Spirituality and Academic Performance among African American College Students

Abstract

This study examines spirituality and religious participation among African American and European American college students. Although the terms spirituality and religious participation have been used interchangeably in some research literature, this study measured them as two distinct constructs. Of particular interest was the relationship between these variables and academic performance. A questionnaire developed by the research team was administered to 192 (109 European American, 83 African American) college students. Findings were consistent with previous research suggesting that African Americans have higher levels of spiritual beliefs and religious participation than European Americans do. Correlation analyses suggested that spiritual beliefs and religious participation were positively related to academic performance for both groups; however, pattern of the relationship was different. Beliefs and participation were salient for African Americans, whereas participation was salient for European Americans. The study raises the important questions of how to incorporate spirituality into programming as well as treatment and interventions.