ILLUMINATING THE PATH OF RECOVERY: SPIRITUAL TRANSCENDENCE, MEANING IN LIFE, AND POST-TRAUMATIC GROWTH IN BURN SURVIVORS

Abstract

Burn injury is a profoundly traumatic experience that often disrupts survivors’ psychological, emotional, and existential well-being. Emerging research suggests that spiritual transcendence and meaning in life can serve as vital psychological resources, fostering post-traumatic growth and aiding recovery among burn survivors. The current study was conducted with the aim to investigate the relationship among spiritual transcendence, meaning in life, and post-traumatic growth in burn survivors. A correlational research design with a purposive sampling technique was employed to collect data from Lahore and Islamabad burn units (N = 200; n=100 men and n =100 women). The study utilized the Spiritual Transcendence Scale (Piedmont, 1999), the Post-Traumatic Growth Scale (Baker et al., 2008), and the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MILQ) (Steger et al., 2006). The results revealed that among the dimensions of spiritual transcendence, prayer fulfillment emerged as a significant predictor of both meaning in life (presence and search) and several components of post-traumatic growth—including relating to others, spiritual change, and appreciation of life. connectedness showed a weaker yet significant association with relating to others, whereas universality did not significantly predict meaning in life or post-traumatic growth. The study suggests that spiritual transcendence, particularly prayer fulfillment, enhances meaning in life and fosters post-traumatic growth in burn survivors, supporting their positive psychological adaptation after trauma.