WORD-SPIRIT ORIENTATION SCALE

Abstract

The Word-Spirit Orientation Scale (WSOS) is a psychological instrument designed to quantify an individual Christian’s tendency to emphasize one of two primary aspects of their faith tradition: the objective-rational dimension (termed “Word orientation”) or the subjective-experiential dimension (termed “Spirit orientation”). Developed by Hsieh (1981), the scale is conceptually rooted in a distinction introduced by Stewart (1974) and draws theoretical parallels to cognitive style differences, specifically the field independent/dependent paradigm established by Witkin and colleagues (1962).

The WSOS consists of 16 items, including 3 fillers, presented in a forced-choice items format. Scoring the WSOS involves summing the total number of Word-oriented choices made by the respondent. This method assumes an underlying bipolar continuum, where a low score indicates a Spirit-oriented emphasis, and a high score signifies a Word-oriented emphasis. The possible score range for the scale is 0 to 13.

Keywords

Word-Spirit Orientation Scale, WSOS, Religious Orientation, Cognitive style, Field dependence, Evangelical Christianity, Objective-rational faith, Subjective-experiential faith, Psychology of religion

Authors

T. T. Y. Hsieh (1981)

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Purpose

The primary purpose of the WSOS is to provide a standardized, quantitative measure of how Christian individuals prioritize two distinct approaches to faith. The “Word” approach is characterized by an emphasis on objective truth, doctrine, and rationality, focusing on systematic theology and rigorous biblical interpretation. The “Spirit” approach, conversely, focuses on subjective experience, personal testimony, and emotional or spiritual immediacy.

By measuring this orientation along a single dimension, the scale allows researchers to categorize individuals and explore potential correlations between these religious orientations and other psychological variables, such as cognitive style and social behavior, particularly within the context of Evangelical Protestant Christianity.

Construct

The psychological construct measured by the WSOS is an individual’s fundamental preference for either objective-rational processing (“Word”) or subjective-experiential processing (“Spirit”) within their faith life. This construct is explicitly operationalized as a bipolar continuum. The Word orientation is associated with analytical engagement and doctrinal adherence, drawing theoretical connections to field independence in cognitive style.

The conceptual framework originated from Stewart (1974). However, a significant psychometric challenge remains in justifying the scale’s assumed bipolarity. It is difficult to determine whether middle-scoring respondents—who were sometimes excluded from primary investigations—should be conceptualized as possessing neither orientation or as successfully integrating a mixture of both Word and Spirit perspectives.

Validity

Information concerning the WSOS’s validity is acknowledged as fragmentary. Initial item selection relied primarily on face validity. However, some evidence supports construct validity through its linkage to cognitive processing styles, as hypothesized: Hsieh (1981) found that Word-oriented persons were more field-independent than Spirit-oriented persons, aligning the scale with the theoretical distinctions of Witkin and colleagues.

Hsieh (1987) also alluded to findings from unpublished manuscripts linking Word-Spirit orientation to preferences for religious denomination and preaching style, suggesting a potential for predictive validity. Nevertheless, two major validity issues require resolution: establishing conceptual and psychometric justification for the assumed bipolar continuum, and establishing discriminant validity to clarify whether the observed association between orientation and gender is a reflection of the construct itself or a confounding variable.

Reliability

The reliability of the WSOS was assessed using a small sample of 24 evangelical Christian college undergraduates (Hsieh, 1981). A two-week test-retest reliability coefficient of .88 was reported, indicating acceptable temporal stability over a short interval. Crucially, however, no data concerning internal consistency (such as Cronbach’s alpha) or factor structure were provided in the initial studies, leaving questions about the homogeneity of the scale items unanswered.

Factor Analysis

The published literature regarding the WSOS (Hsieh, 1981, 1987) does not contain any information on the scale’s factor analysis or underlying factor structure. The scoring method relies on the assumption of a single, bipolar continuum, implying unidimensionality; however, this assumption has not been empirically verified using standard factor analytic techniques.

Instrument

Test Type: Psychological self-report scale

Format: 16 forced-choice items (13 scored items, 3 fillers). Administered in paper-and-pencil format.

Language Available: English

Population Group: Christian individuals, specifically those familiar with the beliefs and practices distinct to Evangelical Protestant Christianity. Administration to other populations is generally ill-advised due to content specificity.

Age Group: Young adults (college undergraduates)

Population Details: The original standardization sample (N=82) consisted of psychology undergraduate students attending a theologically conservative Christian college in the midwestern United States.

Test Methodology: Respondents choose one of two statements per item. Scoring is simple, consisting of adding up the total number of Word-oriented choices (score range 0-13).

Keywords

Religious measurement, Spiritual orientation, Doctrinal emphasis, Experiential faith, Hsieh 1981, Test-retest reliability, Construct validity, Forced-choice format

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not reported

Affiliation Email addresses: Not reported

Correspondence Address: Not reported

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The scale was first published in 1981 by T. T. Y. Hsieh. The scale appeared in the Journal of Psychology and Theology, 9, 175-182. Information regarding current permissions, licensing fees, and availability for use requires contact with the author or the publisher of the journal.

Reference’s

• Hsieh, T. T. Y. (1981). Cognitive styles and word versus spirit orientations among Christians. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 9, 175-182.

• Hsieh, T. T. Y. (1987). Heavenly-minded and earthly good: A study of social interest, ethical style, and word-spirit orientation among Christians. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 15, 141-147.

• Stewart, V. M. (1974). Cognitive style, North American values, and the body of Christ. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 2, 77-88.

• Witkin, H. A., Dyk, R. B., Paterson, H. F., Goodenough, D. R., & Karp, S. A. (1962). Psychological differentiation. New York: Wiley.

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Items of the WORD-SPIRIT ORIENTATION SCALE

IMPORTANT: The following scale items must be preserved in their original language and must not be changed in any way.

Instructions: There are two statements in each of the following questions. Please choose the one that you believe describes you accurately or is more true. There are no right or wrong answers. However, it is important that each statement you choose applies to you more than the other. Try to answer each item independently when making your choice; do not be influenced by your previous choices.

1. a. I feel regular church attendance is an integral part of the Christian faith.b. I feel that one can maintain Christian growth without regular church attendance.
2. a. When reading the Bible for the purpose of understanding and interpretation, I tend to rely more often upon my own resources to shed light upon the subject.*b. When reading the Bible for the purpose of understanding and interpretation, I tend to seek help from other people’s writings to shed light upon the subject.
3. *a. When I am with a group of new people, I am more often concerned with just being myself.b. When I am with a group of new people, I am more often concerned with making a good impression.
4. a. When witnessing to others, I tend to present the lovingkindness of Christ.*b. When witnessing to others, I tend to present claims of Christ’s life, death, and resurrection.
5. *a. I feel that a church should be more concerned with a vision for worldwide evangelization.b. I feel that a church should be more concerned with the fellowship and growth of its own members.
6. a. I feel the biblical concept of the nature of man places him in a position of being basically good. b. I feel the biblical concept of the nature of man places him in a position of being basically evil.
7. *a. I feel the scriptural teachings and doctrines are better defenses of Christian faith. b. I feel personal testimonies and experiences are better defenses of Christian faith.
8. a. I feel the main emphasis of Sunday School should be to teach children application of faith, such as acceptance of others and themselves. *b. I feel the main emphasis of Sunday School should be to give children solid biblical teaching, such as the doctrine of salvation.
9. a. When making life decisions, I tend to rely mostly upon what I feel to be God’s will. *b. b. When making life decisions, I tend to rely mostly upon my own intellectual capacities.
10. a. If I were to hold some leadership position in my church, I would feel more comfortable allowing members to help me in the decisions and delegating responsibilities to those members.*b. If I were to hold some leadership position in my church, I would feel more comfortable making decisions and being responsible for following them through myself.
11. *a. When getting together with a few of my close friends for reasons of Christian growth, I prefer to spend time in Bible study, group discussion, and interpretation of the passages read.b. When getting together with a few of my close friends for reasons of Christian growth, I prefer to spend time in sharing personal experiences we have had with God and praying together.
12. *a. In my own personal Bible study times, I spend more time concentrating on finding the correct interpretation of Bible passages, even going to commentaries once in a while for further insight.b. In my own personal Bible study times, I spend more of my time reading for inspiration and strength to meet present problems.
13. a. I feel that it is an important part of my faith to give 10 percent or more of my income to the local church.b. I feel that my spiritual growth will not suffer by giving less than IO percent of my income to the local church.
14. a. I feel that God wants a church to listen for a call to outreach on a day-to-day basis.*b. I feel that God wants a church to have a well-structured, long-range, ongoing program of outreach.
15. *a. Most of my reading materials are theological and doctrinal in nature.b. Most of my reading materials are devotional and inspirational in nature.
16. a. I see my ministry as a Christian as dealing with those who are lonely, suffering, and overcome by temptations (even as a layperson).*b. I see my ministry as a Christian in the area of teaching, pastoring, and administration (even as a layperson).

* Indicates “Word-oriented” statements. Items I, 6, and 13 are fillers.