An Empirical Research on the Relationship Between Moral Maturity and Peace in Sufis

Abstract

The aim of the research is to examine the factors affecting the moral maturity and peace of Sufis with a descriptive approach by using socio-psychological methods and to reveal what kind of relationship there is between moral maturity and peace. The sample of the study consists of 740 men aged 23 and over, living in the provinces of Çorum, Kırıkkale, Ankara and Istanbul, who have been living in mystical life for 5 years or more, and determined by the purposeful criterion sampling method. It is seen that there are various studies on psychological well-being and happiness, which are used to express life satisfaction in the West and in our country, but studies on peace and the life of Sufis are limited. For this reason, the research will contribute to the applied studies carried out in our country on the concept of peace and mystical life. It is among the aims of the research to contribute to the knowledge on this subject by examining the moral maturity and peace on the participants consisting of Sufis. In order to determine the demographic characteristics, the "Moral Maturity Scale" developed by Şengün and Kaya and the "Peace Scale" developed by Demirci were used together with the personal information form prepared by the researcher to determine the moral maturity and level of peace of the participants. In the study, the “Cronbach Alpha Reliability Coefficient” of the 66-item Moral Maturity Scale was determined as .87 and the “Cronbach Alpha Reliability Coefficient” of the 8-item Peace Scale was .73. The obtained data were transferred to the SPSS 25.0 statistical program and analyzed. At the end of the research, it was found that the moral maturity levels of the participants are high. In addition, it was found that there was a significant difference between the duration of being in the Sufi group and the level of moral maturity. The findings indicate that as the level of seeing themselves as a group member of the participants increases, their moral maturity level also increases. A significant difference was found between the sample's regular practice of Sufi rituals and their moral maturity. It has been determined that the moral maturity level of the group that regularly performs Sufi rituals is higher than the moral maturity level of the group that does not perform the rituals. It was observed that the sample had a peace level above the medium. A significant relationship was also found between the year of the sample's entry into the group and their level of peace. It was determined that as the duration of the participants in the group increased, their level of peace also increased. It has been observed that there is a high level of significance between the sample's regular practice of Sufi rituals and their level of peace. It has been determined that the peace level of the group that regularly performs the rituals of Sufism is higher than the level of peace of the group that does not perform the rituals. A moderate positive (r=.30; p=.00) relationship was found between general moral maturity and general well-being. As the level of moral maturity in participants increases, the level of peace of the participants also increases. In addition, it was determined that moral maturity explained 9% of the variance in peace. This ratio shows that one of the determinants of the well-being of the participants is the moral maturity characteristics. Moral maturity is a significant and important predictor of peace, and the increase in moral maturity affects peace. The findings of the study revealed that the main hypothesis and sub-hypotheses were confirmed statistically, and that moral maturity was an important and significant predictor of well-being.