| Sumario: | Background and Objectives: Stress is a significant contributor to various diseases, necessitating effective management strategies. This study aimed to investigate the potential role of Islamic spirituality, conceptualized as both long-term disposition ("being spiritual") and short-term practice ("engaging in spiritual acts"), in modulating heart rate (HR) responses to stress. Methods: In this observational study, 24 female students (mean age = 28 years) were categorized using the Golzari religious belief commitment questionnaire. HR was recorded using a digital pulse oximeter during exposure to five standardized stress scenarios. For the short-term spirituality assessment, the experimental group performed Dhikr during recovery periods. HR signals were processed, and 20 features were extracted using a Daubechies-4 wavelet transform. Analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used for feature selection, and an extreme learning machine (ELM) classifier with a five-neuron hidden layer was employed for classification. Results: ELM classifier achieved 94.4% accuracy in distinguishing between high and low longterm spirituality groups based on HR responses. For short-term spirituality, it differentiated the Dhikr group from controls with 88.8% accuracy during recovery phases. Conclusion: Findings indicate that both facets of Islamic spirituality are associated with attenuated HR responses to stress, suggesting their potential role in mitigating physiological stress reactivity.
|
|---|