Giving Back and Growing in Service: Investigating Spirituality,Religiosity, and Generativity in Young Adults

Generativity investigations have explored the manner by which adults derive meaning and fulfillment from their life activities (e.g., Erikson in Identity, youth, and crisis W.W. Norton & Company Inc.,NY, 1968; McAdams and Logan in American Psychological Association, 15–31, 2004). Faith and religious practice have often been central features of adult meaning making, yet the relationship between one’s spiritual identity and one’s generative concern or activities has received only limited investigation. Lesser still has been investigated examining the degree to which young adults demonstrate generative concern. The current study examined the relationship between aspects of faith (religiosity and spirituality) and generativity (concern and action). A sample of 94 undergraduates from a religiously affiliated college were recruited through door-to-door invitation and were surveyed using a new measure of religiosity (Steger and Frazier in Journal of Counseling Psychology 52(4):574–582, 2005) and two measures of generativity (Loyola Generativity Scale and Generative Behavior Checklist, McAdams et al. 1992). Support was found for a relationship between spirituality and generative concern. These findings are discussed in relation to recent demographic shifts and are compared with earlier work investigating secular spiritual trends on generativity (e.g., Dillon and Wink in The generative society American Psychological Association Press, Washington, DC, 153–174, 2004).