In Search for Meaning: The Differential Role of Religion for Middle-Aged and Older Persons Diagnosed with a Life-Threatening Illness

According to symbolic interactionism, people's behavior depends on the meaning that phenomena and events have for them. How do individuals find meaning in a seemingly meaningless event such as being diagnosed with a life-threatening illness? Qualitative analyses of two focus group interviews with one male and ten female cancer survivors (age 39-60) and one focus group interview with six female seriously ill nursing home residents (age 66-78) showed that religion and spirituality became more prevalent in meaning-making after the diagnosis of a serious illness. Religion and spirituality provided individuals with a sense of control, justification for their illness, and source of emotional healing. Religious focus group members felt that they regained control over their lives by relinquishing control to God, that their illness had been a catalyst for personal and spiritual growth, and that their personal and spiritual growth led to emotional healing. However, for a group of five female and three male older retirement community residents (age 74-87), their advanced life stage rather than religion gave meaning to their serious illness.