Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health 2012, 24(1): 8998

Printed in South Africa All rights reserved

Copyright NISC Pty Ltd

JOURNAL OF CHILD & ADOLESCENT

MENTAL HEALTH
ISSN 1728-0583 EISSN 1728-0591
http://dx.doi.org/10.2989/17280583.2012.673493

Spiritual well-being and lifestyle choices in adolescents: A

quantitative study among Afrikaans-speaking learners in
the North West Province of South Africa
Anne C Jacobs*1, Charles T Viljoen2 and Johannes L van der Walt2
School of Philosophy, North West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
School of Education, North West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa
* Corresponding author, e-mail: Anne.Karstens@nwu.ac.za

Objective: This article reports on an investigation into the connection between spirituality and the
lifestyle choices of adolescents in the North West Province of South Africa.
Method: An examination of the theoretical connections between these two entities in the lives of
adolescents was followed by a quantitative study in which a questionnaire consisting of an adapted
version of the Youth Risk Behaviour Survey and the Spiritual Well-Being Scale was used.
Results: The empirical investigation shows that a significant correlation exists between the two
variables and it appears that spiritual well-being can have a positive influence on the lifestyle choices
made by adolescents.
Conclusion: Further research must be carried out to assess the impact of spirituality on risk behaviours
and lifestyle choices.

Introduction and background

The prevalence of risk behaviour among adolescents in South Africa has been well
documented. Knowing the extent of the problem is important, but it seems equally
necessary to understand the factors that are associated with, and predict, risk behaviour
(Wegner and Flisher 2009:1).
The spiritual life is no longer a specialist concern, restricted to those who belong to religious
traditions. The spirituality revolution is a spontaneous movement in society, a significant
new interest in the reality of spirituality and its healing effects on life, health, community and
well-being (Tacey 2004).
This study focuses on two emergent aspects in contemporary society. Firstly, the prevalence
of risk behaviour among young people which is alluded to in the first quotation and, secondly, the
growing interest of people and academia in spirituality.
Young people increasingly engage in unhealthy behaviours which can negatively affect their
future lives (National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion 2001). These
behaviours typically include smoking, alcohol and drug abuse, cannabis smoking, early sexual
activity and violence, and suicide (WHO 2000). Many of these problems are especially rampant
in South Africa (see Karstens 2010, Prinsloo 2007). A study conducted by Coetzee and Underhay
(2003) in the North West Province of South Africa shows, for example, that at the time of the study
23.4% of 16-year-olds drank alcohol regularly and 21.5% had been considering suicide.
Risk behaviours often result in lifestyle choices which then become a pattern for life. Living in a
post-modern society which have few social rules and where values and norms are debatable and
undefined makes it difficult for adolescents to make good and responsible choices (Kirbach 2002).
There is talk of a moral or value crisis (Hunter 2000, Hahne 2005, Wringe 2007), which might be
Journal of Child & Adolescent Mental Health is co-published by NISC (Pty) Ltd and Routledge, Taylor & Francis Group

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Jacobs, Viljoen and van der Walt

a result of the elevation of personal tastes and opinions into rules for everyday living. In addition,
one must bear in mind that adolescence which is a transition, a time of trying to understand things
more deeply, becomes very complex and frustrating in the absence of normative values. It is,
therefore, a difficult time for young people; they need help to make constructive lifestyle choices
(Karstens 2006).
The second aspect of this study is illustrated by the second quotation which suggests that spirituality is becoming increasingly popular in todays society. After a long period of neglect in the
scientific world it is becoming a valid concept again in many areas of life (Richards and Bergin 1998,
Ford, Arie and Pingree 2005). During the modern period, people believed that scientific explanations of reality were sufficient. However, now that people realise that science is not able to explain
all there is to reality, less importance seems to be attached to naturalism and positivism (Gray
2009). A resurgence of searching for alternative ways to explain reality is the result. The supernatural has been experiencing a revival in all aspects of searching for reality. There is a difference,
however. In the years before positivism religion, and specifically Christianity, provided supernatural explanations for reality (Gray 2003). In contemporary society the focus is now on a universal
concept of spirituality, which can include religion, but which can also function outside religious
contexts (Veith 1994, Chuengsatiansup 2002, Gray 2003, Ratcliff and Nye 2006). A search for
meaning, relationships, values and transcendence is one of the most important aspects of this new
type of spirituality which functions within the context of post-modernism (Westgate 1996, Myers,
Sweeney and Witmer 2000, Karstens 2006).
Various studies have shown that spirituality can have a positive impact on aspects of life within
the areas of mental and physical health and on risk behaviours (Richards and Bergin 1998,
WHOQOL SRPB Group 2006). Some examples of this are presented in the following paragraphs.
McClain, Rosenfeld and Breitbart (2003) discovered a correlation between little or low spirituality
and end-of-life-despair. Based on his summary of studies dealing with spirituality and depression,
Westgate (1996) concluded that in most cases there is a negative correlation between spirituality
and depression. In general, spirituality seems to be functionally related to quality of life (WHOQOL
SRPB Group 2006). Ross (1995) and Koenig (2004) report a generally positive correlation between
spirituality or religion and mental well-being.
Ritt-Olson et al. (2004) found the influence of spirituality on substance abuse to be positive.
Research also showed that spirituality is particularly protective in higher risk adolescent groups.
Teen Challenge (1994) found that spirituality, specifically Christian spirituality, had an extremely
positive impact on quitting drugs and alcohol abuse and on other risk behaviours (Teen Challenge
2001). Likewise Koenig (2004) found in a survey of existing studies that religious/spiritual people
are far less likely to smoke than other people.
Most studies regarding spirituality and physical health reveal a positive correlation (Richards and
Bergin 1998, Koenig 2004, Ebstyne King and Benson 2006, Karstens 2006, Oman and Thoresen
2006). After reviewing various studies, Richards and Bergin (1998) concluded that there is generally
a very positive relation between physical health and religion or spirituality. They concluded, among
other things, that religiously active people have lower rates of various diseases, including cancer
and heart disease. Koenig (2004) also found a positive relationship between physical health and
spirituality. In a systematic review of existing studies, Koenig (2004) found that 11 of 16 studies
reported less coronary artery disease (CAD) and a lower likelihood of CAD-related death and
greater survival after open heart surgery in those who are more religious/spiritual.
Definition of key concepts and rationale
The following are the key concepts of this study, which the authors have regarded as conceptually
connected to one another.
The authors conceptualised spiritual well-being as the positive presence of: belief in a power
beyond oneself, hope and optimism, meaning and purpose, worship, prayer, meditation, love
and compassion, moral and ethical values and transcendence (see Myers et al. 2000, Karstens
2006). The authors concur with the connections created by Ellison (1983) between these entities
or conditions in stating that spiritual well-being consists of both religious and existential well-being.

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91

Religious well-being includes notions such as a positive relationship with God/god and prayer and
the experience of a loving God/god who cares and gives fulfilment. It generally includes aspects
contextualised by the traditional practice of religion. Existential well-being refers to concepts like
perceived meaning and purpose and contentment in life as well as positive feelings about the
future. It basically concerns a fundamentally positive outlook on life based on all of these aspects
(Ellison 1983).
The concept of lifestyle choices is related to the concept of identity formation. During identity
formation adolescents commit to certain beliefs and values which in turn determine their future
behaviour, especially their lifestyle choices (Woolfolk 1998). Unhealthy lifestyle choices can be
seen as risk behaviours which develop into a pattern and thus eventually constitute a lifestyle.
These behaviours typically include smoking, alcohol and drug abuse, cannabis smoking, early and
risky sexual activity and violence, and suicide attempts fuelled by depression.
Since adolescents may increasingly engage in such unhealthy behaviours, the reasons for
determinants of these behaviours need to be examined. One of the reasons for such behaviour
may be that the spiritual domain of human existence has been overlooked or neglected. As a result
young people do not experience fulfilment and existential meaning in life, which in turn leads them
to indulge or dabble in unhealthy and risky behaviour. The possibility of such a connection must be
investigated as this can contribute to the development of a more holistic approach in preventing
or pre-empting risk behaviours. It is feasible to do so in the light of studies postulating a possible
positive correlation between spiritual well-being, mental and physical health, and risk behaviours,
as explained above.
Method
Research problem
The central research question that guided this research was: Is there a correlation between lifestyle
choices and the spiritual well-being of adolescents?
Research design
A quantitative approach was used to make it possible statistically to test and describe the relationship between lifestyle choices and spirituality. This design lends itself to a reasonable degree of
generalisation (Leedy and Ormrod 2001, Struwig and Stead 2003).
The hypothesis for this study was that there would be a correlation between spirituality and
lifestyle choices. If verified, the hypothesis implies that spirituality can be regarded as a protective factor in the lives of young people, meaning that it will help prevent them from engaging in risk
behaviours that could lead to unhealthy lifestyle choices. The protection afforded by spirituality will
thus lead to improving their well-being.
Sampling
Five high schools in the South Eastern District of the North West Province, South Africa, were
purposefully selected. All schools were ex-model C schools (i.e. they were historically white state
schools), which made them comparable: most of pupils attending these schools belong to the same
population group, namely predominantly white Afrikaans-speaking children. Most of them come
from a traditional Christian background and are members of one of the three mainstream Reformed
(Calvinistic) churches in South Africa. The schools were selected because of their accessibility
(Leedy and Ormrod 2001).
The respondents in each of the schools were then randomly selected as follows: in each school
either 1, 2 or 3 Grade 10 classes, depending on the size of the school, were randomly selected to
fill in the questionnaire. Altogether 267 pupils randomly selected from these classes participated in
the study. Of these 267 questionnaires, 27 were discarded due to errors or incompleteness.
Data collection
The questionnaire consisted of three sections. Section A contained items that provided biographical

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Jacobs, Viljoen and van der Walt

information. Section B consisted of an adapted version of the 88-item Youth Risk Behaviour Survey.
The original version was developed by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in the
USA (CDC 2001). This instrument monitors different categories of risk behaviours among adolescents,
namely personal safety, violence related behaviour, attempted suicide, tobacco use, alcohol use, use
of cannabis and other drugs, promiscuous sexual behaviour, body weight and dietary behaviour,
and physical activity. The adapted version of the questionnaire (which excluded body weight, dietary
behaviour and physical activity) that was used in this survey was developed by Coetzee and Underhay
(2003) for a similar study and was translated into Afrikaans. The validity and reliability of both the
English and Afrikaans versions have been proved (see Coetzee and Underhay 2003).
Section C of the questionnaire contained the Spiritual Well-being Scale developed by Paloutzian
and Ellison (1991). It measures spiritual well-being using a six-point Likert-type scale ranging from
Strongly Agree to Strongly Disagree. The instrument consists of 20 items of which the 10 even-numbered items measure existential well-being and the 10 odd-numbered items measure religious
well-being. The Spiritual Well-being Scale has a high reliability and internal consistency (see Hill and
Hood 1999, Kirsten 2001) because it measures what is intended (see Hill and Hood 1999).
Data analysis
Section A of the questionnaire provided biographical data. Section B, lifestyle choices, was scored
as follows: as the questions in the questionnaire yielded non-numerical data, these had to be
translated into number format (on a Likert-type scale). When an item asked whether or not a pupil
had already done something, for example Have you been planning any suicide attempts during
the past 12 months?, a 1 was assigned to no and a 2 to yes. When a question asked how
often? a 1 was assigned when the pupil had never engaged in certain behaviour, a 2 when the
pupil had engaged in the behaviour once, and so on. When a question asked when first a 1 was
assigned when the pupil had never engaged in the behaviour, a 2 at the latest possible age and so
forth. The numbers in each section were added up, so that at the end every subject had a score for
all the different sections as well as an overall (total) score. The lower the score the more healthy the
lifestyle choices of the subject were considered to be.
Section C of the questionnaire, which concerns spiritual well-being, was scored in the following
way. The scores of all items relating to religious well-being were added up. The same was done
with all 10 items relating to existential well-being. This then gave the score for both components
which could be a number ranging from 10 to 60 for each. The higher the score, the better the
religious or existential well-being of the subject was considered to be. The following three scores
were obtained in this manner:
Existential well-being (EWB)
Religious well-being (RWB)
Spiritual well-being (SWB)
The score for SWB was obtained by adding up all 20 numbers of Section C (EWB + RWB). The
higher the score in each instance, the better a persons spiritual, existential or religious well-being
was regarded to be (Ledbetter 1991, Hill and Hood 1999).
The following statistics were used:
Descriptive statistics to determine the prevalence of certain risk behaviours and resulting lifestyle
choices.
Pearson product-moment correlations between all variables to test the hypothesis.
A one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) of selected variables as a factor analysis.
A two-way ANOVA of the two main variables with gender as a factor to see whether or not there
was a significant difference between the genders with respect to lifestyle choices and SWB.
Due to the inconclusive nature of the data regarding watching television, that factor will not be
further considered in this paper.
Ethical aspects
Formal permission to conduct this study was obtained from the Department of Education
of the North West Province of South Africa, and from the principals of the schools concerned.

Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2012, 24(1): 8998

93

Participation was voluntary and participants were assured of anonymity and confidentiality. The
research design and instrument were approved by the Ethics Committee of the University that
supervised the study.
Results
Table 1 offers a descriptive overview of the lifestyle choices of adolescents that emerged from section
B of the questionnaire. It embodies the combined data about the risk behaviour of the respondents
from all five schools and serves as a background to the discussion of the rest of the results.
The numbers in the left-hand column designate the three groups of adolescents as follows:
Subjects in Group A had never experimented with the specific unhealthy behaviour.
Subjects in Group B had experimented somewhat.
Subjects in Group C had to a certain extent made the behaviour into part of their lifestyles or have
initiated the behaviour at an early age.
Table 1 indicates that most Grade 10 learners (Groups B + C) have experimented with smoking (72.9%)
and alcohol (90.4%). Considerably fewer learners have made unhealthy choices concerning cannabis,
drugs, sex and violence. More than half of the learners in Grade 10 had thoughts which could lead to
suicidal behaviour or had even displayed suicidal behaviour. Almost 10% of pupils had attempted suicide.
As far as the correlations between the variables are concerned, Figure 1 portrays the results of a
regression analysis of SWB and the total of the Youth Risk Behaviour Survey (YRBS).
Table 1: Percentage of unhealthy lifestyle choices made by Grade 10 learners

A
B
C

Violence
61.6
32.1
6.3

Suicide
48.3
42.5
9.2

Smoking
27.1
35
37.9

Alcohol
9.6
58.7
31.7

Cannabis
85.4
12.9
1.7

Sex
82.5
10.8
6.7

Mean SWB

69.00

Drugs
79.5
19.2
1.3

64.91
60.82

TOTAL (YRBS)

56.72
52.63
48.54
44.45

Mean Total

40.36
36.26
32.17
28.08
30

R(x, y) = 0.411
Slope = 0.18
Intercept = 60.45

39

48

57

66

75
SWB

84

93

102

111

120

Figure 1: Plot of spiritual well-being (SWB) and total (total of all responses to YRBS)

TV
38.7
61.3
na

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Jacobs, Viljoen and van der Walt

A correlational analysis using the Pearson product-moment coefficient revealed a negative

correlation between spiritual well-being and the total of the YRBS. Based on the method described
by Howell (2004), the study determined that there was a significant difference between the variables
(p 0.01, N = 240). It can therefore be accepted that these data provide evidence for a correlation
between spiritual well-being and lifestyle choices which confirms the research hypothesis.
To obtain more detailed information concerning risk behaviour and SWB, all the variables that
together form the total of the YRBS and of the Spiritual Well-being Scale were analysed for correlations using the Pearson product-moment coefficient. The results are summarised in Table 2.
All significant correlation coefficients calculated using the above mentioned formula are in italics.
A correlation is regarded as significant at the p = 0.01 level when its value is above 0.172.
To determine the relation between lifestyle choices (risk behaviour) and SWB, one-way analyses
of variance were carried out with SWB as the dependent variable and each of the sub-categories
(violence, suicide, smoking, alcohol, cannabis, drugs and sex) on the YRBS. The scores of each
of the sub-categories were divided into three groups (A, B and C), as described for Table 1. In the
case of suicidal behaviour, the symbols mean:
(A) Had never shown any suicidal behaviour.
(B) Had experienced depression and/or thought of/planned suicide.
(C) Had actually tried to commit suicide.
In Table 3 the F-statistic of the different variables is shown.
Table 3 shows that there is a significant difference between the groups in each variable. The
difference between the groups (especially between Group C versus A and B) is very high in the
variables suicide, sex, smoking and alcohol. This means that for example in the case of suicide a
large difference was found to exist in the mean SWB between Group C and either of the first two
Table 2: Correlation matrix of all variables of the spiritual well-being scale and the youth risk behaviour survey

SWB
RWB
EWB
Gender
Violence
Suicide
Smoking
Alcohol
Cannabis
Drugs
Sex
TV
Total
SWB
RWB
EWB
Gender
Violence
Suicide
Smoking
Alcohol
Cannabis
Drugs
Sex
TV
Total

SWB
1.000
0.843
0.880
0.012
0.212
0.504
0.240
0.178
0.200
0.188
0.316
0.140
0.411
Alcohol
0.178
0.177
0.132
0.145
0.298
0.199
0.509
1.000
0.185
0.273
0.361
0.003
0.665

RWB
0.843
1.000
0.487
0.073
0.166
0.318
0.232
0.181
0.174
0.128
0.231
0.110
0.330
Cannabis
0.200
0.169
0.176
0.115
0.183
0.178
0.339
0.185
1.000
0.426
0.579
0.031
0.602

EWB
0.880
0.487
1.000
0.071
0.187
0.585
0.178
0.152
0.192
0.214
0.348
0.122
0.399
Drugs
0.188
0.124
0.196
0.032
0.282
0.307
0.341
0.273
0.426
1.000
0.345
0.009
0.550

Gender
0.012
0.054
0.067
1.000
0.191
0.159
0.199
0.145
0.115
0.032
0.017
0.102
0.129
Sex
0.316
0.226
0.314
0.017
0.218
0.345
0.375
0.361
0.579
0.345
1.000
0.081
0.728

Violence
0.212
0.168
0.197
0.191
1.000
0.217
0.309
0.298
0.183
0.282
0.218
0.050
0.503
TV
0.140
0.116
0.125
0.102
0.050
0.098
0.030
0.003
0.031
0.009
0.081
1.000
0.123

Suicide
0.504
0.317
0.540
0.159
0.217
1.000
0.241
0.199
0.178
0.307
0.354
0.098
0.527
Total
0.411
0.325
0.380
0.129
0.503
0.527
0.797
0.665
0.602
0.550
0.728
0.123
1.000

Smoking
0.240
0.226
0.190
0.199
0.309
0.241
1.000
0.509
0.339
0.341
0.375
0.030
0.797

Journal of Child and Adolescent Mental Health 2012, 24(1): 8998

95

groups. This means that the learners who had actually tried to commit suicide have a much lower
mean SWB than learners in the other two groups.
An analysis of mean SWB scores for three different groups within risk factor sex (Group A: never
had sex; Group B: has had sex; and Group C: has made it a lifestyle or had sex at a very young
age) reveals the same trend as in risk factor suicide. There is a greater difference between the
mean SWB of the first two groups and the mean SWB of the third one. This implies that pupils who
frequently had sex or started sexual activity early generally had a lower SWB score, which means
that their SWB was relatively low.
An analysis of mean SWB scores for three different groups in risk factor smoking (Group A: has
never smoked; Group B: has smoked; Group C: has made it a lifestyle or first smoked at a very
young age) shows that the third group is significantly different from the other two, in the sense
that pupils who smoked frequently had a lower mean SWB score, which means that their spiritual
well-being was also relatively low.
The same analysis of mean SWB scores for three different groups in risk factor alcohol (Group A:
has never drunk alcohol; Group B: has drunk alcohol; Group C: has made it a lifestyle or first drank
alcohol at a very young age) revealed a similar pattern: the third group had a lower mean SWB
score than the other two. It also showed that the more frequently pupils drank alcohol the lower
their mean SWB score was, in other words, their SWB was relatively low.
In Table 1 the responses of male and female participants are combined. To find out whether
there is a difference between males and females regarding SWB and risk behaviours, a two-way
ANOVA was executed with the total (a score created by adding all the scores of each of the eight
risk behaviours in the YRBS) as the dependent variable and gender as the factor variable. The
same was done with SWB as the dependent variable and gender as the factor variable. A significant difference was found between male and female learners (F: 4.590 for p > 0.033) regarding the
prevalence of risk behaviours; males had a higher score for risk behaviours than females. There
was, however, no significant difference between male and female participants regarding SWB.
The gender difference for violence and smoking was significant (Table 5). The positive correlation between gender and smoking/violence indicated that males were more likely to smoke and to
engage in violent behaviour than females. The higher average of the total risk score in males was
seemingly due to these two factors.
Discussion
Before discussing the correlation between SWB and lifestyle choices a few remarks must be made
concerning the prevalence of risk behaviours (see Table 1). Most Grade 10 learners in this study
had drunk alcohol and smoked. Furthermore, some young people smoked cannabis and engaged in
promiscuous behaviour. Nearly a tenth of the Grade 10 learner respondents reported that they had
already tried to commit suicide. These disturbing findings largely corresponded with the findings of
Coetzee and Underhay (2003) regarding the risk behaviour of adolescents. It is important to look at
these factors with a prevention strategy in view.

Table 3: F-statistic and probability estimates for YRBS scores on variables violence, suicide, smoking, alcohol,
cannabis, drugs and sex.
Variable
Violence
Suicide
Smoking
Alcohol
Cannabis
Drugs
Sex

F
5.29
45.23
9.31
4.75
4.74
4.52
13.52

p
0.01
0.00
0.00
0.01
0.01
0.02
0.00

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Jacobs, Viljoen and van der Walt

Figure 1 shows a correlation between SWB and the total of the YRBS. The correlation coefficient
was -0.411 (p = 0.01). This means that the lower the score for SWB, the higher the total YRBS score,
implying that the higher the SWB, the lower the incidence of risk behaviour and therefore by inference
the better the lifestyle choices being made. The hypothesis of this study can therefore be accepted.
Even though this study has not yet proved that a high level of SWB causes healthy lifestyle
choices, one can argue that SWB seemed to influence the choices made, rather than arguing that
lifestyle choices cause greater SWB. A possible interaction in this regard is also likely. No grounds
existed for such a conclusion in this study. As mentioned above several studies present evidence
that higher levels of SWB in people correspond with healthy lifestyle choices (Teen Challenge 2001,
Koenig 2004, Ritt-Olson et al. 2004).
Some results gleaned from the correlation matrix (Table 2) are discussed in the following
paragraph.
Firstly, all categories were positively correlated with SWB, the highest being suicide and sex. This
could mean that higher levels of SWB could have a protective influence on adolescents regarding
virtually all risk behaviours. Most of the categories, except violence and drugs, were also correlated
positively to RWB. EWB was related to all categories except alcohol.
According to the correlation matrix, all categories were correlated with all other categories.
This confirms that risk behaviours usually are clustered and occur in connection with other risk
behaviours, a finding which is supported by various other authors (Santrock 2009). Paxton et
al. (2007), for example, found that various types of risk behaviour often occur in the context of
depressed mood (suicidal thoughts).
The analyses of variance represented in Table 3 were carried out to further clarify the relationship between risk behaviours and SWB. The variables with the highest differences between the
three groups were suicide, sex, smoking and alcohol. A significant difference was found between
the group that engaged more than once in the risk behaviour and the groups which had not or
had done so only once. In particular, in the cases of suicide and sex, the group which had tried to
commit suicide or had made sex part of their lifestyle had a significantly lower score on SWB. This
was also true for smoking and alcohol and to a lesser extent for the other risk behaviours. The fact
that the mean SWB of pupils in Group C (those who had made the specific behaviour a lifestyle
choice) was significantly lower than the mean SWB of pupils in Groups A and B further illustrated
that learners who had made harmful lifestyle choices (those who have made the risk behaviour part
of their lifestyle versus those who only experiment) displayed a noticeably lower level of SWB than
those who only experimented.
This conclusion is significant because it shows that the relationship between SWB and occasional
risk behaviour is weaker than the relationship between a lifestyle choice (as defined as more
than occasional engagement in risk behaviour) and SWB. These results suggest that there is a
recognisable group of young people who experiment with risk behaviours, but who then decide not
to develop them into a lifestyle and subsequently never smoke or drink again. Commitment to a
lifestyle is thus related to low levels of SWB.
Limitations of the study
The discussion of the findings was seriously constrained by two major limitations, namely that only
ex-model C schools (with Afrikaans-speaking learners) and only Grade 10 learners were chosen to
participate in the study. Since the sample is not representative of all adolescents in South Africa, and
the findings cannot therefore be generalised to all young people in South Africa or elsewhere, the
study had to limit the discussion to only this particular group of respondents. A follow-up study with
more schools, including previously disadvantaged schools, could reveal more information. Expansion
of this study to respondents in other countries might shed even more light on the subject.
Conclusion
This study confirmed the existence of a relatively close correlation between lifestyle choice(s)
and SWB. It should be followed up with a larger sample that also includes respondents from the

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97

previously disadvantaged community in South Africa, to see to what extent an enlarged sample
might cast new light on the findings of this study, and on others mentioned above.
Furthermore, the discussion has underscored the importance of applying the knowledge gleaned
from this investigation in practical school and classroom situations. This study confirmed that young
people experiencing low levels of SWB tend to increasingly indulge in risky behaviour and that
some of them even crystallise such behaviour into harmful lifestyles. One way of combating this
tendency is to increase young peoples sense of SWB.
Curriculum designers could consider including enhancing SWB into the formal school curriculum by making students reflect on, discuss and critique the tendencies towards indulging in risky
behaviour and by making them take cognisance of research as reported here and in other studies.
Curriculum content of this nature, under the heading Spirituality education, could form part of the
Life Orientation course in schools, a subject which, in South Africa, is aimed at equipping young
people with the skills and values that they need to be and become healthy, happy and productive members of society. The subject should place equal emphasis on all the components of the
problem, by helping the students firstly to understand the concept of a healthy lifestyle (choice);
secondly to understand the threats posed by risky behaviour; and thirdly to gain insight into how
these concepts relate to the theory and practice of being happy through experiencing a sense of
well-being.
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