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Assessing Spiritual & Religious People. Philip Dodgson, PhD, CPsych Southdown Institute. pdodgson@southdown.on.ca. Religion, Spirituality, & Science. Competitors, mutually exclusive? Most people have some kind of faith (even scientists)
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Assessing Spiritual & Religious People Philip Dodgson, PhD, CPsych Southdown Institute pdodgson@southdown.on.ca
Religion, Spirituality, & Science • Competitors, mutually exclusive? • Most people have some kind of faith (even scientists) • Religion and spirituality have maintained a strong hold on us
Roots • Understanding our origins • Purpose/meaning of life • System of values/ethics • Explaining the unexplainable
Do you consider yourself to be religious? • Not at all • Less than most people • About as much as most people • More than most people • Much more than most people
Contentious Terms • Religion, Spirituality, Faith • Religiosity: Religious commitment, belief in doctrine, frequency of participation in faith-related activity • Spirituality: Phenomenological and philosophical approach to faith • Religion:Spirituality = Medicine:Health
Tests • Many tests available; rapid growth in development in 1980s and 1990s. • Hill & Hood (1999). Measures of Religiosity. 100+ standardized measures • Natural links between personality psychology and religion/spirituality
MacDonald (2000). J. of Pers. • Examined latent factor structure among 11 spirituality measures • Identified 5 dimensions: • Cognitive orientation • Experience/phenomenology • Existential well-being • Paranormal beliefs • General religiousness
Elements of Assessment • Family background • Individuals’ level of engagement with their family in religious practice • Individual’s sense of relationship with a divine entity • How faith/religion inform life in regard to choices of relationships, work, and other activities
Assessing Religious People • Major influences on religious and spiritual development. • Developmental course of the relationship with God. • How is faith enacted? Structure/routine? Orthodoxy?
Assessing Religious People II • Are there any spiritual crisis points? • What is going well/not so well currently? • What is the nature of the relationship, if any, to a larger community?
Summary • Religion/spirituality are common & substantial elements of the clinical picture • Many measures are available; some limitations • Research shows links with health, coping, and personality • Clinicians are encouraged to boldly explore this domain with clients