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

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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.
Page 1 and 2: A National Study ofCollege Students
Page 3: The Spiritual Life OF COLLEGE STUDE
Page 7 and 8: National Advisory BoardRebecca S. C

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