Preliminary Empirical Findings on the Adapted Faith Development Model for a Muslim Context

Abstract

The theory of faith development was criticized from a Muslim perspective, and a modified bipolar orthogonal dimensional version of the model (low-to-high level of cognitive development vs. low-to-high level of commitment) with eight dimensions was subsequently proposed in two previous studies. The aim of this third study is to provide empirical findings to support the proposed model of religiosity styles (content and structure) in a Muslim context. To this end, two sets of data were employed using a group comparison design. In Study 1, the sample (n = 934) was conveniently selected from the campuses of three different Turkish state universities (454 men and 480 women, with a mean age of 22). The instruments used for data collection were adapted from items of previously developed scales aimed at measuring Muslim religiosity. In Study 2, a second mixed sample of 165 participants was selected, comprising university students and members of the general public (54 men and 111 women, with a mean age of 28). The instrument for data collection was constructed by transforming the Likert response format of previously employed scales into a semantic differential format and adding several new items to the battery to measure areas in the proposed model that the available data did not cover. Data were analysed using factor analysis, item analysis, and correlation analyses. The findings from the two studies broadly supported the theoretically proposed eight concepts of religiosity represented in a circumplex model of religiosity styles with the two bipolar dimensions of “Hight vs. Low Differentiation” and “High commitment vs. High non-commitment”.

Keywords

• Faith development
• stage
• style
• religiosity
• scale
• Muslim
• adaptation

References

1. Altemeyer, Bob. Right-Wing Authoritarianism. Winnipeg: University of Manitoba Press, 1981.
2. Altemeyer, Bob - Hunsberger, Bruce. “Authoritarianism, Religious Fundamentalism, Quest and Prejudice”. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion 2/2 (1992), 113-133. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327582ijpr0202_5
3. Baltes, Paul B. - Lindenberger, Ulman - Staundinger, Ursula M. “Life-span Theory in Developmental Psychology”. Handbook of Child Psychology Vol. 1: Theoretical Models of Human Development. Edited By Richard M. Lerner- William Damon. 1029-1143. New York: Wiley, 1998.
4. Batson, C. Daniel - Schoenrade, Patrica A. “Measuring Religion as Quest: 1) Validity Concerns”. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 30/4 (1991), 416-429.
5. Batson, C. Daniel - Schoenrade, Patrica A. - Ventis, W. Larry. Religion and the Individual: A Social-Psychological Perspective. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993.
6. Costa, Paul - McCrae, Robert R. Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) and NEO Five-Factor-Inventory (NEO-FFI): Professional Manual. Odessa: Psychological Assessment Resources, 1992.
7. Fowler, James W. Stages of Faith: The Psychology of Human Development and the Quest for Meaning. New York: Harper & Row, 1981.
8. Harris, J. Irene - Leak, Garry K. “The Revised Faith Development Scale: An Option for a More Reliable Self-Report Measurement of Postconventional Religious Reasoning”. Research in the Social Scientific Study of Religion 24 (2013), 1-14.

9. Hogg, Michael A. - Vaughan, Graham M. Social Psychology. London: Pearson, 7. Edition, 2013.
10. Hutsebaut, Dirk. “Post-Critical Belief: A New Approach to the Religious Attitude Problem”. Journal of Empirical Theology 9/2 (1996), 48-66.
11. Hutsebaut, Dirk. “Identity Statuses, Ego Integration, God Representation and Religious Cognitive Styles”. Journal of Empirical Theology 10/1 (1997), 39-54.
12. Kegan, Robert. The Evolving Self: Problem and Process in Human Development. USA: Harvard University Press, 1982.
13. Kohlberg, Lawrance. The Philosophy of Moral Development: Moral Stages and the Idea of Justice. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1981.
14. Kruglanski, Arie W. - Fishman, Shira. “The Need for Cognitive Closure”. Handbook of Individual Differences in Social Behavior. Edited by Mark R. Leary - Rick H. Hoyle. 343-353. New York: The Guilford Press, 2009.
15. Kruglanski, Arie W. vd. "Groups as Epistemic Providers: Need for Closure and the Unfolding of Groupcentrism". Psychological Review 113 (2006), 84-100.
16. Leak, Garry K. “Validation of the Faith Development Scale Using Longitudinal and Cross-Sectional Designs”. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal 31/6 (2003), 637-641.
17. Leak, Garry K. “Factorial Validity of the Faith Development Scale”. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion 18/2 (2008), 123-131. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508610701879399
18. Leak, Garry K. “An Assessment of the Relationship Between Identity Development, Faith Development, and Religious Commitment”. Identity 9/3 (2009), 201-218. https://doi.org/10.1080/15283480903344521
19. Leak, Garry K. - Loucks, Anne A. - Bowlin, Patricia. “Development and Initial Validation of a Global Measure of Faith Development”. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion 9/2 (1999), 105-124. https://doi.org/10.1207/s15327582ijpr0902_2
20. Ok, Üzeyir - Gennerich, Carsten. “Critiquing Faith Development Theory and Its Measurements from an Islamic Perspective”. Türkiye Din Araştırmaları Dergisi 18 (2024a), 121-143. https://doi.org/10.53112/tudear.1556541
21. Ok, Üzeyir - Gennerich, Carsten. “Adapting the Faith Development Model to Muslim Populations: A New Framework”. Van İlahiyat Dergisi 12/21 (2024b), 109-123. https://doi.org/10.54893/vanid.1558089
22. Ok, Üzeyir. Türkiye’de Dini Dönüşüm ve İnanç Gelişimi: Eğitim ve Müdahaleye Yönelik Doğurgular. Tubitak Kariyer Projesi, Proje No: SOBAG-105K157, 2008.
23. Ok, Üzeyir. “Faith Development and Perception of Diversity Among Muslims in Turkey: Construction and Initial Test of a Measure for Religious Diversity in Islam”. Din Bilimleri 6/3 (2006), 221-247.
24. Ok, Üzeyir. İnanç Psikolojisi: Hayatı Anlamlandırma Biçiminin Yaşam Boyu Gelişimi. Ankara: İlahiyat Yayınları, 2007.
25. Ok, Üzeyir. “Dini Şemalar Ölçeğinden İnanç veya Dünya Görüşü Şemaları Ölçeğine”. C. Ü. Sosyal Bilimler Dergisi 35/2 (2009), 149-155.
26. Ok, Üzeyir. “Dini Tutum Ölçeği: Ölçek Geliştirme ve Geçerlik Çalışması”. Uluslararası İnsan Bilimleri Dergisi 8/2 (2011), 528-549.
27. Ok, Üzeyir. “Biyografik Anlatıya Dayalı İnanç Gelişim Biçimleri ve Nicel Ölçümler”. Çukurova Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 12/2 (2012), 121-155.
28. Ok, Üzeyir. “İnanç Gelişimi Kuramı: Bilişsel Gelişime İçerik Boyutu Eklemek Mümkün mü?”. Fırat Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 26/2 (December 2021), 27-45.
29. Ok, Üzeyir. “The Ok-Religious Attitude Scale (Islam): Introducing an Instrument Originated in Turkish for International Use”. Journal of Beliefs and Values 37/1 (2016), 55-67. https://doi.org/10.1080/13617672.2016.1141529
30. Ok, Üzeyir. “The Roles of Fundamentalism and Authoritarianism in Relations Between Religiosity and Civil Liberties Among Muslims”. Asian Journal of Social Psychology 26 (2023), 199-218. https://doi.org/10.1111/ajsp.12553
31. Ok, Üzeyir. “Ok-Dinî Tutum Ölçeği-G: Genişletilmiş Versiyon”. Ankara Üniversitesi İlahiyat Fakültesi Dergisi 65/2 (2024), 479-514. https://doi.org/10.33227/auifd.1519206
32. Ok, Üzeyir - Gören, Ayşe Burcu. “The Impact of Religion on Human Rights Among Adolescents.” 6th Conference on Religion and Human Rights, Bari: 5-8 Aralık 2018.
33. Parks, Sharon. The Critical Years: The Young Adult Search for a Faith to Live By. San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1986.
34. Perry, William G. Forms of Intellectual and Ethical Development in the College Years: A Scheme. New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, Inc., 1970.
35. Rokeach, Milton. The Open and Closed Mind: Investigations into the Nature of Belief Systems and Personality Systems. New York: Basic Books, 1960.
36. Ryff, Carol D. - Singer, Burton. “Psychological Well-being: Meaning, Measurement, and Implications for Psychotherapy Research”. Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics 65/1 (1996), 14-23.
37. Schwartz, Shalom H. “Universals in the Content and Structure of Values: Theoretical Advances and Empirical Tests in 20 Countries”. Advances in Experimental Social Psychology. Edited by Mark P. Zanna - James M. Olson. 1-65. Orlando: Academic Press, 1992.
38. Streib, Heinz - Hood, Ralph W. - Klein, Constantin. “The Religious Schema Scale: Construction and Initial Validation of a Quantitative Measure for Religious Styles”. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion 20/3 (2010), 151-172.