Preliminary exploration of the Measurement of Diverse Adolescent Spirituality (MDAS) among Mexican youth

ABSTRACT

In the current article we propose and offer a preliminary test of an ecologically sensitive theoretical and methodological framework for understanding diverse adolescent spiritual development. The study summarizes the initial stages of development of the Measurement of Diverse Adolescent Spirituality (MDAS) that assesses three dimensions of spirituality: transcendence, fidelity, and contribution. We report our procedures and findings from an initial effort to contextualize the measure and validate the resulting scales with youth in Tijuana, Mexico. In the current study, 391 (211 females, M age = 13.78 years old) Mexican youth completed a self-report survey including the MDAS and measures of prosocial tendencies, daily spiritual experiences, and intrinsic religious motivation. Exploratory and confirmatory factor models, reliability, and structural analysis affirm the MDAS as a valid and reliable multidimensional measure of adolescent spirituality within the tested sample. Implications for further study of adolescent spiritual development and culturally valid research methods are discussed.

Acknowledgments

We are grateful for the collaboration of Lisa Criswell at Fuller Theological Seminary and Paul Stephenson and Osvaldo Benitez at World Vision International.

Notes

¹Although the measure was conceptualized for and derived from adolescents, we note that the measure may in fact be relevant to adult populations. The psychological capacities required for identity formation, purpose, fidelity, and sustained commitment to others are generally found to take shape during adolescence and are probably relevant throughout adulthood. This is not to say that spirituality is not pertinent during childhood when children demonstrate the capacity to apprehend the supernatural and experience at least “horizontal transcendence” (see P. E. King & Boyatzis, 2015), but the constructs measured in this model more typically emerge with the cognitive and emotional capacities associated with adolescence (Good & Willoughby, 2008; Warren et al., 2011).