Religious Doubts and the Problem with Religious Pressures for Christian Students

Abstract

Educational literature has underscored the importance of higher education attending to students’ religious development. For Christian students, environment plays a role. Recent Christian religious development literature focusing on environmental predictors of growth found that higher religious pressures, assumed to be a controller according to Self-Determination Theory, predicted religious growth for students. The current study examines this finding by considering the influence of religious pressures along with normative experiences of religious doubt on spiritual/religious development variables of relatedness and self-mastery. A web-based survey procured responses from a large sample of students from both Christian and public/secular institutions. Controlling for sex and institution, multiple linear regression modeling was used to develop a model hypothesizing that when religious doubts are high, greater pressure would result in lower levels of religious development. The model was supported for spiritual/religious self-mastery but not for relatedness. Students’ quotes were presented to illustrate the findings that emerged from the data analysis. Results clarify the deleterious role of religious pressures for Christians at certain developmental and situational milestones who are also simultaneously experiencing religious doubt and/or questioning their beliefs about God. Given past findings about the uncomfortable and unsatisfying, albeit necessary, role of engaging in some religious doubt and exploration, religious pressures can sabotage effective adaptation. The results underscore the importance of higher education administrators allowing space and support for religious questioning and doubt. Moreover, administrators in Christian universities should help facilitate the honest expression of their students’ doubts and questions and the minimization of environmental religious pressures.