IDENTITY CHARACTERISTICS OF GROUPS WITH HIGH AND LOW SPIRITUAL SELF-IDENTITY

Abstract

This study contributed to the construct validation of a four-factor model of self-identity consisting of Spiritual, Personal/Social, Family, and Identification factors (Pedersen, 1994). Identity characteristics used in other research (Sampson, 1978) were related to the centrality of Spiritual Self-identity, the factor to which they were particularly relevant. Spiritual Self-identity is a measure of the extent to which self-identity is described by a relationship to deity and other religious constructs. 103 participants rated the identity characteristics on a 5-point scale according to their importance to their self-identity. Mean ratings of those characteristics were compared for groups scoring high and low on Spiritual Self-identity. It was found that, although the profiles of the rated importance of the identity characteristics were similar for both groups, there were some salient differences. Generally, the identity characteristics that received the highest ratings of importance to identity by both groups were rated to be significantly even more important for the high Spiritual Self-identity group.