleges”, former Harvard University President , Derek Bok wrote , in , Harvard Magazine , following Hamas ‘ terrorist attacks Oct. 7 in Israel and the ensuing school conflict.
He advises” some immediate progress by trying to hire conservatives as visiting professors or lecturers while also encouraging conservative students with ability to consider beginning an academic career,” according to Bok.
Mental health care is one area that urgently needs hiring changes.
There is a significant disconnect between the worldview of practitioners and the clinically proven treatments for mental illness. Strong scientific evidence points to a link between improving mental health and preventing suicide and drug and alcohol overdoses.  ,
A faith- based worldview,  , often correlated , with what society deems” conservative” or” traditional” religious values, is highly underrepresented among psychiatrists. For example, psychiatrists , ranked 23rd among 24 medical specialists  , in their low propensity for Republican Party registration—far below the general population, Yale researchers reported.  ,
The religious composition of the mental health industry does n’t  , mirror the United States. Similar trends can be observed in Hollywood and the elite media. This is leading to significant cultural gaps, particularly in the area of mental health care. This is why we are getting the” Bad Therapy” identified by author Abigail Shrier.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention late last year released , provisional data , showing 49, 449 people committed suicide in the United States in 2022. The followings of the Great Depression: This increase of nearly 3 % from 2021 is the highest number ever recorded and the highest rate since 1941. The terrorist attacks of September 11 nearly killed nearly 17 times as many people as they did.
Yet women who attend religious services at least weekly are 68 % less likely to die “deaths of despair” —suicide, drug overdose, or alcohol poisoning. Men are 33 % less likely,  , according to 2020 research , from Harvard University’s School of Public Health.
The , National Bureau of Economic Research , reported that states with declining religious attendance correlated with increased deaths of despair, and vice versa.
A literature review appearing in , Psychiatric Times , reported:” Of 93 observational studies, two- thirds found lower rates of depressive disorder with fewer depressive symptoms in persons who were more religious. … [a review of 134 studies that looked at the connections between religious inclination and substance abuse ] revealed that 90 % of the more religious were found to be more likely to have had substance abuse.
Research from the , Psychology of Religion and Spirituality , found atheism correlates with , emotional suppression.  , Psychology professors ( along with biologists ) are  , least  , likely among all disciplines to believe in God,  , Harvard reported.  , The journal , Sociology of Religion , similarly found , that psychologists are the least religious of American professors.  ,
This is a troubling combination. The very people who are skeptical of rescuing balm are sometimes the same trained experts who are ordained to heal mental disorders.
A recovered agnostic, I experienced the power of faith to heal my own mental health. Over the years, I visited hospitals nine times ( sometimes in multiple overnight stays ) for depression, fibromyalgia, suicidal ideation, and post- traumatic stress disorder. Sadly, three of my siblings attempted suicide.
I struggled with anxiety, PTSD, depression, and suicidal ideation before I returned to God and was baptized as a Christian. Through his toxic cult, my dad eventually became forgiven for the severe abuse he wrought on our family.
During my childhood, I attended 17 public schools as well as home school, living in various motor homes, sheds, tents, and sometimes houses amid poverty, welfare, and sexual abuse. I took my ACT exam while my family lived in a shed in the Ozarks without running water, and my mother gave birth while our family lived in a tent. Two brothers eventually developed schizophrenia. I was sexually assaulted and attempted to rape by one brother, and another brother claimed I tried to seduce him.  ,
My dad said my blood changed when I left home for college, that I was no longer his daughter. Since I was the first to leave but fifth in the birth order, he expelled me from my home, claiming that I was satanic and would corrupt my siblings. To receive Pell Grants to pay for college, I was legally separated from my parents.
After numerous unexpected turns, including a full tuition scholarship to Harvard for a master’s degree, a successful media career, and time as a Goldman Sachs and Wall Street analyst, I became a Protestant Christian in December 2017, following nearly 12 years as a bitter agnostic.
Understanding the distinction between healthy faith in God and man-made abuse was the biggest challenge I had to overcome.  ,
Faith-filled communities and transformative prayer techniques cured my brain. Dr.  , Curt Thompson, a renowned Christian psychiatrist with expertise in neuroscience and spirituality, wrote a book,” Anatomy of the Soul”, that changed my thinking about my brain. It was deeply moving and hopeful to learn about the brain’s neuroplasticity, proving indeed that I could change my brain’s wiring.
And, with God’s help, I did. I have some struggles, like everyone does. However, since embracing faith in my mental health treatment, I gradually stabilized and today experience , what the Bible calls ,” the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding” . ,
With record suicides and depression rates, sadly, we’re suffering a growing mental health crisis in America, part of why Gen Z , is seeing a faith revival.  , As , Boston University researcher Brian J. Grim notes,  , faith is often the most powerful, lasting factor credited with healing people from drug and alcohol addiction.
This does n’t mean that a nonbeliever ca n’t successfully treat someone who has mental health issues. It’s just noting that the idea of “lived experience” —an idea embraced by progressive academics —is sorely lacking in the area of faith and mental health. The lived experience of faith’s positive impacts is missing in today’s mental health community. This blind spot might be putting a lot of patients at risk.
Mental health systems must seek out faculty and expand curriculum design in this season of campus reform to embrace the power of faith to save lives and heal minds.  ,  ,  ,
