The Spiritual Life of College Students - Council for Christian ...

A National Study ofCollege Students’ Searchfor Meaning and PurposeExecutive SummaryHigher Education Research InstituteGraduate School of Education & Information StudiesUniversity of California, Los Angeles

The ProjectIn 2003, the Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) at UCLA began a major, multi-year research project toexamine the spiritual development of undergraduate students during their college years. Funded by the JohnTempleton Foundation, the study is designed to enhance our understanding of how college students conceiveof spirituality, the role it plays in their lives, and how colleges and universities can be more effective in facilitatingstudents’ spiritual development.As the project’s Co-Principal Investigators, Alexander Astin and Helen Astin, wrote:The project is based in part on the realization that the relative amount of attention thatcolleges and universities devote to the ‘exterior’ and ‘interior’ aspects of students’ developmenthas gotten out of balance...we have increasingly come to neglect the student’sinner development—the sphere of values and beliefs, emotional maturity, spirituality, andself-understanding.*The ResearchThis report summarizes findings from a survey of 112,232 entering first-year students attending 236 diversecolleges and universities across the country. The fall 2004 College Students’ Beliefs and Values (CSBV) Surveywas administered to entering first-year students as a two-page addendum to the traditional four-page freshmansurvey conducted by UCLA’s Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP). The 2004 CIRP/CSBV freshmansurvey included approximately 160 items that pertained directly to students’ perspectives and practices withrespect to spirituality and religion. An initial pilot survey of 3,680 third-year students at 46 colleges anduniversities was completed in 2003. (Additional information on the methodology is available in the full report,or at www.spirituality.ucla.edu.)A follow-up survey, which will be administered to this year’s first-year students in Spring 2007 when they arejuniors, will be used to study changes in these students’ spiritual/religious development during their undergraduateyears. Faculty perspectives on spirituality and the undergraduate curriculum will also be examined.Higher Education Research InstituteHERI is widely regarded as one of the premiere research and policy organizations on postsecondary educationin the country. Housed at the Graduate School of Education & Information Studies at UCLA, it serves as aninterdisciplinary center for research, evaluation, information, policy studies, and research training in postsecondaryeducation. Its Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) annual Survey of Entering Freshmeninitiated in 1966 is one of the most widely used sources of information about colleges and college students inthe nation. HERI's research program covers a variety of topics including the outcomes of postsecondary education,leadership development, faculty performance, federal and state policy, and educational equity.UCLA Professors Alexander W. Astin and Helen S. Astin are Co-Principal Investigators of the project.Dr. Jennifer A. Lindholm is the Project Director. Dr. Alyssa N. Bryant is a Postdoctoral Fellow, and KatalinSzelényi and Shannon Calderone are Research Analysts.The opinions expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of theJohn Templeton Foundation.*The Dallas Morning News, November 29, 2003

The Spiritual Life OF COLLEGE STUDENTSExecutive SummaryWhat is the meaning of college?What am I going to do with my life?How will I know I am going the ‘right’ way?What kind of persondo I want to be?How is everything I’ve worked for up to thispoint going to contribute back to society?How am I going to leave my markwhen I finally pass away?—Student Voices 1In 2003, the Higher Education Research Institute(HERI) at UCLA launched a major, multi-yearprogram of research to examine the spiritualdevelopment of undergraduate students during theircollege years. The study, funded by the John TempletonFoundation, is designed to enhance our understandingof how college students conceive of spirituality, therole it plays in their lives, and how colleges anduniversities can be more effective in facilitatingstudents’ spiritual development. Given the broadformative roles that colleges and universities play inour society, higher education represents a criticalfocal point for responding to the question of how tobalance the “exterior” and “interior” aspects of lifemore effectively.Building on the growing interest on college campusesto include spiritual development as a core componentof a liberal arts education, the study employs amulti-institutional and longitudinal design to identifytrends, patterns, and principles of spirituality andreligiousness among college students.This executive summary provides a brief overview ofkey findings based on data collected in late summerand early fall 2004 from more than 112,000 studentsattending a national sample of 236 colleges anduniversities. Students responded to a six-page surveythat queried their backgrounds, educational andoccupational aspirations, and values and beliefs withrespect to spiritual and religious matters.The study reveals that today’s college students havevery high levels of spiritual interest and involvement.Many are actively engaged in a spiritual quest and inexploring the meaning and purpose of life. They arealso very engaged and involved in religion, reportingconsiderable commitment to their religious beliefsand practices.As they begin college, freshmen have high expectationsfor the role their institutions will play in theiremotional and spiritual development. They placegreat value on their college enhancing their selfunderstanding,helping them develop personal values,and encouraging their expression of spirituality.1 These are reflections of students during focus group interviews.

Spiritual Searchand Religious EngagementCollege students report high levels of spirituality andidealism. They espouse many spiritual and religiousvalues and virtues.◗ College students show a high degree of spiritualinterest and involvement. Three-fourths say that theyare “searching for meaning/purpose in life” or thatthey have discussions about the meaning of life withfriends, and similar numbers have high expectationsthat college will help them develop emotionally andspiritually. Many are engaged in a spiritual quest,with nearly half reporting that they consider it“essential” or “very important” to seek opportunitiesto help them grow spiritually.◗ Eight students in ten attended religious servicesduring the past year and similar numbers discussedreligion with both friends and family. More thantwo-thirds pray, and four in ten consider it veryimportant that they follow religious teachings intheir everyday life.◗ Almost eight students in ten believe in God, withmore than half perceiving God as “love” or as the“creator,” and about half experiencing God as a“protector.”◗ Students get a great deal of comfort from theirspiritual/religious beliefs, with more than two-thirdsreporting that they derive strength, support, andguidance from such beliefs. About two-thirds saythat they gain spiritual strength by trusting in aHigher Power, and close to one-half say that they“frequently” feel loved by God.◗ When asked about their spiritual/religious views,four students in ten indicate that they feel “secure,”one in four says they are “seeking,” one in fourreports being either “conflicted” or “doubting,”and one in seven is “not interested.”Measuring Spiritualityand ReligiousnessSpirituality and religiousness are multidimensional,finding expression in a variety of beliefs andeveryday practices.◗ For this study, HERI researchers developed threemeasures of spirituality (Spirituality, Spiritual Quest,and Equanimity), five measures of religiousness(Religious Commitment, Religious Engagement,Religious/Social Conservatism, Religious Skepticism,and Religious Struggle), and four other dimensionsthat were expected to be related to spiritualityand religiousness (Charitable Involvement,Compassionate Self-Concept, Ethic of Caring,and Ecumenical Worldview).Indicators of Students’ SpiritualityIndicatorPercentBelieve in the sacredness of life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 83 *Have an interest in spirituality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 80 *Search for meaning/purpose in life . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 76 *Have discussions about the meaning of life with friends. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 74 *My spirituality is a source of joy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64 **Seek out opportunities to help me grow spiritually . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 **** Describes students to some or a great extent** Agree strongly or somewhat*** Consider it essential or very important

◗ Students who are strongly religious also tend tobe highly spiritual. However, Spirituality is muchmore closely associated with Spiritual Quest, Ethicof Caring, Compassionate Self-Concept, andEcumenical Worldview than is either ReligiousCommitment or Religious Engagement. ReligiousCommitment and Engagement, on the otherhand, are much more closely associated withReligious/Social Conservatism and (negatively)with Religious Skepticism.Political Orientationand AttitudesWhile there is a political divide on some issuesbetween students at different levels of Spiritualityand Religious Engagement, there is also convergenceon a number of social concerns and on the ideals,virtues, and values that students espouse.◗ Among students who show high levels ofReligious Engagement, conservatives outnumberliberals by better than 3 to 1. Conservatives alsooutnumber liberals among students with highscores on Spirituality, although the differencesare not as large.◗ There are roughly equal numbers of conservativesand liberals among students who earn high scoreson either Charitable Involvement or CompassionateSelf-Concept. However, liberals substantiallyoutnumber conservatives among those with highscores on Ethic of Caring (2 to 1) and Ecumenicalworldview (3 to 1).◗ Issues such as abortion, the legalization ofmarijuana, casual sex, and the legal sanctioningof same-sex relationships are highly divisive forstudents who fall at the extremes of spirituality andreligiousness. Thus, students who are highly engagedreligiously, compared to their classmates with lowlevels of engagement, are much less likely to supportkeeping abortion legal, engaging in casual sex,allowing same-sex couples to have legal maritalstatus, and legalizing marijuana. Religiouslyengaged and, to a lesser extent, highly spiritualstudents also take relatively conservative positionson issues such as military spending and taxation.◗ Highly religious and highly spiritual students do not,however, subscribe to a uniform set of conservativeviewpoints. Thus, while support for affirmativeaction and opposition to the death penalty havetypically been considered “liberal” positions withinthe current national political discourse, highlyreligious and highly spiritual students actuallyassume relatively liberal perspectives on these twoissues. Further, highly spiritual and highly religiousstudents do not differ appreciably from their lowscoringcounterparts when it comes to the issuesof race, criminals' rights, the role of women, andgun control.◗ Highly religiously engaged and highly spiritualstudents support greater involvement by campusesin curtailing racist/sexist speech as well as inbanning extreme speakers.Spirituality, Religiousness,and Well-BeingWhile spirituality and religiousness generally relateto physical well-being, the relationships with psychologicalhealth are nuanced and complex.◗ Highly spiritual students are not immune to thepsychological stressors of life: When comparedto their less spiritual classmates, highly spiritualstudents are slightly less likely to exhibit positivepsychological health. On the other hand, highlyspiritual students are much more likely thanless spiritual students to evidence Equanimity, atrait defined by qualities such as “being able tofind meaning in times of hardship” and “feelingat peace/centered.” In other words, althoughSpirituality and psychological distress are positivelylinked, so are Spirituality and mechanisms forcoping with hardship.◗ A nearly identical pattern—greater psychologicaldistress combined with the ability to find meaningin hardship and a sense of peace—is also evident forthose students whose spirituality manifests itselfin being committed to Charitable Involvement,exhibiting an Ethic of Caring, and holding to anEcumenical Worldview.

◗ In contrast to Spirituality, general psychologicalhealth shows either no relationship, or a slightlypositive relationship, to Religious Commitmentand Religious Engagement.◗ Both spirituality and religiousness generally showpositive associations with various measures of physicalwell-being. Specifically, highly spiritual andhighly religious students are more likely than theirleast spiritual and religious classmates to abstainfrom alcohol and cigarettes, to maintain a healthydiet, and to report “above average” physical healthrelative to peers.◗ By contrast, students who are experiencingsignificant Religious Struggle, compared to thosereporting little or no struggle, are more likely todrink, smoke cigarettes, stay up all night, and missschool because of illness, and less likely to maintaina healthy diet and to rate their physical healthas “above average.”Religious PreferenceThere is a wealth of diversity in students' religiousbeliefs and practices.◗ Students' religious preferences were classified into19 different categories. The highest percentage ofentering freshmen is Roman Catholic (28%), followedby mainline Protestant faiths (17%), “None”(17%), Baptist (13%), and “other Christian” (11%).About one-fourth (26%) say that they considerthemselves to be born-again Christians.◗ There are at least two clear-cut clusters of religiouspreferences. The first—including Mormons, 7th DayAdventists, Baptists, and “other Christians”—isstrongly spiritual, religious, and religiously/sociallyconservative and expresses little ReligiousSkepticism. The second—including Unitarians,Buddhists, Hindus, Episcopalians, Eastern Orthodoxand Jewish students—tends to score low onreligiousness and high on Religious Skepticism,Ecumenical Worldview, Ethic of Caring, andCharitable Involvement.◗ Mormons receive the highest scores of all groupson five of 12 measures and above average scores onthree more. Students with no religious preferenceshow a pattern that is the reverse of Mormons,offering a sharp contrast on most measures.Unitarians produce the most distinctive pattern,earning high scores on Spirituality, Spiritual Quest,Ethic of Caring, and Ecumenical Worldview and lowscores on Religious Commitment and Engagement.◗ Baptists tend to score high on ReligiousCommitment, Religious Engagement,Religious/Social Conservatism, Spirituality, andEquanimity, while having the lowest score onEcumenical Worldview. The “other Christian”group is virtually identical to Baptists.◗ Roman Catholics tend to score below the overallaverage on Religious Commitment, ReligiousEngagement, Religious/Social Conservatism,and Religious Skepticism.A copy of the full report is available at www.spirituality.ucla.edu,or by contacting us at heri@ucla.edu or 310.825.1925.

National Advisory BoardRebecca S. ChoppPresident, Colgate UniversityJames W. Fowler, C.H.Candler Professor of Theology and HumanDevelopment, Emory UniversityClaire L. GaudianiHeyman Center for Philanthropy and FundraisingNew York UniversityFormer President, Connecticut CollegeNathan O. HatchProvost, University of Notre DameArthur LevinePresident, Teachers College, Columbia UniversityDavid K. ScottFormer Chancellor, University of Massachusetts,AmherstHuston SmithProfessor Emeritus, Syracuse UniversityBeverly TatumPresident, Spelman CollegeDiana Chapman WalshPresident, Wellesley CollegeWilliam H. WillimonProfessor of Christian Ministry, Duke UniversityCarol Geary SchneiderPresident, Association ofAmerican Colleges and UniversitiesTechnical Advisory PanelJohn A. AstinResearch Scientist, California Pacific Medical CenterArthur W. ChickeringVisiting Distinguished Professor, Vermont College,Union Institute and UniversityPeter C. HillProfessor of Psychology, Biola UniversityEllen L. IdlerChair, Department of Sociology, Rutgers, The StateUniversity of New JerseyCynthia S. JohnsonSenior Scholar in Residence, American CollegePersonnel AssociationMichael E. McCulloughAssociate Professor of Psychology andReligious Studies, University of MiamiReverend William (Scotty) L. McLennan, Jr.Dean, Religious Life, Stanford UniversityKenneth I. PargamentProfessor of Psychology, Bowling Green StateUniversityChristian SmithProfessor and Associate Chair of Sociology,University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

www.spirituality.ucla.eduPhone: 310.825.1925E-mail: heri@ucla.edu