Norms for the Spiritual Weil-Being Scale

TLDR

No norms or descriptive data for the Spiritual Well‑Being Scale have been published, leaving a gap in its application. The authors constructed the Spiritual Well‑Being Scale to measure the spiritual dimension of quality of life and subjective well‑being. The scale assesses well‑being across physical, mental, psychological, and assertiveness domains. The scale demonstrates good reliability and validity, but in evangelical samples it yields ceiling effects, limiting its usefulness for distinguishing individuals, though it remains valuable as a research tool and global index of lack of well‑being.

Abstract

As part of the growing interest in quality of life and subjective well-being, the Spiritual Well-Being Scale was constructed to measure the spiritual dimension. Research has shown good reliability for the scale and has provided encouraging support for its validity. It indicates well-being in a variety of spheres, including physical and mental health, psychological adjustment, and assertiveness. However, no norms have been published and little descriptive data have been readily available for the scale. Test-retest and internal consistency reliability coefficients and descriptive data are presented for several religious, student, and client groups. In evangelical samples the typical individual gets the maximum score; thus, the scale is not useful in distinguishing among individuals for purposes such as selection of spiritual leaders. The scale is currently useful for research and as a global index of lack of well-being.