{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2025,10,12]],"date-time":"2025-10-12T04:19:02Z","timestamp":1760242742327,"version":"build-2065373602"},"reference-count":23,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"4","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2016,4,12]],"date-time":"2016-04-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1460419200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Religions"],"abstract":"<jats:p>King\u2019s publication based on a key note presentation at the 2014 British Association of the Study of Spirituality (BASS) conference, a well written and thought provoking paper, leads us to consider the contribution of this critique of spirituality research to contemporary debates on the topic The views expressed within the paper are important and foster debate about the validity of research in the field of spirituality and religion. However, at the same time, this debate is reminiscent of the negative responses sometimes expressed about research publications in this field. At the same time, it must be recognised that there is a view held that there is an extra yard stick required for researchers in this field, who can be subjected to much higher standards and expectations than other researchers simply because of the topic and the deep seated conflicting views that advocates and critics hold. This paper considers the merits and challenges of this paper in light of this.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/rel7040039","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2016,4,12]],"date-time":"2016-04-12T10:57:33Z","timestamp":1460458653000},"page":"39","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["A Commentary on Michael King. \u201cThe Challenge of Research into Religion and Spirituality.\u201d Journal for the Study of Spirituality 4 (2014): 106\u201320"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"7","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-7233-9412","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Fiona","family":"Timmins","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Nursing and Midwifery, Trinity College Dublin, 24 D\u2019Olier Street, Dublin D02 T283, Ireland"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-9804-2297","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"S\u00edlvia","family":"Caldeira","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"The Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Health, School of Nursing Lisbon, The Institute of Health Sciences, The Catholic University of Portugal, Lisbon 1649-023, Portugal"}]},{"given":"Margaret","family":"Naughton","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Health Care Chaplain, Bon Secours Hospital, Tralee, Co. Kerry V92, Ireland"}]},{"given":"Sotirios","family":"Plakas","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Nursing Department, School of Health and Welfare, Technological Educational Institution (TEI) of Athens, Egaleo 12210, Greece"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-2573-6121","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Harold","family":"Koenig","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Duke University Medical Center; Department of Medicine, Durham, NC 27710, USA"},{"name":"Department of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah 21589, Saudi Arabia"},{"name":"Department of Public Health, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan 750004, China"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2016,4,12]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"106","DOI":"10.1179\/2044024314Z.00000000026","article-title":"The challenge of research into religion and spirituality","volume":"4","author":"King","year":"2014","journal-title":"Journal for the Study of Spirituality"},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"460","DOI":"10.1007\/s10943-012-9568-y","article-title":"Why do research on spirituality and health, and what do the results mean?","volume":"51","author":"Koenig","year":"2012","journal-title":"Journal of Religion and Health"},{"key":"ref_3","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"2622","DOI":"10.1111\/jan.12152","article-title":"Re-examining definitions of spirituality in nursing research","volume":"69","author":"Reinert","year":"2013","journal-title":"Journal of Advanced Nursing"},{"key":"ref_4","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"1292","DOI":"10.1016\/j.socscimed.2010.06.024","article-title":"Research on meaning-making and health in secular society: Secular, spiritual and religious existential orientation","volume":"71","author":"Hvidt","year":"2010","journal-title":"Social Science and Medicine"},{"key":"ref_5","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"349","DOI":"10.1097\/NMD.0b013e31816ff796","article-title":"Concerns about measuring \u2018spirituality\u2019 in research","volume":"196","author":"Koenig","year":"2008","journal-title":"Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease"},{"key":"ref_6","unstructured":"Bowman, Marion, Herbert, David, and Mumm, Susan (2009). 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