False Self Scale: Relationships with Other Christians

Abstract

The False Self Scale-Relationships with Other Christians is a specialized, adapted psychometric instrument designed to measure the extent to which individuals present an inauthentic self within their faith community. Developed by Sippola, Buchanan, and Kehoe in 2007, this scale shifts the focus from general interpersonal contexts to the specific relational dynamics experienced when interacting with fellow Christians. It quantifies feelings of pressure to conform, the necessity of concealing certain personal aspects, and the perception of relational inauthenticity, thereby assessing relationship-specific authenticity tendencies.

Keywords

False Self, Authenticity, Inauthenticity, Religious Identity, Social Conformity, Christian Relationships, Adolescent Psychology, Sippola, Buchanan, Kehoe, Psychological Measurement.

Authors

L. K. Sippola, C. M. Buchanan, S. Kehoe

Purpose

The primary purpose of the False Self Scale-Relationships with Other Christians is to quantify the degree of false self presentation exhibited by an individual within a specific religious context. This adaptation is crucial for researchers studying the intersection of faith, social identity, and psychological well-being.

By focusing specifically on interactions with other Christians, the scale allows for an examination of how religious norms and community expectations might influence self-presentation, potentially leading to emotional distancing or a lack of genuine relational connection among peers who share a faith.

Construct

The scale measures the psychological construct of the False Self in a relational context. The False Self is defined as a defensive facade adopted by an individual to meet external demands or expectations, often at the expense of expressing their genuine feelings, thoughts, or desires (the True Self).

In this specific context, the construct assesses relational inauthenticity, focusing on the belief that one must “act a certain way” or conceal personal flaws or doubts to achieve acceptance and avoid judgment from other members of the Christian community. High scores indicate greater psychological distance and a higher reliance on performative behaviors within the religious social setting.

Validity

While specific psychometric details for this adaptation are not fully provided in the source material, the original instrument—”Correlates of False Self in Adolescent Romantic Relationships”—established foundational construct validity for measuring inauthenticity.

For research utilizing this adapted version, validity would typically be established by demonstrating correlations between False Self scores and relevant factors such as measures of religious perfectionism, fear of negative evaluation, or indices of lower self-esteem within the religious group. The scale’s validity rests on its ability to accurately capture relationship-specific tendencies toward psychological pretense within the context of Christianity.

Reliability

Specific internal consistency estimates (e.g., Cronbach’s Alpha) for the seven-item False Self Scale-Relationships with Other Christians are not detailed in the available excerpt. However, the reliability of the original scale suggests a cohesive measurement of the underlying construct.

Researchers employing this instrument should verify its internal consistency to ensure that all seven items reliably measure the same dimension of relational inauthenticity in the target population. Strong reliability is essential for the instrument’s utility in clinical and academic psychological research.

Factor Analysis

Information regarding the specific factor structure resulting from an Exploratory or Confirmatory Factor Analysis (EFA/CFA) of this adapted version is not provided in the source material. Given the instrument’s brevity (seven items), it is strongly implied to be a unidimensional measure.

The expectation is that all items load onto a single factor representing the overall tendency toward False Self presentation or relational inauthenticity among Christian peers. Item 6, which is reverse-scored, is crucial for maintaining the scale’s psychometric integrity and reducing acquiescence bias.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report questionnaire, Psychological Inventory

Format: Seven items rated on a 5-point agreement scale.

Language Available: English

Population Group: Individuals engaged in social or relational contexts within Christianity.

Age Group: Primarily Adolescent and Young Adult populations, reflecting the context of the original research, though applicable to older adults in relational studies.

Population Details: Respondents are required to reflect on their experiences and interactions specifically with other individuals who identify as Christian.

Test Methodology: Respondents use a Likert scale where 1 represents Strongly disagree and 5 represents Strongly Agree to indicate their level of agreement with statements concerning their self-presentation and perceived authenticity when interacting with Christian peers.

Keywords

Religious Conformity, Self-Concealment, Relational Inauthenticity, Psychological Measurement, Christian Community, Scale Adaptation, Psychometrics, Likert Scale.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Information not provided in the source material.

Affiliation Email addresses: Information not provided in the source material.

Correspondence Address: Information not provided in the source material.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: 2007 (Year of publication for the adapted instrument’s context).

Permissions: The items and instructions were adapted from the original work published in the Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, copyrighted by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates (now part of Taylor & Francis/Routledge). Researchers must seek permission from the original authors or copyright holder for use in academic or commercial studies.

Fee: Information regarding specific usage fees is not provided; standard academic publication permissions apply.

Reference’s

Sippola, L. K., Buchanan, C. M., & Kehoe, S. (2007). Correlates of False Self in Adolescent Romantic Relationships. Journal of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, 36(4), 515–521. Copyright 2007 by Lawrence Erlbaum Associates. Adapted with permission.

The original PDF context for the scale adaptation focusing on Attachment to God/Christian relationships can be downloaded here: http://www.acu.edu/academics/cas/psychology/documents/beck/Attachment%20to%20God.pdf

Items of the False Self Scale-Relationships with Other Christians

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

Please indicate how much you agree or disagree with each of the statements listed below. Answer each item based on your experiences in relationship with God. We are interested in how you generally experience your relationship with God, not just in what is happening in that relationship currently.

1= Strongly disagree. 2= Somewhat disagree, 3= Neither agree nor disagree, 4= Somewhat Agree, 5= Strongly Agree

• ___1. It is harder to be myself when I am interacting with other Christians than when I am not.
• ___2. I feel I have to act a certain way to please other Christians.
• ___3. I feel like I am a different person when I am interacting with other Christians.
• ___4. In order for other Christians to like me, I cannot reveal cel1ain things about myself to them.
• ___5. I don’t really act like my true self when I am interacting with other Christians.
• ___6. Other Christians appreciate me for who I am.
• ___7. I feel that other Christians don’t know the “true” me.