Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer
Does God listen and respond to prayers? This project provided initial validation for a brief measure of perceived divine engagement and disengagement in response to prayer. As part of a larger project on religious/spiritual struggles among U.S. undergraduates, we used Sample 1 (<i>n</i>...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2021-01-01
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| Series: | Religions |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/12/2/80 |
| _version_ | 1797406798565605376 |
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| author | Julie J. Exline Joshua A. Wilt Valencia A. Harriott Kenneth I. Pargament Todd W. Hall |
| author_facet | Julie J. Exline Joshua A. Wilt Valencia A. Harriott Kenneth I. Pargament Todd W. Hall |
| author_sort | Julie J. Exline |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Does God listen and respond to prayers? This project provided initial validation for a brief measure of perceived divine engagement and disengagement in response to prayer. As part of a larger project on religious/spiritual struggles among U.S. undergraduates, we used Sample 1 (<i>n</i> = 400) for exploratory factor analysis and Sample 2 (<i>n</i> = 413) for confirmatory factor analysis and initial validity testing. A two-factor model with four items per factor provided acceptable fit. On average, participants reported more divine engagement than disengagement. They endorsed items about God listening more than those about God responding. Divine engagement showed strong positive associations with religiousness and positive-valence variables involving God. Divine disengagement showed strong positive associations with variables suggesting divine struggle or distance. Importantly, both subscales also showed evidence of incremental validity: Divine engagement predicted positive-valence God variables (e.g., secure attachment, collaborative religious coping, gratitude to God, and awareness of God) even when controlling for religiousness and positive God concepts and attitudes. Divine disengagement predicted more spiritual struggles and more negative-valence and distance-related God variables (divine struggle, anxious and distant attachment, and self-directing religious coping) even when controlling for doubt about God’s existence, negative God images, anger/disappointment toward God, and concern about God’s disapproval. In short, this brief new measure shows promise as a tool to assess beliefs about God’s responsiveness to prayer. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T03:31:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c6681276538341278c749e9ab9250d4b |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T03:31:49Z |
| publishDate | 2021-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-c6681276538341278c749e9ab9250d4b2023-12-03T14:54:38ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442021-01-011228010.3390/rel12020080Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to PrayerJulie J. Exline0Joshua A. Wilt1Valencia A. Harriott2Kenneth I. Pargament3Todd W. Hall4Department of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106-7123, USADepartment of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106-7123, USADepartment of Psychological Sciences, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH 44106-7123, USADepartment of Psychology, Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green, OH 43403-0001, USADepartment of Psychology, Biola University, La Mirada, CA 90639, USADoes God listen and respond to prayers? This project provided initial validation for a brief measure of perceived divine engagement and disengagement in response to prayer. As part of a larger project on religious/spiritual struggles among U.S. undergraduates, we used Sample 1 (<i>n</i> = 400) for exploratory factor analysis and Sample 2 (<i>n</i> = 413) for confirmatory factor analysis and initial validity testing. A two-factor model with four items per factor provided acceptable fit. On average, participants reported more divine engagement than disengagement. They endorsed items about God listening more than those about God responding. Divine engagement showed strong positive associations with religiousness and positive-valence variables involving God. Divine disengagement showed strong positive associations with variables suggesting divine struggle or distance. Importantly, both subscales also showed evidence of incremental validity: Divine engagement predicted positive-valence God variables (e.g., secure attachment, collaborative religious coping, gratitude to God, and awareness of God) even when controlling for religiousness and positive God concepts and attitudes. Divine disengagement predicted more spiritual struggles and more negative-valence and distance-related God variables (divine struggle, anxious and distant attachment, and self-directing religious coping) even when controlling for doubt about God’s existence, negative God images, anger/disappointment toward God, and concern about God’s disapproval. In short, this brief new measure shows promise as a tool to assess beliefs about God’s responsiveness to prayer.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/12/2/80religious and spiritual strugglesprayerattachment to GodGod conceptsreligious coping |
| spellingShingle | Julie J. Exline Joshua A. Wilt Valencia A. Harriott Kenneth I. Pargament Todd W. Hall Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer Religions religious and spiritual struggles prayer attachment to God God concepts religious coping |
| title | Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer |
| title_full | Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer |
| title_fullStr | Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer |
| title_full_unstemmed | Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer |
| title_short | Is God Listening to My Prayers? Initial Validation of a Brief Measure of Perceived Divine Engagement and Disengagement in Response to Prayer |
| title_sort | is god listening to my prayers initial validation of a brief measure of perceived divine engagement and disengagement in response to prayer |
| topic | religious and spiritual struggles prayer attachment to God God concepts religious coping |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/12/2/80 |
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