Religious Attitude Scale (RAS)

Abstract

The Religious Attitude Scale (RAS), developed by Armstrong, Larsen, and Mourer in 1962, is a psychometric instrument designed to quantify and differentiate levels of religious belief, specifically measuring religious orthodoxy, conservatism, and liberalism. The primary goal of the scale’s creation was to investigate the complex interplay between specific religious beliefs and various psychological and demographic factors, including emotional adjustment, self-concept, educational background, interests, and age.

The development process involved defining and categorizing 16 core religious concepts by a panel of 12 expert judges. This rigorous process resulted in a 16-item multiple-choice instrument. Scoring on the RAS differentiates respondents along a continuum, with scores ranging from 153 (representing the most orthodox position) down to 1 (indicating the most liberal position).

Keywords

Religious Attitude Scale, Religious Orthodoxy, Religious Conservatism, Religious Liberalism, Test Development, Religious Beliefs, Psychometrics, Emotional Adjustment, Test Construction

Authors

Renate G. Armstrong, Gordon L. Larsen, Stephen A. Mourer

Purpose

The fundamental purpose of the Religious Attitude Scale (RAS) is to provide a standardized, quantitative measure for assessing an individual’s orientation across the spectrum of religious belief. It specifically aims to capture the degrees of orthodoxy, conservatism, and liberalism held by the respondent regarding foundational religious concepts.

Beyond simple categorization, the scale was intended as a research tool to facilitate the exploration of correlations between these defined religious attitudes and other critical psychological variables, such as mental health indicators and personal identity constructs, thereby contributing to the understanding of religion’s role in psychological life.

Construct

The RAS measures three distinct, yet related, dimensions of religious belief: Religious Orthodoxy, Religious Conservatism, and Religious Liberalism. These constructs represent a continuum of adherence to traditional religious doctrines and practices, falling under the broader classification of Religious and Political Beliefs.

Religious Orthodoxy refers to strict adherence to the traditional, established, and authoritative doctrines of a specific religion. Religious Liberalism, conversely, reflects a more flexible, open, and often individualized interpretation of faith, frequently prioritizing moral action or personal experience over dogma. Religious Conservatism occupies the intermediate space, generally supporting traditional practices but perhaps with less rigid doctrinal commitment than orthodoxy.

Validity

The validity of the Religious Attitude Scale was primarily established through criterion validity, demonstrating its ability to accurately distinguish between known groups defined by their religious affiliation and expected doctrinal adherence.

Specifically, the authors employed the Mann-Whitney U Test in comparing scores across distinct religious populations (Catholics, Protestants, and Unitarians). The resulting significant z scores confirmed the scale’s effectiveness in differentiating respondents according to their expected levels of conservatism, liberalism, and orthodoxy, affirming that the instrument measures the intended constructs.

Reliability

The reliability of the RAS was assessed using both internal consistency measures and test-retest procedures, yielding generally strong results, though stability varied significantly across different religious groups.

In terms of internal consistency, the scale exhibited a high reliability coefficient of 0.98, suggesting excellent homogeneity among the 16 items. However, test-retest reliability coefficients showed a broad range, spanning from a high of 0.98 to a low of 0.48. Analysis revealed that stability was highest among Catholic participants and lowest among Unitarians, indicating that the measure’s temporal stability is partially dependent on the respondent’s specific religious tradition and likely the rigidity of their doctrinal adherence.

Factor Analysis

Information regarding formal factor analysis procedures for the initial development of the Religious Attitude Scale (RAS) was not explicitly provided in the original supporting documentation. While the scale is conceptually structured around the three dimensions of orthodoxy, conservatism, and liberalism, further psychometric research would be necessary to confirm the underlying factor structure through empirical techniques.

Instrument

Test Type: Rating Scale

Format: Multiple-choice response format, consisting of 16 items designed to assess 16 predefined religious concepts.

Language Available: English (United States)

Population Group: Human (Male and Female), including both general population and inpatient groups.

Age Group: Adulthood (18 years & older)

Population Details: The initial sample population was drawn from the United States and included individuals identifying as Catholics, Protestants, and Unitarians, specifically incorporating both psychotic and non-psychotic patients to test the scale’s breadth.

Test Methodology: The scale is administered via paper and utilizes a numerical scoring system ranging from 1 (most liberal) to 153 (most orthodox) to quantify attitudes.

Keywords

Conservatism, Liberalism, Religious Beliefs, Religious Fundamentalism, Test Construction, Psychometric Tool, Adult Assessment, Emotional Adjustment, Inpatient Testing

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided

Affiliation Email addresses: Not provided

Correspondence Address: Not provided

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The Religious Attitude Scale (RAS) was originally published in 1962. Test items are not publicly available. Researchers interested in utilizing the scale must contact the original publisher or authors for details regarding permissions, associated fees, and procedures for obtaining the complete test items.

Reference’s

• Armstrong, R. G., Larsen, G. L., & Mourer, S. A. (1962). Religious attitudes and emotional adjustment. Journal of Psychological Studies, 13(1), 35–47.

Items of the Religious Attitude Scale (RAS)

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

Test items are not publicly available; contact the publisher for details on obtaining the test items.