Coping espiritual/religioso e função cognitiva de pessoas idosas de comunidades urbano-rurais brasileiras

Luciano Magalhães Vitorino; Gail Low; Mariella Albino Campos; Victória Pina Costa; Gerson de Souza Santos; Alex Bacadini França; Lucila Amaral Carneiro Vianna; Alana Azevedo Lemes; Felipe Alckmin-Carvalho; Zaqueline Fernandes Guerra

doi:10.31211/rpics.2025.11.2.352

Authors

Luciano Magalhães Vitorino Faculty of Medicine of Itajubá
Gail Low MacEwan University https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5004-3549
Mariella Albino Campos Faculty of Medicine of Itajubá https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2043-5170
Victória Pina Costa Faculty of Medicine of Itajubá https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2134-4729
Gerson de Souza Santos Centro Universitário Ages, Faculty of Medicine https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6084-7313
Alex Bacadini França Federal University of São Carlos, Psychology Departament https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9602-9294
Lucila Amaral Carneiro Vianna Federal University of São Paulo
Alana Azevedo Lemes Faculty of Medicine of Itajubá https://orcid.org/0009-0007-4517-3721
Felipe Alckmin-Carvalho University of Beira Interior, Department of Psychology and Education https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0203-2650
Zaqueline Fernandes Guerra Faculty of Medical Sciences and Health of Juiz de Fora https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9044-8340

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.31211/rpics.2025.11.2.352

Keywords:

Cognitive Function, Cognitive Impairment, Spirituality, Religiosity, Aging, Older adults, Rural–urban differences, Brazil

Abstract

Background and Aim: We compared cognitive function among Brazilian older adults residing in rural versus urban settings and examined whether positive and negative spiritual/religious coping (SRC) were associated with cognitive outcomes. Method: We conducted a comparative cross-sectional analysis of two independent samples: older adults residing in rural areas of two small towns in Minas Gerais (N = 326), and older adults from the city of São Paulo (N = 400). Measures included the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Brief Spiritual/Religious Coping Scale, and a sociodemographic/health questionnaire. Results: After controlling for sociodemographic and health covariates, rural residents had significantly higher MMSE scores than urban residents (mean difference = 7.43, p <.001). Among rural participants, higher positive SRC was associated with better cognitive function (β = 1.6; p < .001). Among urban participants, higher negative SRC was associated with worse cognitive outcomes (β = −0.39; p = .021). Conclusions: In Brazil, rural residence may be associated with better late-life cognitive function. Positive SRC may relate to cognitive benefits, whereas negative SRC may be linked to poorer cognition—particularly in urban contexts. Findings may guide health professionals in addressing SRC with older adults, especially in large urban centers.

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