Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey

Abstract

The Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey (TSOS) is a specialized, self-report psychological scale designed to measure the subjective quality and frequency of positive spiritual and religious experiences over a short, defined period, typically the preceding week. Developed within a theistic framework, the TSOS focuses on measuring current spiritual outcomes, including feelings of love, peace, moral congruence, spiritual vitality, and connection to a divine entity. This instrument is particularly valuable in research contexts assessing the immediate effects of spiritual interventions, therapeutic processes, or religious practices on an individual’s spiritual state.

Keywords

Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey, TSOS, spirituality, religious measurement, psychological assessment, spiritual well-being, psychometrics, moral behavior, self-report scale.

Authors

P. Scott Richards, Ph.D.

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey (TSOS) is to quantify the immediate, felt results of an individual’s spiritual life. Unlike measures of stable religious orientation or belief systems, the TSOS serves as a state measure, capturing how frequently an individual experiences positive spiritual feelings, attitudes, and behaviors within a recent timeframe (e.g., the past week). This temporal specificity makes the scale highly sensitive to changes resulting from specific spiritual or therapeutic interventions, providing researchers and practitioners with an effective tool for tracking short-term spiritual growth or distress.

The scale aims to operationalize spiritual outcomes in a manner that integrates both vertical (relationship with God/divine) and horizontal (relationship with self, others, and nature) dimensions. By assessing domains such as forgiveness, love for humanity, sense of purpose, and connection to God’s will, the TSOS provides a holistic snapshot of the respondent’s spiritual functioning.

Construct

The underlying construct measured by the TSOS is Current Theistic Spiritual Functioning or Spiritual Outcomes. This construct is generally understood as a multi-dimensional state reflecting the positive engagement with and internalization of theistic spiritual principles. The measured dimensions typically include:

• Relational Outcomes (Horizontal): Items reflecting love and forgiveness toward others, desire to help humanity, and appreciation for nature.
• Intrapersonal Outcomes (Self-Integration): Items related to feeling worthy, peaceful, morally congruent, and having a sense of spiritual purpose.
• Theistic Outcomes (Vertical): Items focusing on specific religious behaviors and experiences, such as praying, worshiping God, feeling God’s love, and having faith in God’s will.

The scale assumes that positive spiritual engagement leads to measurable, positive psychological and behavioral outcomes, which are assessed using the provided 17 items. The focus on a theistic framework means the scale is most appropriate for populations that affirm a belief in God or a divine, personal entity.

Validity

While specific statistical summaries of validity (e.g., correlations with established scales of well-being or religiosity) are typically found in the original academic publications referencing the TSOS, the scale demonstrates strong face validity. The items directly align with common religious and spiritual practices and virtues across various theistic traditions (e.g., love, forgiveness, faith, worship). Construct validity is generally established through confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) or exploratory factor analysis (EFA), which would confirm whether the items load onto the hypothesized sub-dimensions (vertical, horizontal, intrapersonal). Furthermore, criterion validity is often demonstrated by showing significant positive correlations between TSOS scores and measures of mental health, life satisfaction, and resilience, and negative correlations with measures of distress or psychopathology.

Reliability

Reliability refers to the consistency of the measurement provided by the psychological scale. For a scale like the TSOS, internal consistency reliability is the most crucial measure, typically calculated using Cronbach’s Alpha. High internal consistency (Alpha values generally above 0.80) would indicate that the 17 items consistently measure the same underlying construct of spiritual outcomes. Test-retest reliability, which is important for state measures, would assess the stability of the scores over a very short period, confirming that the scale accurately captures the spiritual state at the time of administration, rather than being overly influenced by random error.

Factor Analysis

Though the specific factor structure must be referenced from the primary research literature, instruments designed to capture spiritual outcomes frequently yield either a strong single factor representing general Spiritual Well-being, or a two-to-three factor model. Given the breadth of the TSOS items, which span personal feeling (peace, worthiness), interpersonal behavior (love, helping others), and religious practice (prayer, worship), a multifactorial structure is likely. Potential factors derived from analysis might include a “Vertical/Divine Connection” factor (e.g., faith in God, feeling God’s love) and a “Horizontal/Moral Living” factor (e.g., love toward others, moral behavior). Such analyses ensure that the scale is measuring distinct, yet correlated, aspects of the spiritual experience.

Instrument

Test Type: Self-report psychological scale designed to measure spiritual state.

Format: Paper-and-pencil or digital administration, utilizing a 5-point Likert-type response scale.

Language Available: Original English.

Population Group: Individuals, particularly those affiliated with theistic religious traditions (e.g., Christianity, Judaism, Islam) or who hold a belief in a personal God.

Age Group: Adolescents and Adults (typically 18+).

Population Details: Has been utilized primarily in research settings involving college students, religious populations, and clinical samples receiving spiritually oriented therapy.

Test Methodology: Respondents are asked to reflect on their experiences over the past week and rate the frequency of each item based on the following scale:

• 1 – Never
• 2 – Rarely
• 3 – Sometimes
• 4 – Frequently
• 5 – Almost Always

Keywords

Theistic spirituality, spiritual state, religious assessment, Likert scale, P. Scott Richards, BYU, psychological measurement, religious research, intervention outcomes, psychometrics.

Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: Not provided in the source material.

Affiliation Email addresses: [email protected]

Correspondence Address: P. Scott Richards, Ph.D., 340M MCKB, BYU, Provo, Utah 84602, USA.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

The scale was copyrighted in 1998 by P. Scott Richards, Ph.D. Researchers and practitioners seeking to use the Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey should contact the author directly via the provided email address for information regarding permissions and any associated usage fees. The copyright notice suggests that use is restricted without explicit authorization.

Reference’s

The primary reference for the existence and structure of the scale is the author’s copyright. Further context on its application and psychometric properties can be found in academic literature, such as the following resource:

Academic Source utilizing the scale: http://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1518&context=doctoral

Author Contact: P. Scott Richards, Ph.D. (1998). Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey. Brigham Young University.

Items of the Theistic Spiritual Outcomes Survey

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

Directions: Please help us understand how you have been feeling spiritually this past week‚ including today. Carefully read each item below and circle number that best describes how you felt.

I-Never

2-Rarely

I-Sometimes

4- Frequently

5- Almost Always

I had feelings of love toward others.	1	2	3	4	5
I kit there is a spiritual purpose for my life.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt good about my moral behavior.	1	2	3	4	5
I wanted to make the world a better place.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt peaceful.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt appreciation for the beauty of nature.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt like praying.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt spiritually alive.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt worthy.	1	2	3	4	5
My behavior was congruent with my values.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt love for all of humanity.	1	2	3	4	5
I had faith in God’s will.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt like helping others.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt God’s love.	1	2	3	4	5
I praised and worshipped God.	1	2	3	4	5
I felt forgiveness toward others.	1	2	3	4	5
I loved myself.	1	2	3	4	5