Sándor Kalmár, M.D., Ph.D.

Introduction

This study is based on a part of an International Survey. In 2012-2013 Professor Aurel Nirestean, Emese Lukács (Tirgu Mures, Romania) and our colleagues made an examination in eight secondary schools and seven Universities in three countries. This article contains the examination of spirituality among university students.

”Spirituality is a distinctive, potentially creative and universal dimension of human experience arising both within the inner subjective awareness of individuals and within communities, social groups and traditions. It may be experienced as a relationship with that which is intimately ‘inner’, immanent and personal, within the self and others, and as relationship with that which is wholly ‘other’, transcendent and beyond the self. It is experienced as being of fundamental or ultimate importance and is thus concerned with matters of meaning and purpose in life, truth and values.” (Royal College of Psychiatrists UK)

We live in an age suffering from spiritual illiteracy (both within and outside psychiatry) which has made some difficulties. In contrast to the scientific frame of psychiatry, most people in the world are religious and hold beliefs about God as important. Many people report specific religious experience of a transcendental nature without any psychiatric disorders. We need to distinguish between spirituality and religion. Although the spirituality and the religion are closely related notions the spirituality is a much broader concept than religion. SPIRITUALITY: individual, personal, subjective, informal, inside, emotional, transcendental, non systematic. RELIGION: has physical, mental, cultural aspects, authoritarian, institutional, regular, communal, formal, outside, systematic, methodical.

Spirituality significantly correlated with i. well-being, ii. hope iii. optimism, iv. purpose and meaning in life, v. higher self esteem, vi. bereavment adaptation, vii. greater social support, viii. less loneliness, ix. lower rates of depression and faster, recovery from depression, x. lower rates of suicide, xi. fewer positive attitudes towards suicide, xii. less anxiety, xiii. less psychosis and fewer psychotic tendencies, xiv. lower rates of alcohol use and smoking, xv. lower rates of psychoactive substance use and abuse, xvi. less delinquency and criminal activity, xvii. greater marital stability. (Cook, Powel, Sims, 2009)

The General Social Survey (GSS) examines the spirituality with the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale in the U.S. every second year. (Underwood, 2006)

Table 1. General Social Survey (GSS) data 2005. Percentages of total respondents to the item.

	Daily Spiritual Experience Scale	Presence	Lack	Mean
		1-2-3	6
1	I feel God’s presence.	37.2	22.4	3.96
2	I feel a connection to all of life.	35.3	13.0	3.91
3	During worship, or at other times when connecting with God I feel joy which lifts me out of my daily concerns	44.8	14.3	3.6
4	I feel strength in my religion or spirituality.	33.3	18.8	4.0
5	I feel comfort in my religion or spirituality.	29.7	19.4	4.11
6	I feel deep inner peace or harmony.	34.1	14.7	3.97
7	I ask for God’s help in the midst of daily activities.	40.5	22.3	3.89
8	I feel guided by God in the midst of daily activities.	42.9	17.4	3.73
9	I feel God’s love for me directly.	35.1	20.8	3.96
10	I feel God’s love for me through others.	40.7	15.0	3.76
11	I am spiritually touched by the beauty of creation.	25.7	20.3	4.3
12	I feel thankful for my blessings.	11.2	30.9	4.88
13	I feel a selfless caring for others.	29.1	14.1	4.14
14	I accept others even when they do things I think are wrong.	27.3	10.7	4.09
15	I desire to be closer to God or in union wih the divine.	33.9	18.2	4.06
16	In general how close do you feel to God?	52.8	10.2	2.6

 

Methods

803 university students (201 boys, 602 girls) in seven different Univerities an Colleges in three countries (Hungary, Romania, Serbia) took part in this study with testing the self-report questionnaire, the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale. This scale is used more than twenty countries all over the world. (Underwood, Teresi, 2002; Underwood, 2012). The main goal of the present study was to investigate the spirituality and the following 16 items and ten constructs of spirituality among university students in seven different Univerities an Colleges in three countries.

The Daily Spiritual Experience Scale (DSES) is an instrument designed to provide researchers with a self-report measure of spiritual experiences as an important aspect of how religiousness/spirituality is expressed in daily life for many people. The sixteen-item scale includes constructs such as 1. Connection with the divine or transcendent. 2. Joy, Transcendent sense of self. 3. Strength and Comfort. (Faith) 4. Peace, harmony. 5. Divine help, Divine inspiration (Hope) 6. (Divine guidance perceived love. 7. Perceptions of divine love, awe. 8. Thankfulness, appreciation, gratitude. 9. Compassionate love: ”spirituality in action”. 10. Union and closeness. (In general how close do you feel to God?) (Underwood, 2006)

Participant Universities and Colleges: 1. Primary Teacher Training College, Kecskemét, [TT-KMT] 2. Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Automation, Kecskemét, [GAMF-Kmt] 3. The University of Pécs, [PÉCS] Faculty of Law, 4. Eötvös József Primary Training College, Baja, [BAJA] 5. University of Novi Sad Hungarian Teachers Training Faculty in Subotica, [TT-SUBOT] 6. University of Novi Sad Hungarian Kindergarten Training Faculty in Subotica, [KINDER-G-SUBOT] (Serbia) 7. University of Medicine and Pharmacy of Targu Mures [TM] (Romania)

Results

Religiosus distribution of university students of seven Universities and Colleges

Roman catholic: 45.3%, ii. Ortodox: 27.1%, iii. Calvinist: 9.7%, iv. Lutheran: 1.2%, v. Others: 6.4%, vi. Non religious or atheist: 10.3%

Measure of spirituality-items of male university students of seven Universities and Colleges

Table 2. Measure of spirituality-items of male university students

	1-TT-K	2-GAMF	3-PÉCS	4-TT- BAJA	5-KINDER-G- SUBOT	6-TT- SUBOT	7-TM
male	4	75	4	5	7	26	80
1.	2.5	2.28	2.0	2.6	2.0	3.15	3.38
2.	2.5	2.6	3.5	2.2	2.29	3.23	2.64
3.	2.5	2.12	2.75	1.8	2.43	2.85	3.15
4.	4.0	2.37	3.25	2.2	2.57	3.12	3.05
5.	3.75	2.15	3.0	2.0	2.43	3.19	3.16
6.	3.25	2.68	3.0	3.4	2.29	3.35	3.46
7.	2.75	2.28	2.5	1.6	2.71	3.31	3.26
8.	2.25	2.08	2.5	1.6	2.71	2.92	3.0
9.	2.25	2.07	2.5	2.2	2.43	2.85	3.14
10.	1.75	2.13	2.5	2.2	1.86	2.85	2.78
11.	2.0	2.2	3.5	2.2	1.71	2.5	3.05
12.	3.0	2.59	3.75	2.4	3.28	3.85	3.65
13.	3.5	3.41	4.25	4.6	3.71	4.0	3.91
14.	3.0	3.33	3.25	3.6	3.57	4.19	3.7
15.	1.75	2.03	2.75	1.6	2.57	2.92	3.0
16.	2.25	1.57	2.0	1.8	1.57	2.04	2.28
average	2.69	2.34	2.94	2.37	2.51	3.14	3.16

 

Measure of spirituality-items of female university students of seven Universities and Colleges

Table 3. Measure of spirituality-items of female university students

	1-TT-K	2-GAMF	3-PÉCS	4-TT-BAJA	5-KINDER-G- SUBOT	6-TT- SUBOT	7-TM
female	111	55	23	11	49	115	238
1.	3.0	2.45	2.48	3.27	2.8	3.19	3.66
2.	2.97	2.91	2.57	3.27	3.06	3.1	2.47
3.	2.68	2.25	2.39	3.0	2.71	3.16	3.55
4.	3.15	2.58	2.43	3.55	2.92	3.17	3.47
5.	3.06	2.55	2.26	3.36	2.73	3.3	3.61
6.	3.23	2.98	2.74	3.45	3.27	3.32	3.62
7.	3.03	2.62	2.74	3.36	3.08	3.44	3.94
8.	2.9	2.31	2.39	3.18	2.92	3.17	3.76
9.	2.93	2.2	2.43	3.0	2.8	3.15	3.56
10.	2.72	2.16	2.0	2.91	2.39	2.51	3.11
11.	2.95	2.36	2.17	3.09	2.71	2.65	3.24
12.	3.72	2.96	3.22	3.55	3.76	4.0	1.3
13.	3.95	3.91	4.0	4.64	4.1	4.17	4.09
14.	3.67	3.38	3.7	4.0	3.98	3.81	4.01
15.	2.65	2.16	1.96	2.73	2.37	2.57	3.37
16.	1.99	1.78	1.74	2.0	1.92	2.21	2.09
average	3.04	2.6	2.58	3.27	2.97	3.16	3.53

 

Measure of spirituality-items of university students of seven Universities and Colleges

Table 4. Measure of spirituality-items of university students (total)

	1-TT-K	2-GAMF	3-PÉCS	4-TT-BAJA	5-KINDER-G- SUBOT	6-TT- SUBOT	7-TM
total	115	130	27	16	56	141	318
1.	2.98	2.35	2.41	3.06	2.7	3.18	3.59
2.	2.96	2.73	2.7	2.94	2.96	3.13	2.51
3.	2.67	2.18	2.44	2.63	2.68	3.1	3.45
4.	3.18	2.43	2.56	3.13	2.88	3.16	3.37
5.	3.09	2.32	2.37	2.94	2.7	3.06	3.49
6.	3.23	2.81	2.78	3.44	3.14	3.33	3.58
7.	3.02	2.42	2.7	2.81	3.04	3.42	3.77
8.	2.88	2.18	2.41	2.69	2.89	3.13	3.57
9.	2.9	2.12	2.44	2.75	2.75	3.09	3.45
10.	2.69	2.15	2.07	2.69	2.32	2.57	3.03
11.	2.92	2.27	2.37	2.81	2.59	2.62	3.19
12.	3.7	2.75	3.3	3.19	3.7	3.19	4.14
13.	3.94	3.52	4.04	4.63	4.05	4.13	4.04
14.	3.64	3.35	3.63	3.88	3.93	3.88	3.93
15.	2.62	2.08	2.07	2.38	2.39	2.64	3.28
16.	2.0	1.66	1.78	1.94	1.88	2.18	2.58
average	3.03	2.47	2.63	2.99	2.91	3.16	3.44

 

Average of spirituality-items of university students of seven Universities and Colleges

Table 5. Average of spirituality-items of university students

average	1-TT-K	2-GAMF	3-PÉCS	4-TT-BAJA	5-KINDER-G- SUBOT	6-TT- SUBOT	7-TM
male	2.69	2.34	2.94	2.37	2.51	3.14	3.16
female	3.04	2.6	2.58	3.27	2.97	3.16	3.53
total	3.03	2.47	2.63	2.99	2.91	3.16	3.44

 

Average of spirituality-items of eight secondary school students, 2-GAMF-Kmt, 7-Targu Mures (Romania) seven university students and USA.

Table 6. Average of spirituality-items of university students. 8 secondary school students, (2) GAMF-Kmt, (7) Targu Mures (Romania). seven university students and an examination of USA.

	Daily Spiritual Experience Scale	8 SEC. SCHOOL	2-GAMF	7-TM	SEVEN UNIV.	USA 2005
		932	130	318	803	1 309
1.	I feel God’s presence.	2.63	2.35	3.59	2.9	3.96
2.	I feel a connection to all of life.	2.7	2.73	2.51	2.85	3.91
3.	During worship, when connecting with God I feel joy which lifts me out of my daily concerns	2.41	2.18	3.45	2.74	3.6
4.	I feel strength in my religion or spirituality.	2.56	2.43	3.37	2.96	4.0
5.	I feel comfort in my religion or spirituality.	2.47	2.32	3.49	2.85	4.11
6.	I feel deep inner peace or harmony.	2.82	2.81	3.58	3.19	3.97
7.	I ask for God’s help in the midst of daily activities.	2.87	2.42	3.77	3.03	3.89
8.	I feel guided by God in the midst of daily activities.	2.5	2.18	3.57	2.82	3.73
9.	I feel God’s love for me directly.	2.64	2.12	3.45	2.79	3.96
10.	I feel God’s love for me through others.	2.37	2.15	3.03	2.5	3.76
11.	I am spiritually touched by the beauty of creation.	2.35	2.27	3.19	2.68	4.30
12.	I feel thankful for my blessings.	3.14	2.75	4.14	3.54	4.88
13.	I feel a selfless caring for others.	3.64	3.52	4.04	4.07	4.14
14.	I accept others even when they do things I think are wrong.	3.59	3.35	3.93	3.75	4.09
15.	I desire to be closer to God or in union wih the divine.	2.43	2.08	3.28	2.49	4.06
16.	In general how close do you feel to God?	1.87	1.66	2.58	2.0	2.6
mean		2.69	2.47	3.44	2.95	3.9

The presence and lack of spiritual constructs of seven Universities and Colleges, according to the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale

Percentages of total respondents to the item.

Table 7. The presence and lack of spiritual constructsof university students.

	1-TT-K	2-GAMF	3-PÉCS	4-TT-BAJA	5-KIND-SUBOT	6-TT-SUBOT	7-TM
I. 1-2. present	36.07	27.36	25.93	34.4	28.75	41.13	35.7
absent	20.87	33.46	31.48	25.0	20.53	13.12	20.28
II. 3. present	33.91	16.16	18.51	37.5	28.57	37.59	44.02
absent	35.65	46.15	29.63	50.0	26.79	12.77	9.12
III. 4-5 present	40.0	23.35	24.07	37.5	23.2	39.71	46.38
absent	23.05	38.07	27.78	31.25	17.86	12.77	11.32
IV. 6. present	46.09	31.54	22.21	50.0	37.49	44.68	47.17
absent	10.43	20.0	11.1	6.25	7.14	6.38	4.09
V. 7-8. present	38.69	18.07	24.07	31.25	34.82	44.32	53.46
absent	29.77	40.38	27.78	31.25	16.07	10.99	8.8
VI. 9-10 present	33.47	14.99	20.36	37.5	24.99	28.72	37.11
absent	29.56	42.69	37.03	37.37	30.36	19.15	13.99
VII. 11. present	36.52	23.08	18.52	37.5	25.01	27.66	37.73
absent	20.87	42.31	29.63	31.25	28.57	22.7	13.52
VIII. 12. present	57.39	33.07	48.15	43.75	55.35	63.82	77.33
absent	19.13	30.0	18.52	31.25	8.93	7.8	5.97
IX. 13-14. present	63.47	51.54	64.81	81.25	70.53	69.86	66.04
absent	3.9	10.65	0.0	3.12	1.79	0.35	2.2
X. 15. present	28.69	15.39	11.11	18.75	21.43	26.95	41.82
absent	35.65	50.0	40.74	37.5	30.36	25.53	16.04
16. present	27.33	13.84	11.11	25.0	21.43	33.33	51.26
absent	22.61	49.23	37.04	37.5	35.71	20.57	13.21

The presence and lack of different spiritual constructs according to the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale (%)

Table 8. The presence and lack of spiritual constructs of 1. Eight Secondary schools, Hungary, 2. GAMF-Kmt, 3. TM, 4. Seven Universities and Colleges, Hungary, Romania, Serbia. 5. Teacher Traning College, Nyíregyháza, Hungary 6. USA. Percentages (%) of total respondents to the construct.

	1. Secondary schools	2. GAMF– Kmt	3.TM	4.Universities & Colleges	5.Teacher Training College NY-HÁZA	6. USA 2004
I. 1-2. present	29.83	27.36	35.7	32.76	30.85	36.25
absent	30.73	33.46	20.28	23.53	25.35	17.7
II. 3. present	25.17	16.16	44.02	30.89	22.7	44.8
absent	39.93	46.15	9.12	30.02	35.8	14.3
III. 4-5 present	26.71	23.35	46.38	33.46	22.85	63.0
absent	38.12	38.07	11.32	23.15	36.65	19.1
IV. 6. present	32.46	31.54	47.17	39.88	29.4	34.1
absent	21.08	20.0	4.09	9.34	19.0	14.7
V. 7-8. present	30.04	18.07	53.46	34.95	32.4	41.7
absent	34.0	40.38	8.8	23.58	30.9	19.85
VI. 9-10 present	26.8	14.99	37.11	28.16	23.4	37.9
absent	37.88	42.69	13.99	29.59	38.26	17.9
VII. 11. present	20.05	23.08	37.73	29.43	18.2	25.7
absent	49.08	42.31	13.52	26.98	38.9	20.3
VIII. 12. present	44.23	33.07	77.33	54.12	45.3	11.2
absent	26.07	30.0	5.97	17.37	19.9	30.9
IX. 13-14. present	55.38	51.54	66.04	66.79	56.55	28.2
absent	10.55	10.65	2.2	3.14	3.15	12.4
X. 15. present	26.11	15.39	41.82	23.45	18.7	33.9
absent	42.5	50.0	16.04	33.69	43.8	18.2
16. present	22.18	13.84	51.26	26.19
absent	40.2	49.23	13.21	30.84

 

Discussion

The presence and lack of the ten spiritual-constructs of seven Universities and Colleges according to the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale

1. Connection with the divine or transcendent

Connection with the divine is important in both Eastern and Western traditions and also in people’s notions of “spirituality” in a more generic way. (Underwood, 2012)

1. “I feel God’s presence”
2. “I feel a connection to all of life”

The presence rates of this item ranged between 14.29 (KINDER-G-SUBOT) and 44.23 (TT-SUBOT) among boys, and 26.09 (PÉCS) and 40.9 (BAJA) among girls, and 25.93 (PÉCS) and 41.13 (TT-SUBOT) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 12.15 (PÉCS) and 50.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 12.17 (TT-SUBOT) and 34.78 (PÉCS) among girls, and 13.12 (TT-SUBOT) and 33.46 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”I. Connection with the divine or transcendent” was the worst/lowest in PÉCS, (25.93 %) and the best/highest in the TT-SUBOT. (41.13%)

The lack of this construct was the worst/highest in the GAMF-Kmt. (33.46%) and the best/lowest in the TT-SUBOT. (13.12%)

1. Transcendent sense of self

This item was aimed at detecting moments of self-transcendence that were spiritual/religious in nature. (Underwood, 2012)

3. ”During worship, or at other times when connecting with God, I feel joy which lifts me out of my daily concerns”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 14.29 (KINDER-G-SUBOT) and 38.75 (TM) among boys, and 16.37 (GAMF-Kmt)) and 45.79 (TM) among girls, and 16.16 (GAMF-Kmt) and 44.02 (TT-SUBOT) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 18.75 (TM) and 80.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 5.88 (TM) and 38.1 (GAMF-Kmt) among girls, and 9.12 (TM) and 50.0 (BAJA) among all students.

The presence of ”II. Transcendent sense of self” was the lowest in the GAMF-Kmt, (16.16 %) and the highest in TM. (44.02%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in BAJA. (50.0%) and the lowest in TM. (9.12%)

III. Strength and comfort. FAITH

Strength enabled people to be courageous, to step out in difficult situations and do what they would not ordinarily feel confident doing.

Comfort was reported to be associated with a feeling of safety in danger or in vulnerable situation and a general sense of security. (Underwood, 2012)

4. ”I feel strength in my religion or spirituality”.
5. ”I feel comfort in my religion or spirituality”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 14.29 (KINDER-G-SUBOT) and 50.0 (TT-SUBOT) among boys, and 23.9 (KINDER-G-SUBOT) and 48.11 (TM) among girls, and 23.2 (KINDER-G-SUBOT) and 46.38 (TM) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 14.29 (PÉCS) and 60.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 9.24 (TM) and 32.6 (PÉCS) among girls, and 11.32 (TM) and 38.07 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”III. Strength and comfort. FAITH” was the lowest in KINDER-G-SUBOT, (23.2 %) and the highest in TM. (46.38%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt. (38.07%) and the lowest in TM. (11.32%)

1. Peace, harmony
2. ”I feel deep inner peace or harmony.”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 25.0 (PÉCS) and 50.0 (TT-Kmt) among boys, and 21.74 (PÉCS) and 54.63 (BAJA) among girls, and 22.21 (PÉCS) and 50.0 (BAJA) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 7.5 (TM) and 26.67 (GAMF-Kmt) among boys, and 2.94 (TM) and 13.04 (PÉCS) among girls, and 4.09 (TT-SUBOT) and 20.0 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”IV. Peace, harmony” was the lowest in PÉCS, (22.21 %) and the highest in BAJA. (50.0%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt. (20.0%) and the lowest in TM. (4.09%)

1. Divine help, divine inspiration. HOPE.
2. ” I ask for God’s help in the midst of daily activities”.
3. ”I feel guided by God in the midst of daily activities”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 12.5 (PÉCS) and 41.87 (TM) among boys, and 19.09 (GAMF-Kmt) and 57.36 (TM) among girls, and 18.07 (GAMF-Kmt) and 53.46 (TM) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 17.3 (TT-SUBOT) and 60.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 5.25 (TM) and 32.72 (GAMF-Kmt) among girls, and 8.8 (TM) and 40.38 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”V. Divine help, divine inspiration. HOPE” was the lowest in the GAMF-Kmt, (18.07 %) and the highest in TM. (53.46%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt. (40.38%) and the lowest in TM. (8.8%)

1. Divine guidance. Perceived love.

Some people definitely found it easier to receive God’s love directly, and others found it easier to receive God’s love through others. (Underwood, 2012)

9. ”I feel God’s love for me, directly”.

10.”I feel God’s love for me, through others”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 12.05 (PÉCS) and 32.5 (TM) among boys, and 12.73 (GAMF-Kmt) and 45.45 (BAJA) among girls, and 14.99 (GAMF-Kmt) and 37.5 (BAJA) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 21.87 (TM) and 60.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 11.34 (TM) and 39.13 (PÉCS) among girls, and 13.99 (TM) and 42.69 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”VI. Divine guidance. Perceived love” was the lowest in the GAMF-Kmt, (14.99 %) and the highest in BAJA. (37.5%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt. (42.69%) and the lowest in TM. (13.99%)

VII. Perception of divine love

11. ”I am spiritually touched by the beauty of creation”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 20.0 (BAJA) and 50.0 (PÉCS) among boys, and 13.05 (PÉCS) and 45.45 (BAJA) among girls, and 18.52 (PÉCS) and 37.73 (TM) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 20.0 (TM) and 60.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 11.34 (TM) and 37.78 (PÉCS) among girls, and 13.52 (TM) and 42.31 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”VII. Perception of divine love” was the lowest in PÉCS, (18.52 %) and the highest in TM. (37.73%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt. (42.31%) and the lowest in TM. (13.52%)

VIII. Thankfulness, appreciation, gratitude

This item builds on gratefulness as a central feature in many religious traditions and in the spiritual life. The Psalms are full of an awareness of gratitude. (Underwood, 2012)

12. ”I feel thankful for my blessings”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 20.0 (BAJA) and 61.53 (TT-SUBOT) among boys, and 40.01 (GAMF-Kmt) and 76.89 (TM) among girls, and 33.07 (GAMF-Kmt) and 77.33 (TM) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 15.0 (TM) and 60.0 (BAJA) among boys, and 2.94 (TM) and 25.45 (GAMF-Kmt) among girls, and 5.97 (TM) and 31.25 (BAJA) among all students.

The presence of ”VIII. Thankfulness, appreciation, gratitude” was the lowest in the GAMF-Kmt, (33.07 %) and the highest in TM. (77.33%)

The lack of this constructs was the highest in BAJA. (31.25%) and the lowest in TM. (5.97%)

1. Compassionate love: spirituality in action

Compassion emerges in many spiritual traditions as a central component in the spiritual life. This item applies across religious traditions and to the non-religious. (Underwood, 2012)

13. ”I feel a selfless caring for others”.
14. ”I accept others even when they do things I think are wrong”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 47.33 (GAMF-Kmt) and 73.07 (TT-SUBOT) among boys, and 57.27 (GAMF-Kmt) and 86.36 (BAJA) among girls, and 51.54 (GAMF-Kmt) and 81.25 (BAJA) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 3.12 (TM) and 12.67 (GAMF-Kmt) among boys, and 0.43 (TT-SUBOT) and 9.09 (GAMF-Kmt) among girls, and 0.35 (TT-SUBOT) and 10.65 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”IX. Compassionate love: spirituality in action” was the lowest in the GAMF-Kmt, (51.54 %) and the highest in BAJA. (81.25%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt, (10.65%) and the lowest in PÉCS (0.0) and the TT-SUBOT, (0.35%)

1. Union and closeness

This items express frequency of the experience of desire for the divine and sense of closeness. (Underwood, 2012)

15. ”I desire to be closer to God or in union with the divine”.

The presence rates of this item ranged between 14.67 (GAMF-Kmt) and 38.75 (TM) among boys, and 8.7 (PÉCS) and 42.86 (TM) among girls, and 11.11 (PÉCS) and 41.82 (TM) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 26.92 (TT-SUBOT) and 53.33 (GAMF-Kmt) among boys, and 11.76 (TM) and 47.83 (PÉCS) among girls, and 16.04 (TM) and 50.0 (PÉCS) among all students.

The presence of ”X. Union and closeness” was the lowest in PÉCS, (11.11 %) and the highest in TM, (41.82%)

The lack of this construct was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt, (50.0%) and the lowest in the TM, (16.04%)

16. ”In general, how close do you feel to God?

The presence rates of this item ranged between 14.29 (KINDER-G-SUBOT) and 50.0 (TT-Kmt) among boys, and 12.73 (GAMF-Kmt) and 54.62 (TM) among girls, and 11.11 (PÉCS) and 51.26 (TM) among all students.

The lack rates of this item ranged between 25.0 (TT-Kmt) and 58.67 (GAMF-Kmt) among boys, and 8.82 (TM) and 43.48 (PÉCS) among girls, and 13.21 (TM) and 49.23 (GAMF-Kmt) among all students.

The presence of ”16. In general, how close do you feel to God?

was the lowest in the GAMF-Kmt, (11.11 %) and the highest in TM, (51.26%)

The lack of this item was the highest in the GAMF-Kmt, (49.23%) and the lowest in the TM, (13.21%) (Underwood, 2006, 2012)

Conclusion

Although the spirituality has been seen as last taboo in psychiatry some psychiatrists think, that perception of the divine omniscience, the supernormal perception, illusion, religious emotions and sentiment, the spiritual body, miracles are in fact disturbances of perception or abnormal perception, accordingly psychotic symptoms. (Kalmár 2014, 2017) Spirituality and the dimensions of spirituality are important protective factors of the development of sound personality, the prevention of mental disorders and self destructive behaviour.

The rates of spirituality of boys ranged between 2.37 (BAJA) and 3.16. (TM) The average of spirituality was 2.74. The rates of girls ranged between 2.58 (PÉCS) and 3.53 (TM). The average rate of spirituality was 3.02 among the different universities. The rates of all students ranged between 2.47 (GAMF-Kmt; BAJA) and 3.44 (TM). The average was 2.95. The rates of spirituality was higher among University students than secondary school students. The presence (6-5-4 points) and lack (1 point) of spirituality show huge difference among the university students. The highest rate of presence was 45.12 among the boys in the TT-SUB, and 50.3 among the girls in BAJA. The highest rate of lack was 49.33 among the boys in BAJA, and 28.12 among the girls in the GAMF-Kmt. The rates of lack among all students ranged between 10.8 and 34.97. The highest rate was in GAMF-Kmt, the lowest rate was in TM.

The measure of spirituality is higher among the university students (2.98) than the secondary school students (2.69). This measure was 2.95 in Nyíregyháza and 3.9 in the USA. These thought provoking results showed that there is a huge difference in the spirituality among the different students.

References

Cook C. Powell A. Sims A. (2009) Spirituality and Psychiatry Published by RCPsych Publications (via Turpin Distribution for the trade) www.rcpsych.ac.uk/publications

Kalmár S. (2014) Spirituality Level in eight Secondary Schools in Hungary. Al XII-lea Simpozion National al asociatiei Románe de Studiu a Persoanlitátii. Sibiu, 29 Mai-1 Iunie.

Kalmár S. (2015) Examination of spirituality and the dimensions of spirituality among 932 students in eight different secondary schools. Hungary www.internetandpsychiatry.com

Kalmár S. A nevelés szerepe az egészséges magatartás kialakításában és az önpusztító magatartás megelőzésében. Medicina Könyvkiadó. 2017.

Pauwlik Zs. O. Szubjektív értékkategóriák és vallásosság/spiritulitás, mint a mentális egészség meghatározó faktorai főiskolai hallgatóknál. Doktori (PhD) Értekezés, Debreceni Egyetem. 2008.

Underwood Lynn G. Teresi J.A. (2002) The Daily Spiritual Experience Scale: Development, Theoretical Description, Reliability, Exploratory Factor Analysis, and Preliminary Construct Validity Using Health Related Data. Ann Behav Med, 24(1): 22-33.

Underwood, LG. (2006) Ordinary Spiritual Experience: Qualitative Research, Interpretive Guidelines, and Population Distribution for the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale.”Archive for the Psychology of Religion/ Archiv für Religionspsychologie” Volume 28, Number 1, 2006, pp. 181-218.

Underwood LG. 2012. Using the Daily Spiritual Experience Scale to Improve Patient Care. ”Personality and Spirituality”. Normal and pathological personality between biological and spiritual dimension. Tirgu Mures. 30 May-2 June, 2012.