Religious Orientation Scale-Revised

Abstract

The Religious Orientation Scale-Revised (ROS-R), often referred to by its authors as the Intrinsic/Extrinsic-Revised (I/E-R), is a 14-item instrument designed to measure the intrinsic and extrinsic dimensions of religious motivation originally conceptualized by Gordon Allport (1950). This scale is a refinement of the earlier 20-item “Age-Universal” I-E Scale developed by Gorsuch and Venable (1983). The primary motivation for the revision stemmed from Kirkpatrick’s (1989) finding, based on a reanalysis of the original Allport and Ross (1967) scale, that the extrinsic dimension reliably subdivides into two distinct factors: Extrinsic-Personal (Ep) and Extrinsic-Social (Es).

The I/E-R scale utilizes a 5-point Likert scale format, ranging from “strongly disagree” (1) to “strongly agree” (5). It consists of eight items measuring the Intrinsic Religious Orientation, three items for Extrinsic-Personal orientation, and three items for Extrinsic-Social orientation. The authors also identified specific single items for each of the three orientations that exhibited high factor correlation, allowing for brief measurement when necessary.

Keywords

Religious Orientation Scale-Revised, I/E-R, Intrinsic Religious Orientation, Extrinsic Religious Orientation, Extrinsic-Personal (Ep), Extrinsic-Social (Es), Allport, Gorsuch, McPherson, Religious Motivation, Psychometrics.

Authors

Richard L. Gorsuch, Susan E. McPherson

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Religious Orientation Scale-Revised (I/E-R) is to provide a comprehensive and psychometrically sound measure of religious motivation that captures the complexity of extrinsic religiosity. It aims to accurately assess both the intrinsic dimension—where faith is internalized and serves as the master motive for life—and the two distinct facets of extrinsic motivation.

By revising the earlier Age-Universal scale, the authors sought to create an instrument applicable across various educational levels while specifically addressing the critical factor structure distinction noted in subsequent research. This revision provides researchers with a brief, yet statistically powerful, tool for measuring these three core aspects of religious orientation.

Construct

The scale measures the three-factor structure of religious orientation:

• Intrinsic Religious Orientation (I): This dimension reflects an internalized, mature faith where religion provides the overarching framework for one’s life. Religious beliefs are deeply held and lived out consistently. The I (Revised) subscale uses 8 items (3 reverse-scored).
• Extrinsic-Personal Orientation (Ep): This dimension reflects the use of religion primarily for personal comfort, security, or relief from distress. It is a self-serving use of faith focused on individual needs. The Ep (Revised) subscale uses 3 items.
• Extrinsic-Social Orientation (Es): This dimension reflects the use of religion for social benefits, such as making friends, gaining status, or enjoying community connections. The motivation is social utility rather than genuine spiritual commitment. The Es (Revised) subscale uses 3 items.

The scoring is determined by summing the items for each subscale. The I (Revised) scale range is 8-40, while each E (Revised) scale (Ep and Es) ranges from 3-15.

Validity

The primary evidence for the validity of the I/E-R scale rests on its underlying factor structure. The scale was developed specifically to confirm the hypothesized three-factor model derived from prior analyses of the traditional scales.

The scale successfully confirms the distinct factors (Intrinsic, Extrinsic-Personal, and Extrinsic-Social) identified by Kirkpatrick (1988) through his reanalysis of multiple studies utilizing earlier religious orientation measures. This structural validation provides evidence that the scale accurately captures the intended components of religious motivation. However, the original publication does not report other direct measures of validity, such as external or criterion validity.

Reliability

The reliability estimates for the Intrinsic scale were found to be sufficient, comparable to those reported for the original Age-Universal scale.

• The reliability estimate (likely Cronbach’s alpha) for the Intrinsic Religious Orientation (I Revised) was reported as .83.
• The reliability estimates for the Extrinsic subscales were lower: Ep (Revised) was .57, Es (Revised) was .58, and the combined Ep/Es (Revised) was .65.

The authors acknowledged that the lower reliability of the extrinsic subscales is partially attributable to the brevity of these scales (only three items each). Despite this limitation, they reasoned that the brevity might be advantageous for studies involving large samples, where ease of administration and statistical power are prioritized. It was suggested that adding further items to the extrinsic subscales would be highly desirable to improve their internal consistency reliability.

Factor Analysis

The Religious Orientation Scale-Revised (I/E-R) was constructed based on findings from a confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) applied to the preceding Gorsuch and Venable Age-Universal scale. This CFA confirmed the presence of the Extrinsic-Personal (Ep) and Extrinsic-Social (Es) distinctions, which had been previously suggested by Kirkpatrick (1988; 1989).

The successful confirmation of the three-factor structure (Intrinsic, Extrinsic-Personal, and Extrinsic-Social) provided the empirical basis for the final 14-item I/E-R instrument, ensuring that the revised scale measures these three distinct dimensions of religious motivation accurately and independently.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report, Paper-and-pencil measure

Format: 14 items administered using a 5-point Likert scale (1=Strongly Disagree to 5=Strongly Agree). Six or more intervals are suggested for use with sophisticated respondents (e.g., college students).

Language Available: English (Original)

Population Group: General population, focusing on religious orientation

Age Group: Age-Universal, but standardized on young adults/college students.

Population Details: The standardization sample consisted of 771 students drawn from both secular and religious colleges located in Southern California.

Test Methodology: Simple administration requiring no special examiner skill to score or interpret. Scoring involves summing item responses for the three separate subscales (I, Ep, Es).

Keywords

Psychological Assessment, Religious Motivation, Extrinsic-Personal, Extrinsic-Social, Scale Development, Confirmatory Factor Analysis, Allport-Ross Scale, Age-Universal Scale, Psychometrics, Attitude Measurement.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in source content.

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided in source content.

Correspondence Address: Not provided in source content.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: 1989 (Year of publication of the revised scale).

Permissions and Fees: Information regarding current usage permissions and fees for the scale is not detailed in the original source material. Researchers should consult the primary authors or the journal publisher (Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion) for licensing details.

Reference’s

Allport, G. W. (1950). The individual and his religion. New York: MacMillan.

Allport, G. W., & Ross, J.M. (1967). Personal religious orientation and prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5, 432-443.

Giesbrecht, N. (1995). Parenting style and adolescent religious commitment. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 14(3), 228-238.

Gorsuch, R. L., & McPherson, S. E. (1989). Intrinsic/extrinsic measurement: I/E-revised and single-item scales. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 28(3), 348-354.

Gorsuch, R. L., & Venable, G. D. (1983). Development of an “Age Universal” I-E scale. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 22, 181-187.

Kirkpatrick, L. A. (1989). A psychometric analysis of the Allport-Ross and Feagin measures of intrinsic-extrinsic religious orientation. In D. 0. Moberg and M. L. Lynn (Eds.), Research in the Social Scientific Study of Religion (Vol. I.) Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.

Kirkpatrick, L. A. (1993). Fundamentalism, Christian orthodoxy, and intrinsic religious orientation as predictors of discriminatory attitudes. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 32(3), 256-268.

Schaefer, C. A., & Gorsuch, R. L. (1991). Psychological adjustment and religiousness: The multivariate belief-motivation theory of religiousness. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 30(4), 448-461.

Schaefer, C. A., & Gorsuch, R. L. (1992). Dimensionality of religion: Belief and motivation as predictors of behavior. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 11(3), 244-254.

Items of the RELIGIOUS ORIENTATION SCALE-REVISED

All items are scored on a 5-point scale as follows:

• 1 = I strongly disagree
• 2 = I tend to disagree
• 3 = I’m not sure
• 4 = I tend to agree
• 5 = I strongly agree

1. (I) I enjoy reading about my religion.
2. (Es) I go to church because it helps me to make friends.
3. (I)** It doesn’t much matter what I believe so long as I am good.
4. (I) It is important to me to spend time in private thought and prayer.
5. (I) I have often had a strong sense of God’s presence.
6. (Ep) I pray mainly to gain relief and protection.
7. (I) I try hard to live all my life according to my religious beliefs.
8. (Ep)* What religion offers me most is comfort in times of trouble and sorrow.
9. (Ep) Prayer is for peace and happiness.
10. (I)** Although I am religious, I don’t let it affect my daily life.
11. (Es) I go to church mostly to spend time with my friends.
12. (I) My whole approach to life is based on my religion.
13. (Es)* I go to church mainly because I enjoy seeing people I know there.
14. (I)** Although I believe in my religion, many other things are more important in life.

* Indicates single-item measures for that factor.

** Indicates items that are reversed-scored.