Is Spirituality Detrimental to Generativity?

Abstract

This article examines the relations between religiousness, spirituality, and generativity (concern for the welfare of future generations) in late adulthood using longitudinal life-course data. Religiousness and spirituality were operationalized as distinct but overlapping dimensions of individual difference measuring involvement in traditional and nontraditional religious practices, respectively. In late adulthood, both religiousness and spirituality correlated positively with overall scores on self-report and observer-based measures of generativity. However, whereas religiousness was significantly related to the communal facets of generativity, spirituality was significantly related to its self-expanding aspects. These differences were more pronounced after gender, cohort, social class, and the overlap between religiousness and spirituality were controlled. The respective relations among religiousness, spirituality, and generativity in late adulthood were also observed using religiousness scored in early, and spirituality scored in late-middle, adulthood.

New Spirituality and Social Engagement

“…In addition, we found a number of publications in which the criticism is referred to by authors who do not support it themselves (York, 1995;Wuthnow, 1998;Hedges and Beckford, 2000;Fuller, 2001;Marler and Hadaway, 2002;Dillon, Wink, and Fay, 2003;Possamai, 2005;Wink, Dillon, and Fay, 2005;Heelas, 2006Saroglou, 2006;Campbell, 2007;Chandler, 2008Chandler, , 2010Chandler, , 2011Oh and Sarkisian, 2012). We will focus on scholarly sources.…”

“…Other authors focus on the substance of the spirituality they study, and give a description of the views, experiences and practices of the people involved (Heelas, 1996;Possamai, 2005;Bloch, 1998). Those who undertake quantitative studies are likely to delimit their target group by including people who have a high affinity with a limited number of specified beliefs and practices (Dillon, Wink, and Fay, 2003;Wink, Dillon, and Fay, 2005;Höllinger, 2004;Farias and Lalljee, 2008). Farias and Lalljee (2008) recruited a group of visitors after a lecture in a New Age centre, obviously assuming a similarity in their spheres of interest; Höllinger (2004) selected groups of students on the basis of involvement in certain spiritual practices; De Hart (2011) did not construct a target group, but compared social engagement activities as related to a number of separate beliefs and activities associated with new spirituality.…”

Volunteering for Refugees and Asylum Seekers in Greece

“…A cultural capital perspective posits that religiosity provides an ethic of caring which reinforces the decision to volunteer (Wuthnow 2004). As most religions encourage altruistic values, highly religious individuals are more concerned with the welfare of others (Dillon et al 2003); therefore their value preferences are more compatible with volunteering. Previous research underpins that more religious individuals are more likely to be involved in volunteering than their secular counterparts (Wilson and Janoski 1995;Becker and Dhingra 2001;Musick and Wilson 2008;McNamara and Gonzales 2011).…”

Pro-Social Behavior: Contributions of Religiosity, Empathic Concern, and Spirituality

“…One is characterized by a highly individualistic position, mainly centered in Bseeking self-perfection^known as Bmodern spirituality^; and another rather highlights the active pursuit and the construction of meaning and transcendence with a sense of connection with each other and social responsibility. The latter is closer to religiosity and is rooted in pro-social values (Dillon et al 2003).Given this distinction, it is possible to observe differences in pro-social attitudes and benevolence, depending on the type of spirituality which modulates religious behavior. MacDonald (2000) points out that, except in cases in which spirituality emphasizes only personal experience and does not imply commitment and social practice (Belzen (2005) explains the difference), spirituality can exert influence on religiosity and promote help behavior, solidarity, and tolerance.…”

“…One is characterized by a highly individualistic position, mainly centered in Bseeking self-perfection^known as Bmodern spirituality^; and another rather highlights the active pursuit and the construction of meaning and transcendence with a sense of connection with each other and social responsibility. The latter is closer to religiosity and is rooted in pro-social values (Dillon et al 2003).…”