The Family's Influence on Religious Orientation of Women in Malaysia

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the family's influence on the religious orientation of women in Malaysia. In all, 276 Malay, 225 Chinese and 249 Indian women participated in the study. The study revealed three family-related variables, namely, expressiveness, conflict and moral-religious emphasis as having major influences on the religious orientation of the sample. Among the three cultural groups, Chinese respondents indicated extrinsic religious orientation, and the Malays and Indians revealed intrinsic religious orientation. The implications of these observations on social work are discussed.