Transpersonal Orientation to Learning Scale

Abstract

The Transpersonal Orientation to Learning Scale (TOTL) is a 40-item psychometric instrument designed to measure an individual’s attitudes toward integrating a transpersonal approach into educational settings. This approach, as defined by Shapiro and Fitzgerald (1989), advocates for the development of human spiritual potential and the incorporation of intuitive and receptive modes of consciousness (e.g., meditation, fantasy techniques, and altered states) alongside traditional cognitive, rational, and logical methods.

The scale utilizes a 5-point Likert format, ranging from “strongly agree” (5 points) to “strongly disagree” (1 point). Initial analyses suggested four subscales: (I) Fantasy Techniques Applied in Schools, (II) Mysticism Preferred to Science as an Epistemology, (III) Mystical/Occult/Paranormal Techniques Applied to Schools, and (IV) Transcendent Consciousness. However, the authors cautioned that the scale might be unidimensional, measuring only a general transpersonal orientation, or potentially two dimensions: a theory-oriented dimension (Subscales II & IV) and a practice-oriented dimension (Subscales I & III).

Keywords

Transpersonal psychology, educational orientation, learning attitudes, spiritual potential, mystical experience, altered states of consciousness, learning style, fantasy techniques, educational measurement.

Authors

Stewart B. Shapiro, L. Fitzgerald

Purpose

The primary purpose of the Transpersonal Orientation to Learning Scale (TOTL) is to quantify the degree to which individuals endorse the principles and practices associated with the transpersonal approach within education. This measurement allows researchers to compare groups and assess the acceptance of methods focused on non-ordinary consciousness and spiritual growth in academic environments.

Construct

The TOTL measures a respondent’s overall orientation toward the transpersonal approach, which centers on recognizing and cultivating “ultimate human capacities and potentialities” (Shapiro & Fitzgerald, 1989). The theoretical construct emphasizes the equality and integration of intuitive, receptive modes of knowing (such as altered states and mystical experience) with traditional cognitive and rational modes.

However, the scale’s item content reveals a potential deviation from this balanced definition, as many items tend to prioritize or extol mystical and non-scientific approaches while criticizing the limitations of science and rational modes. This discrepancy suggests the scale may measure a more specific, sometimes oppositional, endorsement of non-rational methods rather than a purely inclusive transpersonal orientation as universally defined by the field.

Validity

Content Validity: The development process ensured strong content validity. Items were generated through a content analysis of the writings of 25 prominent transpersonal and humanistic authors in education and psychology. An initial pool of 222 items was reduced based on independent judgment by nine academics specializing in Confluent (Humanistic) Education for relevance and clarity, resulting in 67 retained items. Further item analysis and preliminary factor analysis led to the final 40-item scale.

Criterion Validity: Criterion validity was supported through two methods. First, the scale successfully differentiated between groups expected to hold divergent views: students in Confluent (Humanistic) Education programs scored significantly higher (Mean=152) than students in Counseling Psychology (Mean=139) and significantly higher than those in Single Subject Credential (Mean=127) and Multiple Subject Credential programs (Mean=129). Second, the TOTL demonstrated positive correlations with measures of similar constructs, including attitudes toward humanistic instructional values (Orientation to Learning scale, r=.46) and the Intuitive-Feeling temperament scale of the Kiersey Temperament Sorter (r=.38). A weaker correlation (r=.22) was found with the Concrete Experience subscale of the Learning Style Inventory (Kolb, 1976), but no significant correlation was found with the Divergent Learning Style subscale (r=.15).

Reliability

The TOTL demonstrated high levels of internal consistency across the total scale and its subscales based on the pilot study population. The 40-item total scale showed a split-half reliability coefficient of .98. The overall Cronbach alpha reliability coefficient for the total scale was calculated at .96, indicating a reasonably high level of internal consistency.

The internal consistency for the four hypothesized subscales (factors) was also high, with Cronbach alpha values as follows: Factor I (.83), Factor II (.82), Factor III (.93), and Factor IV (.82).

Factor Analysis

The factorial validity of the TOTL was inconclusive, yielding conflicting results depending on the rotation method used in the principal component analysis. A Varimax rotation, designed to minimize variable loadings and enhance factor interpretability, supported the conclusion that the TOTL is unidimensional, measuring a single, general orientation toward the transpersonal approach to education.

Conversely, an Equamax rotation, which attempts to simplify both variables and factors and divide variance across factors, supported a four-factor solution. These four factors accounted for 53% of the total variance, distributed as follows: Factor I (Fantasy Techniques Applied in Schools) accounted for 16%; Factor II (Mysticism Preferred to Science as an Epistemology) accounted for 10%; Factor III (Mystical/Occult/Paranormal Techniques Applied to Schools) accounted for 15.5%; and Factor IV (Transcendent Consciousness) accounted for 11%.

Instrument

Test Type: Paper-and-pencil self-report measure of general orientation/attitudes.

Format: 40 items using a 5-point Likert scale (Strongly Agree to Strongly Disagree).

Language Available: English (Original development).

Population Group: Graduate students (specifically those in Education and Psychology).

Age Group: Adults (Graduate school level).

Population Details: Pilot study used 166 students from four graduate programs at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB): Confluent (Humanistic) Education, Counseling Psychology, Single Subject Teaching Credential, and Multiple Subject Teaching Credential.

Test Methodology: Standard administration requires no special skills or instructions. Administration time is approximately 20 minutes. Scoring is achieved by summing the responses, where higher scores indicate greater endorsement of the transpersonal approach. Researchers must be aware of potential response set bias due to the consistent, positive wording of all items in support of the construct.

Keywords

Psychological assessment, educational psychology, humanistic education, spiritual development, mystical states, response bias, psychometrics, graduate education, attitude scale.

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Authors

Author ORCID Identifier: N/A

Affiliation Email addresses: N/A

Correspondence Address: Stewart B. Shapiro, Department of Education, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA 93106- 9490.

Permissions & Fee and Test Year

Test Year: Published in 1989.

Permissions/Fee: Information not provided in source. Standard academic usage may require permission from the authors or publisher (Educational and Psychological Measurements).

Reference’s

Boucouvalas, M. (1980). Transpersonal psychology: A working outline of the field. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 12, 37-46.

Chaudhuri, H. (1975). Psychology: Humanistic and transpersonal. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 15, 7-15.

Kiersey, D., & Bates, M. (1978). Please understand me. Del Mar, CA: Prometheus Nemesis.

Kolb, D. A. (1976). Learning style inventory. Boston: McBer.

Lajoie, D. H., Shapiro, S. I., & Roberts, T. B. (1991). A historical analysis of the statement of purpose in The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 23, 175-182.

Lehman, R. (1995). Statistics in the behavioral sciences: A conceptual approach. Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.

MacDonald, D. A., LaClair, L., Alter, A., Friedman, H. L. (1995). A survey of measures of transpersonal constructs. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 27, 171-235.

Shapiro, S. B. (1987). The instructional values of humanistic educators: An expanded, empirical analysis. Journal of Humanistic Education and Development, 25, 155-170.

Shapiro, S. B., & Fitzgerald, L. (1989). The development of an objective scale to measure a transpersonal orientation to learning. Educational and Psychological Measurements, 49, 375-385.

Walsh, R., & Vaughan., F. (1993). On transpersonal definitions. The Journal of Transpersonal Psychology, 25, 199-207.

Wilber, K. (1993). Paths beyond ego in the coming decade. In R. Walsh & F. Vaughan (Eds.), Paths beyond ego: The transpersonal vision (pp. 214-222). Los Angeles: J.P. Tarcher.

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Items of the TRANSPERSONAL ORIENTATION TO LEARNING SCALE

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

Items should be responded to and scored by checking the following responses and using the following point scheme: strongly agree (5 points), agree (4 points), uncertain (3 points), dis­ agree (2 points), and strongly disagree (1 point). The Roman numeral following each item in­ dicates the item’s subscale:

• I = Fantasy Techniques Applied In Schools,
• II = Mysticism Pre­ ferred to Science as an Epistemology,
• III = Mystical/Occult/Paranormal Techniques Applied to Schools,
• IV = Transcendent Consciousness.

1. Strictly speaking, a scientific worldview is impossible because it treats only a part of the world. (II)
2. As a probe into the way things are, science is a powerful but strictly limited instrument. (II)
3. Only a nonscientific approach to mankind and the world can give us meaning, purpose, and a vision in which everything coheres. (II)
4. Science can deal with instrumental values but not with intrinsic (ultimate) values. (II)
5. As a human being, a scientist may become engaged with questions of life meanings, but his science will not help him answer such questions. (II)
6. Scientific propositions leave the existential problems of life completely untouched. (II)
7. Reality far exceeds what science will ever register. (II)
8. People have a natural desire to experience altered states of consciousness. (IV)
9. We are on the verge of discovering and controlling a kind of biological energy that has to do with the occult, psychic phenomena, and other unusual occurrences. (IV)
10. Mystical experience is the source of all true art and science. (II)
11. Humankind’s consciousness of self is approximately halfway between subconsciousness of nature and the superconsciousness of spirit. (IV)
12. Through transformative spiritual or mystical experience a realm of exquisite order, intelligence, and creative potential can be revealed to nearly everyone. (IV)
13. It is only through the traditions of spiritual or mystical direct knowing that the true nature of reality can be glimpsed. (II)
14. In mystical experience we see the way things “are,” not how we wish them to be or analyze them to be. (II)
15. Bodily death does not end individual consciousness. (IV)
16. Death is not the final end, but rather the entrance to a new existence. (IV)
17. Psychic phenomena remind us that we have access to a source of higher knowing, a domain not limited by time and space. (IV)
18. Social transformation results from personal/individual transformation-change from the inside out. (IV)
19. Transcendence through altered states of consciousness, paranormal phenomena, and spiritual disciplines should be included in public school curricula where appropriate. (III)
20. Psychic phenomena, peak experiences, self-transcendence, spiritual growth, parapsychology, and Eastern psychologies all have their place in public education. (III)
21. Research has indicated that working with imagery often has a beneficial effect on physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual well-being. (I)
22. Children and youth in schools should be taught how to induce altered states of consciousness in themselves such as those states in psychic healing, parapsychological phenomena, yoga, biofeedback, and meditation. (III)
23. Effective methods of mind/body control have been practiced in yoga for thousands of years and should be taught in our schools and colleges. (III)
24. Directed fantasy trips and guided imagery have been practiced in yoga for thousands of years and should be taught in our schools and colleges. (III)
25. Teachers who use fantasy journeys and guided imagery have a vital key to improved instruction. (I)
26. Guided imagery and visualization techniques really work in improving instructional outcomes. (I)
27. The use of fantasy gives students an imaginary experience which they can relate to the verbal, logical material usually presented in class. (I)
28. Self-hypnosis should be used in public schools and universities to accelerate learning and to gain voluntary control over physiological functions. (III)
29. We cannot really understand the world that lies outside of us without understanding the deeper spiritual and mystical aspects of ourselves. (IV)
30. Contemporary physicists are now scientifically describing reality in almost identical terms with the views of mystics from many different religious traditions. (IV)
31. Dreamwork, fantasy, biofeedback, body awareness, psychic abilities, and meditation should all be implemented in the classroom. (IV)
32. Guided fantasy is a very useful learning tool. (I)
33. Teachers, parents, or counselors who are interested in opening up the world of fantasy for exploration by children should not overlook the fact that they too will benefit personally from the experience. (I)
34. Fantasy is a tool for human growth and development which is effective and rewarding at any age. (I)
35. Techniques like guided daydreams and sharing fantasies have very positive results in education. (I)
36. Classroom sharing through fantasy exercises is a very effective way for students to integrate inner experience with outer reality. (III)
37. Students in school should be taught that anyone can assert control over the healing process. (III)
38. Spiritual, transpersonal perspectives should be incorporated into all aspects of a graduate program in psychology. (III)
39. Various practices of meditation should be introduced into the public schools. (III)
40. Students in schools should be taught how to establish and maintain contact with their inner cores, where unity with all life energy occurs. (III)