Thanissaro, Phra Nicholas. (2011) Measuring attitude towards Buddhism and Sikhism : internal consistency reliability for two new instruments. Mental Health, Religion & Culture, Vol. 14 (No. 8). pp. 797-803. ISSN 1367-4676

Preview

Text WRAP_Thanissaro_0752159-ie-290311-twonewscales.pdf Download (101Kb)

Abstract

This paper describes and discusses the development and empirical properties of two new 24-item scales – one measuring attitude toward Buddhism and the other measuring attitude toward Sikhism. The scale is designed to facilitate inter-faith comparisons within the psychology of religion alongside the well-established Francis Scale of Attitude toward Christianity. Data were obtained from a multi-religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London. Application of the two scales demonstrated that adolescents had a more positive attitude to Buddhism than Sikhism. The findings confirm the reliability of the scales and commend them for further use.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BL Religion B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BQ Buddhism
Divisions:	Faculty of Social Sciences > Institute of Education
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	School children -- Attitudes, Psychology, Religious, Cultural awareness, Buddhism -- Great Britain, Sikhism -- Great Britain
Journal or Publication Title:	Mental Health, Religion & Culture
Publisher:	Routledge
ISSN:	1367-4676
Date:	22 March 2011
Volume:	Vol. 14
Number:	No. 8
Page Range:	pp. 797-803
Identification Number:	10.1080/13674676.2010.523891
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
References:	Adamson, J. (2003). Challenging beliefs in teacher development: potential influences of Theravada Buddhism upon Thais learning English, Asian EFL Journal, 5, 1-21. Assanangkornchai, S., Conigrave, K.M. & Saunders, J.B. (2002). Religious beliefs and practice and alcohol use in Thai men, Alcohol and Alcoholism, 37, 193-197. Cantwell-Smith, W. (1981). Towards a World Theology: Faith and the Comparative History of Religion. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis. Cronbach, L.J. (1951). Coefficient alpha and the internal structure of tests, Psychometrika, 16, 297-334. doi:10.1007/BF02310555. de_Silva, P. (1996). Buddhist psychology and implications for treatment In D. Bhugra (ed.). Psychiatry and Religion: Context, Consensus and Controversies. 112-124. London: Routledge. DeVellis, R.F. (1991). Scale Development: Theory and applications (Vol. 26). London: Sage Publications. Emavardhana, T. & Tori, C.D. (1997). Changes in self-concept, ego defense mechanisms and religiosity following seven-day Vipassana meditation retreats, Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 36, 194-206. Francis, L.J. (1978). Attitude and longitude: a study in measurement, Character Potential: a record of research, 8, 119-130. Francis, L.J. (2001). Religion and values: a quantitative perspective In L.J. Francis, J. Astley & M. Robbins (ed.). The Fourth R for the Third Millennium: Education in Religion and Values for the Global Future. 47-78. Dublin: Lindisfarne. Francis, L.J. & Katz, Y.J. (2007). Measuring attitude toward Judaism: the internal consistency reliability of the Katz-Francis Scale of Attitude toward Judaism, Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 10, 309-324. doi:10.1080/13694670600668291. Francis, L.J. & Robbins, M. (2005). Urban Hope and Spiritual Health: The Adolescent Voice. Peterborough: Epworth. Francis, L.J., Santosh, Y.R., Robbins, M. & Vij, S. (2008). Assessing attitude toward Hinduism: The Santosh-Francis Scale, Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 11, 609-621. doi:10.1080/13674670701846469. Gombrich, R. (1996). Freedom and Authority in Buddhism In B. Gates (ed.). Freedom and Authority in Religions and Religious Education. 10-17. London: Cassell. Greer, J.E. & Francis, L.J. (1992). Measuring rejection of Christianity among 14-16- year-old adolescents in Catholic and Protestant schools in Northern Ireland, Personality and Individual Differences, 13, 1345-1348. doi:10.1016/0191- 8869(92)90178-R. Hill, P.C. & Hood, R.W. (1999). Measures of religiosity. Birmingham, AL: Religious Education Press. Kay, W.K. & Smith, D.L. (2002). Classroom Factors and Attitude towards Six World Religions, British Journal of Religious Education, 24, 111-122. Kline, P. (1999). The handbook of psychological testing. London: Routledge. Lall, S. (1999). 'I Know who God is': A Study of Sikh Children's Spirituality within Various Expressions of Sikhism. Oxford: Farmington Institute for Christian Studies. Lau, M.A., Bishop, S.R., Segal, Z.V., Buis, T., Anderson, N.D., Carlson, L., Shapiro, S., Carmody, J., Abbey, S. & Devins, G. (2006). The Toronto Mindfulness Scale: Development and Validation, Journal of Clinical Psychology, 62, 1445- 1467. doi: 10.1002/jclp.20326. Neff, K.D. (2003). The Development and Validation of a Scale to Measure Self- Compassion, Self and Identity, 2, 223-250. doi: 10.1080/15298860309027. Nesbitt, E. (1999). Sikhs and Proper Sikhs: The Representation of Sikhism in Curriculum Books and Young British Sikhs' Perceptions of their Identity In P. Singh & N.G. Barrier (ed.). Sikh Identity: Continuity and Change. 315-334. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Nesbitt, E. (2000). The Religious Lives of Sikh Children: A Coventry Based Study. Leeds: Department of Theology & Religious Studies, University of Leeds. Nesbitt, E. (2009). Research Report: Studying the Religious Socialization of Sikh and 'Mixed-Faith' Youth in Britain: Contexts and Issues, Journal of Religion in Europe, 2, 37-57. doi:10.1163/187489208X382901. Pupatana, S. (2000). The Development of Peace through the Process of Morality, Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal, 13, 613-634. Sahin, A. & Francis, L.J. (2002). Assessing attitude toward Islam among Muslim adolescents: the psychometric properties of the Sahin-Francis scale, Muslim Education Quarterly, 19, 35-47. Scotton, B.W. (1998). Treating Buddhist Patients In H.G. Koenig (ed.). Handbook of Religion and Mental Health. 263-270. New York: Academic Press. Smith, A.G.C. (2002). The Nature and Significance of Religion among Adolescents in the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall. University of Wales, Bangor: unpublished PhD dissertation. Smith, A.G.C. (2006). Growing up in Multifaith Britain: explorations in youth, ethnicity and religion. Cardiff: University of Wales Press. Smith, D.L. & Kay, W.K. (2000). Religious Terms and Attitudes in the Classroom (Part 2), British Journal of Religious Education, 22, 181-191. doi:10.1080/0141620000220306. SPSS_Inc. (1988). SPSS User's Guide, 2nd Edition. New York: McGraw-Hill. Thananart, M. (2000). Longitudinal Study of Psychosocial Changes among Thai Adolescents participating in a Buddhist Ordination Program for Novices, Adolescence, 35, 285-293. Thanissaro, P.N. (2010). Religious Education and Attitudes to Buddhism & Sikhism. Unpublished MA Dissertation: University of Warwick. Thanissaro, P.N. (2011). A preliminary assessment of Buddhism’s contextualisation to the English RE classroom, British Journal of Religious Education, 33, 61-74. Tori, C.D. (2004). Self-Representation in a Selfless Society: Reliability and Validity of the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale in Thailand In S.P. Shohov (ed.). Advances in Psychology Research, Vol.30. 35-56. Hauppage, NY: Nova. Tori, C.D. & Bilmes, M. (2002). Multiculturalism and Psychoanalytic Psychology: The Validation of a Defense Mechanisms Measure in an Asian Population, Psychoanalytic Psychology, 19, 701-721. Yeung, G.K.K. & Chow, W.-y. (2010). "To take up your own responsibility": the religiosity of Buddhist adolescents in Hong Kong, International Journal of Children's Spirituality, 15, 5-23. doi:10.1080/13644360903565466.
URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/4499

Request changes to a record

Actions (login required)

View Item