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Beyond Behavior: Developing a Model for Assessing Spirituality

Beyond Behavior: Developing a Model for Assessing Spirituality. Dr. Ronald M. Miller Dr. Paul H. Freebairn Kelsey J.O. Cowden M.L. Brian Chan Taylor Snarr Kathy L. Pulotu. BYU-Hawaii 2007. BYU Hawaii. Small, 4-year comprehensive university About 2400 students

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Beyond Behavior: Developing a Model for Assessing Spirituality

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  1. Beyond Behavior:Developing a Model for Assessing Spirituality Dr. Ronald M. Miller Dr. Paul H. Freebairn Kelsey J.O. Cowden M.L. Brian Chan Taylor Snarr Kathy L. Pulotu BYU-Hawaii 2007

  2. BYU Hawaii • Small, 4-year comprehensive university • About 2400 students • Highly international campus (50%) • Mission to serve Asia & Pacific • Arts & sciences (professional programs in business, education and computing) • Located near Oahu’s north shore

  3. Positive Effects of Religion • Positive Psychology • Correlations between religion, and academic performance have become very popular (Tisdell, 2001). • Religious students often… • …obtain higher GPA’s. • …study for longer periods of time. • …rate higher on overall satisfaction with their academic experience (Mooney, 2005). • …display positive self-concept characteristics (Astin, et al., 2004)

  4. Definitions • Spirituality “The search for the sacred” (Slater, Hall, and Edwards, 2001). • Religiosity “…religion includes a sacred element, but the search must be done in the context of a group that legitimizes its means and methods” (Slater, et al, 2001). • Religiosity and spirituality are not mutually exclusive concepts and can both overlap and exist separately. (Mytko, Knight, 1999)

  5. Spirituality vs. Religiosity • Constructs overlap but are not identical • Religiosity measures outward religious practice • Spirituality by an inner felt sense of closeness or relationship with a higher power. • Religiosity is the outward expression of an inner feeling • Religious exercise provides structure to support spirituality within a community of believers

  6. Current Assessments • Lengthy Interview • A forced-choice, paired item scale, consisting of eight pairs of statements, with one statement representing a “more mature” statement of faith development. • Example: • It does not bother me to become exposed to other religions • b) I don’t find value in becoming • exposed to other religions. • (In this pair, statement (a) reflects greater faith development.) • Religious Orientation Scale (Allport & Ross, 1967) • Religious Well-Being subscale measures a sense of well-being in relation to God. • Example: I don’t find much satisfaction in private prayer with God • Existential Well-Being measures a sense of life-purpose and life-satisfaction. • Example: I don’t know who I am where I came from, or where I’m going. • Assumes dynamics involved in relationships with others is relevant to relationship with God. • Two dimensions: 1)Development of one’s relationship with God Example: I almost always feel completely cut off from god 2)Awareness of God Example: I am frequently aware of God prompting me to do something. Three subscales: • Fulfillment Example: In the quiet of my prayers and /or meditations, I find a sense of wholeness. • Universality Example: There is no higher plane of consciousness or spirituality that binds all people. • Connectedness Example: I do not have any strong emotional ties to someone who has died. • Intrinsic vs. Extrinsic • Intrinsic • Example: Quite often I have been keenly aware of the presence of God or the Divine Being. • Extrinsic • Example: The primary purpose of prayer is to gain relief and protection. • Spiritual Well Being Scale (Ellison, 1983) • Spiritual Assessment Inventory (Hall & Edwards, 1996) • Spiritual Transcendence Scale (Piedmont, 2000) • Faith Development Scale (Leak, 2003)

  7. Our Need for a New Scale • Christian Based Religious University (LDS) • Desire to better understand motivations behind behaviors • LDS students “…receive the highest scores of all groups on five of the 12 measures: Religious Commitment, Religious Engagement, Religious/Social Conservatism, Spirituality, and Equanimity. They also obtain above average scores on Spiritual Quest, Charitable Involvement, and Ecumenical Worldview, and the lowest score of all groups on Religious Skepticism” (Astin et al., 2004). • Current Scales… • …mostly measure religiosity---not spirituality • …do not measure motivations • Our definition of spirituality is based on motivations, not behaviors • …do not utilize levels or stages • …are not precise in definitions

  8. Modeling Kohlberg’s Morality • Kohlberg’s six-stage model of moral development has been a backbone to the moral reasoning construct. • There are 2 stages for the 3 separate levels: • Pre-Conventional: External Morality • These persons act morally to avoid punishments or to gain rewards. • Conventional: Member-of-society perspective • These persons act morally to please society or to remain in good standing with others. • Post-Conventional: Broad conception of universal principles (Justice) • These persons act morally because they understand it to be the best for all; they act according to what is just or right. • Kohlberg validated his model with trained professionals conducting The Moral Judgment Interview or MJI. (Colby & Kohlberg, 1987)

  9. Defining Issues Test (DIT) • DIT • Designed by James Rest in the 1970’s (Rest, 1976) • Psychometric measure for Kohlberg’s 6 stages of moral development. • Has been utilized for over 25 years • Valid cross-sectionally, longitudinally, sequentially, and across all different ages (Schlafli, Rest, Thoma, 1985) • After reading a dilemma and then rating and ranking the importance of statements in a decision making process Rest could accurately place participants within the appropriate stage of moral development. • This was an alternative to the constraints inherent in Kohlberg’s interview. James Rest

  10. The Structure of the DIT Participants… • …are presented with a dilemma within a short story • …answer what should be done. • It is unimportant what they would actually do, rather the justification behind the action is important. (Kohlberg, 1971)

  11. The Structure of the DIT Participants… • …rate 12 statements according to the extent the statement influenced their decision. • 5 point Likert scale • …then rank the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th most important items that influenced their decision.

  12. Scoring the DIT: The Principled reasoning score, or the P-Score • … is defined as “the weighted average of the ranked Stage 5 and 6 items summed across the six dilemmas” (Thoma, 2002). • Stages 5 and 6 make up the 3rd, or Post-conventional, level of moral reasoning • If a participant ranks a level 3 item as the most important down to 4th most important, they receive between 4 and 1 points depending • 0 pts are rewarded for anything other than a stage 3 answer • 10 points possible per dilemma • 60 points possible for entire DIT • Points are summed and divided by 60 • The resulting percentage is the P-Score • “The DIT is a rating and ranking task that produces a non-stage based index of development” (Thoma, 2002).

  13. James W. Fowler • Fowler’s (1981) Stages of Faith Development • similar to Kohlberg -- focused on actual human development. • Stage 1 - "Primal or Undifferentiated" faith (birth to 2 years) • Stage 2 – "Intuitive-Projective" faith (ages 3 to 7) • Stage 3 – "Mythic-Literal" faith (mostly school children) • Stage 4 – "Synthetic-Conventional" faith (arising in adolescence) • Stage 5 – "Individualize-Reflective" faith (usually mid- twenties to late thirties) • Stage 6 – "Conjunctive" faith (mid-life crisis) • Stage 7 – "Universalizing" faith, or Enlightenment • Only first two stages have empirical support • Not a validated scale • Not peer reviewed (published in a book)

  14. Gibson, T. S. • Gibson (2004) “Four levels Toward Christian Spiritual Maturity” • 4 stages based on Kohlberg’s stages and Christian beliefs. • Accommodation to God’s Law • Respect for and obedience to God’s Law • Principle-centered commitment to a Christian worldview • Kingdom-centered commitment to God’s glory • Gibson did not design a scale to measure these, merely presented this theory and encourages churches to aid people in their progression.

  15. Designing a New Instrument • Defining Spiritual Issues Test (DSIT) • Based on Kohlberg’s stages of Morality • Combining Fowler and Gibson’s theories • Utilizing DIT as a framework • Goal: Design and Validate the DSIT to better measure spirituality. • …without eliminating religiosity habits but focusing on motivations

  16. DSIT: Three levels • Level 1 • Correlates to Kohlberg’s Pre-conventional stage • Entitled “Reward/Punishment” • These persons are spiritual in order to avoid punishment, or to receive a direct reward. • Level 2 • Correlates to Kohlberg’s Conventional stage • Entitled “Social Consequence” • These persons are only spiritual or “good” because they want to please society or direct authority such as church leaders. • Level 3 • Correlates to Kohlberg’s Post-Conventional stage • Entitled “Enlightenment” • These persons are spiritual because they want to become better, knowledgeable, or like God.

  17. Defining Spiritual Issues Test (DSIT) • Framework of DIT • Builds off Fowler & Gibson’s theories and scales • Simpler wording and fragments for ease with an international population. DIT Example: Whether the essence of living is more encompassing than the termination of dying, socially and individually. DSIT Example: Church authorities teach me to pray. • Eliminated confusing grammar, such as switching tenses, double negatives • Strictly personalized statements dealing with spiritual motivations DIT Example: Whether the druggist deserves to be robbed for being so greedy and cruel. DSIT Example: I will be saved in Heaven if I pray. • Each statement deals with 1 of the 3 levels of spirituality

  18. Parallel DIT Scoring • In DIT & DSIT: Participants rate (scale: Great to None)then rank most important influences • The DSIT also has them rank least important • DIT utilizes P-Score, DSIT utilizes S-Score • In ranking section… • DIT assigns points based on stage 5 & 6 responses • DSIT assigns points based on level 3 (which parallels stage 5 & 6) • Unlike DIT, we were also interested in individual rating scores for each level.

  19. Method: Participants • Participants • 105 in total • 82 of whom completed demographics • Home Area: • USA: 42 • Pacific Islands (including Hawaii): 21 • Asia: 19 • Year in School: • Freshmen: 8 • Sophomore: 18 • Junior: 26 • Senior: 30 • Gender: • Male: 18 • Female: 64

  20. Method: Procedures • DSIT was placed online for students’ convenience • Professors called for participants during class & emailed the link; some offered extra credit as an incentive • Each participant read and responded to 3 of the 6 total dilemmas

  21. DSIT: 6 Dilemmas Aaron’s Prayer After losing his wife, should Aaron stop praying? Ruth’s Conversion When her husband demands she stay home, should Ruth attend church? James’ Study When answers from the scriptures cost him money, should James stop searching the scriptures? David’s Job When the company seems to be dishonest, should David quit his job? Gary & Kristy’s Hardship When they are unable to buy food, should Gary & Kristy pay tithes to the church? Steve’s Offer When competing for a job position, should Steve accept the offer? Demographics Gender Age Year in School Two Year Religious Service Mission Marriage Status Home Country Method: Apparatus

  22. Apparatus: DSIT • Each participant received 3 of the 6 dilemmas • Some dilemmas have non-sequitur questions, to detect honest responding • The DIT also had non-sequitur questions • Each of the 3 levels has 6-7 statements per dilemma

  23. Similar Format for DSIT & DIT

  24. Example Dilemma: Aaron’s Prayer Aaron is happily married and is a successful businessman. Devastatingly, his wife Irene is diagnosed with terminal stomach cancer. Respectable church leaders have taught Aaron that blessings result from prayer. In addition to his regular prayers, Aaron starts praying for Irene's recovery. Because of the complexity of her condition, Irene's unique treatment starts becoming a financial burden to Aaron. Due to his increasing stress levels, his performance at work has declined. This decline coupled with the downsizing within his company results in Aaron losing his job. He is no longer able to afford the expensive treatment; therefore, the innovative treatment is halted. While searching for other resources, Irene's condition worsens and sadly she passes away. Should Aaron stop praying?

  25. Example Questions: Aaron’s Prayer • 5-point scale: 4) Great 3) Much 2) Some 1) Little 0) None • Level 1: Reward/Punishment • Examples: • God will bless me if I continue to pray. • I will be punished if I stop praying. • Level 2: Social Consequence • Examples: • My family is pleased with me when I pray. • Church authorities teach prayer. • Level 3: Enlightenment • Examples: • I want to communicate with God. • I have faith in God’s ultimate plan.

  26. Validation: Factor Analyses & Reliability • Due to each participant doing only 3 dilemmas, two factor analyses were performed. (DSIT 1 and DSIT 2 represent the two halves) • Both revealed 3 separate levels as predicted. • Factor Loadings ranged from .02 to .91 • 32.5% were above .7 • Reliability: • DSIT 1 Cronbach Alpha = .952 • DSIT 2 Cronbach Alpha = .704 • In further steps the questions will be revised to improve factor loadings as well as reliability

  27. Scoring Techniques • Two main types of scoring were utilized • Spirituality Score or S-Score... • …is found by summing the points received in the “Most Important” section. • Students received various points based on the importance they choose for Level 3 statements. • S-Score: If they choose a Level 3 for “Most Important” =4 pts. Level 3 for “2nd most important” =3pts. Down to 1 pt….At each dilemma they could get 10 points. • Scale: 0-30pts. • Level Scores… • …are found by summing the total for each level during the rating portion. • Each participant receives scores for Level 1, Level 2, and Level 3. • Scale: 0-72pts (6 questions X 3 dilemmas X 4 max points)

  28. Investigative Analyses • Other instruments have found that spirituality generally increases from Freshman to Senior years in college. (Holcomb & Nonneman, 2004) • We will investigate if our instrument shows the same trend. • *Note: For these analyses the instrument was no longer split.

  29. S-Score by Year in School • As predicted… • Spirituality as defined by the S-Score increases from Freshmen to Seniors. S-Score (0-30)

  30. Analyses: Level 1,2,3 by Year in School Freshmen Seniors • Both Freshmen and Seniors show the highest scores on Level 3 then Level 1. • Both groups scored the lowest on Level 2.

  31. Level 1 by Year in School Level One (0-72) • As predicted… • Level 1 (the lowest level of spirituality) decreased as students spent more time in college

  32. Level 2 by Year in School Level Two (0-72) • As predicted… • Level 2 spirituality decreased from Freshmen to Seniors.

  33. Level 3 by Year in School Level Three (0-72) • Not as predicted… • Level 3 spirituality actually decreases from Freshmen to Seniors. • This is interesting especially since S-Score, which takes into account level 3 answers, increased.

  34. Conclusions from Results • While S-Scores increased from Freshmen to Seniors, the individual level scores decreased. This may be the result of Seniors being more discriminating in rating individual items, but they actually rank level 3 items as more important in the decision making process. • The S-Score tells us a great deal because it takes into account the person’s most important statements • Yet, it is necessary to examine all 3 level’s scores in order to fully understand the person’s spirituality.

  35. Next Steps… • Revise questions to increase factor loadings • Create & validate more dilemmas • Correlate scale with other spirituality measures for validity • Retest reliability • Negative S-Score by utilizing the least important responses • To reduce imprecise interpretations, have each participant give examples of the different ratings • For example, “To me a 5 means I am unselfish.”

  36. Next Steps… • Improve scoring technique by use of Ternary plots • This will take into account each person’s level scores to better illustrate spirituality

  37. Author Contact Information Dr. Ronald M. Miller millerr@byuh.edu Dr. Paul H. Freebairn freebaip@byuh.edu

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