Personality dimensions and religiosity among Kuwaiti Muslim college students

The aim of the present study was to examine the association between Eysenck’s personality dimensions and religiosity. A sample of 227 Kuwaiti Muslim undergraduates completed the Arabic versions of the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, and the Muslim Attitude towards Religiosity Scale. Men obtained significantly higher mean scores on psychoticism than did their female counterparts and the effect size was medium. Religiosity significantly correlated with psychoticism (negative) and lie (positive) among men and women. In addition, religiosity significantly correlated with extraversion (positive) and neuroticism (negative) in women. The only predictor of religiosity was low psychoticism in men and women. The results were discussed in the light of religion of Islam. Most results of the present study reflect previous findings using participants from other religions.     

Domain and facet personality correlates of religiosity among Iranian college students

The purpose of the present study was to examine the relation of religion, defined in terms of Islamic Shiite creeds/rituals, Islamic Shiite morals, inclusion of transcendence, and symbolic processing, to the five-factor model of personality at the domain and facet levels as measured by the Revised NEO Personality Inventory using a religiously homogeneous sample of 359 Iranian college students. Results indicated that all five Revised NEO Personality Inventory domains are significantly related to religion as measured across all four operationalizations of the construct used, though some sex differences were observed. Our findings support but also elaborate previous findings regarding the relation of Agreeableness and Conscientiousness to religion by demonstrating that facets of these domains are selectively associated with some indices of religion but not others. Angry Hostility was a negative predictor of Islamic morals. Warmth predicted Islamic creeds/rituals and Inclusion of Transcendence. Ideas was a positive predictor of symbolic processing and Islamic morals. Fantasy was a positive predictor of symbolic processing but a negative predictor of Islamic creeds/rituals and Inclusion of Transcendence. The present findings are in agreement with the necessity of considering multidimensional measures of religiosity and providing evidence in support of the construct validity of the Post Criticical Belief Scale and the Islamic Religious Orientation Scale. Implications of the present findings are discussed in relation to the differential and in some cases substantial association of religion indices with personality. Limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are also overviewed.     

Trait anxiety among students in a college golf class

This study examined trait anxiety among students (N=80) participating in a beginning golf activity class. Analysis showed no differences in anxiety scores by sex or playing experience; however, performance differences were noted as students with moderate scores performed better on golf evaluations than did those with high anxiety scores. Research should be directed to assess students' perceptions of anxiety and its effects.     

Subjective well-being and religiosity in Egyptian college students

A sample of 224 Egyptian college students (101 men, 123 women) was recruited. Their ages ranged from 17 to 29 years (M = 18.9, SD = 1.5). They responded to the Arabic versions of the Oxford Happiness Inventory, the Love of Life Scale, and the Satisfaction with Life Scale, as well as five separate single-item self-rating scales assessing physical health, mental health, happiness, satisfaction, and religiosity. All correlations between the measures and rating scales of subjective well-being and religiosity were statistically significant and positive, the largest between satisfaction and religiosity. Only one factor was retained in principal components factor analysis of the correlation matrix and labeled "Well-being and religiosity." It was concluded that religious persons in the present sample reported higher subjective well-being.     

Culturally related anxiety and ethnic identity in Navajo college students

The Cultural Involvement and Detachment Anxiety Questionnaire (D. W. McNeil, C. A. Porter, M. J. Zvolensky, & J. M. Chaney, 1998) and the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (J. S. Phinney, 1992) were administered to 160 Navajo college students to explore the relation between ethnic identity and culturally related anxiety, compare level of ethnic identity in reference to standardized samples, and test for gender differences. Correlations indicated a notable lack of relation between ethnic identity and cultural anxiety. This particular Navajo sample evidenced significantly higher levels of ethnic identity in comparison to students of Caucasian, Asian, Hispanic, or mixed ethnicity. There were no significant gender differences in culturally related anxiety. Results are discussed in relation to culturally related anxiety and ethnic identity in the Navajo, with implications for better understanding the nature of cultural anxiety in other American Indians and Alaska Natives.     

Relation of depression and anxiety to personal and academic problems among Iranian college students

This study investigated the role of anxiety and depression in students' adjustment to family and campus life. The Cognition Checklist and a problem questionnaire were given to 1,452 college students (998 men, 454 women). Analysis showed that off-campus students were significantly less depressed and anxious. These college students were worried about jobs and marriage. Feelings of anxiousness and worry were reported; sex differences on depression scores were not significant.     

Culture-specific personality correlates of anxiety among Chinese and Caucasian college students

The present study investigated the relationship between a set of personality constructs (i.e. perfectionism, independent-interdependent self-construal, and collective self-esteem) and trait and social anxiety among 324 Mainland Chinese and 333 Caucasian college students. It was hypothesized that the strength of the correlation between these personality factors and anxiety would be different for the two samples. The results indicated that socially prescribed perfectionism was a better predictor of social anxiety for the Chinese participants, but of trait anxiety for the Caucasian participants. Independent self-construal predicted social anxiety better for the Caucasians than for the Chinese. Overall, aspects of collective self-esteem were more correlated with anxiety among the Chinese than the Caucasians. The authors argued that the findings can be used to improve multicultural counselling in China and the USA and to provide more culturally specific interventions to clients having anxiety disorders.     

Reasons to attend college among ethnically diverse college students

A survey of 713 ethnically diverse university freshmen (463 Latino, 167 Asian American, 54 African American, 29 European American) assessed reasons for attending college, ethnic identity, family interdependence, and college adjustment. Results revealed three reasons for attending college not reported in previous research: to help one's family, to prove one's self-worth, and because of encouragement. Attending college to help the family was stronger among students from lower socioeconomic status backgrounds. Ethnic identity and family interdependence contributed positively to some reasons for attending college, but did not mediate ethnic differences; with cultural factors and socioeconomic status included as predictors, ethnic minority students still gave greater importance to family oriented motives than did European Americans. Career/personal and humanitarian motives contributed positively to college adjustment.     

Mother-blaming among college students

The purpose of this study was to examine the tendency for mother-blaming among college students to determine if such a bias existed outside the clinical profession. The subjects were 49 men and 50 women at a small private university, who were asked to attribute responsibility for 45 behavioral and personal-psychological problems to one of the following targets: Father, Individual, Mother, and Society. Analysis showed Individual receiving most attributions, followed by Society, Mother, and Father, in that order. Relatively more problems are blamed on Mother than on Father, with a tendency to blame mothers for emotional problems such as dependency and shyness and fathers for behavioral-physiological problems such as child abuse and alcoholism. Intercorrelations of the number of attributions made to different targets clearly suggest that there are parent-blamers, society-blamers, and individual-blamers. Implications of blame attribution for mental health are acknowledged.     

Correlates of separation anxiety symptoms among first-semester college students: an exploratory study

Separation anxiety disorder (SAD) is rarely considered in college students with anxious symptomatology, but a growing body of evidence suggests that its symptoms are experienced by a significant number of young adults. The authors examined separation anxiety symptoms in a group of first-semester college students living on campus and experiencing extended separation from significant others, generally for the first time. They examined prevalence of separation anxiety symptoms among college students and the relationship between separation anxiety symptoms and students' educational decisions and performance. Results showed that 21% of first-semester college students reported symptoms of separation anxiety. In addition, separation anxiety symptoms were related to childhood SAD, panic attacks, and educational decisions. Results suggest that SAD may be a valid diagnosis in college students and may impact their educational choices and experiences.     

Relation of religiosity with academic dishonesty in a sample of college students

This study was conducted to estimate the relationship between academic dishonesty and religiosity in a convenient sample of college students. Scores on the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire and the Academic Practices Survey were correlated for 70 undergraduate students. Overall, religiosity and academic dishonesty were not significantly related. However, follow-up analyses by sex indicated that this association was significant for women but not men. Research should be conducted to investigate whether this pattern is robust and indicates a differing role for religiosity as a standard for appropriate or inappropriate behavior.     

The association of Big Five personality traits and religiosity on Internet addiction among Israeli-Palestinian Muslim college students in Israel

ABSTRACT

Prior studies have demonstrated that personality traits and religiosity may be protective/risk factors for the development of Internet addiction; however, these associations have not been examined among the unique population of Israeli-Palestinian young adults. This study was the first to investigate the relationships between Internet addiction (Internet Addiction Test; IAT) with the Big Five personality traits (Big Five Personality Trait Short Questionnaire; BFPTSQ) and religiosity (Positions Regarding Religion Questionnaire) among a sample of Israeli-Palestinian Muslim college students (n?=?350). IAT scores were positively associated with BFPTSQ openness (r?=?.33, p?<?.01), BFPTSQ extraversion (r?=?.30, p?<?.01), and BFPTSQ agreeableness (r?=?.36, p?<?.01), whereas IAT scores were negatively related to religiosity (r?=??.46, p?<?.01), BFPTSQ conscientiousness (r?=??.33, p?<?.01), and BFPTSQ emotional stability (r?=??.36, p?<?.01). The present work may provide insight into risk factors for developing Internet addiction in a manner that may increase early identification and intervention efforts.     

Religiousness,religious coping methods,and cognitive test anxiety among African-American college students

This study explored the roles of religiousness and religious coping methods in predicting cognitive test anxiety. A convenience sample of 121 African-American students (97 females and 24 males) ranging in age from 18 to 39 (M_age?=?20.16), attending a historically Black university completed an online questionnaire assessing demographic information, religiousness, religious coping methods, and cognitive test anxiety. Results showed that negative religious coping methods were significant factors in predicting cognitive test anxiety. These relationships may be pertinent for understanding salient factors that influence cognitive test anxiety in African-American college students.     

Dating jealousy among college students

In a study of dating jealousy, questionnaires were administered to 147 male and 189 female college students. Subjects were asked to rate how they would feel about their dating partner's behavior in five hypothetical situations designed to measure jealousy. Results indicate that females are more jealous than males over situations involving the partner spending time on a hobby or with family members, but other situations evoke no sex differences. Sex-role orientation is the variable most consistently related to dating jealousy, with sex-role traditional subjects being the most jealous. A significant proportion of subjects expect dating partners to give up close personal friendships with others of the opposite sex, and most subjects begin to expect sexual exclusiveness from the earliest stages of their relationships.     

Factors related to reductions in alcohol consumption among college students: The role of religious involvement

College students most at risk for engaging in binge drinking are members of Greek organizations and athletic teams (Grenier, Borskey, & Folse, 1998; Wechsler, Dowdall, Davenport, & Castillo, 1995). Membership in religious organizations may moderate binge drinking (O'Hare, 1990). One hundred thirty-nine college students completed the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey (Presley, Meilman, & Lyerla, 1994), the Group Identification Scale (Hinkle, Taylor, Fox-Cardamone, & Crook, 1989), and the ‘Age-Universal’ I-E - 12 (Maltby, 1999). The results indicate that gender is related to average number of drinks per week. Membership in low alcohol consumption organizations was related to decreases in the frequency of alcohol usage within the previous year, which indicates that decreasing alcohol consumption may be more effective by promoting low alcohol consumption organizations.     

Factors related to reductions in alcohol consumption among college students: The role of religious involvement

College students most at risk for engaging in binge drinking are members of Greek organizations and athletic teams (Grenier, Borskey, & Folse, 1998; Wechsler, Dowdall, Davenport, & Castillo, 1995). Membership in religious organizations may moderate binge drinking (O'Hare, 1990). One hundred thirty-nine college students completed the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey (Presley, Meilman, & Lyerla, 1994), the Group Identification Scale (Hinkle, Taylor, Fox-Cardamone, & Crook, 1989), and the ‘Age-Universal’ I-E - 12 (Maltby, 1999). The results indicate that gender is related to average number of drinks per week. Membership in low alcohol consumption organizations was related to decreases in the frequency of alcohol usage within the previous year, which indicates that decreasing alcohol consumption may be more effective by promoting low alcohol consumption organizations.     

Generalized expectancies for negative mood regulation predict change in anxiety and depression among college students

Negative mood regulation (NMR) expectancies, or the beliefs held by individuals that, when faced with various manifestations of stress and negative affect, they can successfully cope with such mood states, have proven to be a most useful construct in the context of better understanding self-regulatory processes. In the present prospective study, we examined the predictive utility of NMR expectancies with respect to its ability to predict residual change in both depressive and anxiety symptoms over an 8-week timeframe in a sample of 322 college students. Initial correlational analyses revealed that, as anticipated, NMR expectancies were negatively correlated with depressive and anxiety symptomatology, as well as with maladaptive coping style. Conversely, NMR expectancies were positively associated with self-reported adaptive coping. A series of hierarchical regression analyses revealed that, even when controlling for age, sex, baseline levels of affective distress (depression or anxiety), and coping styles, NMR expectancies predicted change in both depressive and anxiety symptomatology. Implications of the findings pertinent to theory building and testing are discussed.