Abstract

Background: Some studies identify cross-cultural christian missionaries as humanitarian agents or community service developers in different areas. Cultural adaptations, demands for a flawless life, constant availability, financial difficulty, and work overload can be a risk factor for the development of psychiatric disorders, low quality of life and burnout. Despite the importance of the missionary work, few studies have investigated the mental health and the interface with spirituality in this group.

Aim: To investigate the prevalence of symptoms of psychiatric disorders, burnout and quality of life and their relationship with spirituality in Brazilian cross-cultural missionaries.

Method: 327 Brazilian missionaries living in various parts of the world answered: Ministerial Inventory, Self-Report Psychiatric Screening Questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory II, State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, Maslach Burnout Inventory, Medical Outcomes Study 36 and Brief Religious Coping Scale.

Results: The absolute and relative frequencies found to develop symptoms of Common Mental Disorder were 29.4%; Depression Disorder 22.3%; anxiety disorder 35.5% and Burnout Syndrome 16.5%.

Conclusion: The high frequencies of mental disorder found, revealed that missionaries are part of the risk group for psychiatric disorders. However, it was confirmed that the higher the positive religious coping is, the greater protective factor against the incidence of mental disorders is developed.