Brief Description

The Spiritual Well-Being Scale (SWBS) is a self-report instrument consisting of 20 statements developed by Paloutzian and Ellison (1982). It is one of the most widely used tools for assessing subjective well-being in relation to spirituality and religiosity. The SWBS evaluates two key dimensions: (a) Religious Well-Being, which refers to a person’s perceived relationship with God, and (b) Existential Well-Being, which relates to a sense of purpose and meaning in life, regardless of religious context.

Purpose

The purpose of the SWBS is to measure an individual’s subjective perception of life quality as it relates to spirituality. It explores how fulfilling, satisfying, and aligned with personal values one’s life is, as perceived through both religious and existential lenses. The scale is used in research, clinical, and counseling contexts.

Scoring Method

The SWBS includes 20 items rated on a 6-point Likert-type scale (1 = strongly disagree to 6 = strongly agree). Responses are used to calculate three scores: (a) Overall Spiritual Well-Being, (b) Religious Well-Being (e.g., “I feel that God loves me and cares about me personally”), and (c) Existential Well-Being (e.g., “I feel that my life has purpose and direction”). The overall score is obtained by summing the responses to all 20 items.

Validity

The SWBS demonstrates strong construct validity and correlates positively with variables such as life meaning, emotional health, and personal fulfillment. It has been used in over 300 research studies and translated into numerous languages, reflecting its conceptual stability across cultures. While it was not originally developed in Greek, various Greek translations and adaptations are widely used in research.

Reliability

The SWBS exhibits high reliability in terms of internal consistency and test-retest stability. Cronbach’s alpha values range from 0.86 to 0.98 for the Religious Well-Being subscale and from 0.78 to 0.86 for the Existential Well-Being subscale. The overall internal consistency ranges from 0.82 to 0.94, depending on the study and sample.

Data Analysis and Use

The SWBS has been applied in over 300 studies worldwide, involving diverse populations such as university students, individuals with chronic illnesses, older adults, and healthcare professionals. In Greece, it has been translated by three different psychologists and assessed for its psychometric properties, although it has not been formally standardized. SWBS data can be used to explore correlations with mental health indicators, life meaning, psychological resilience, and quality of life. It is suitable for use in counseling and research settings.

References

Bufford, R. K., Paloutzian, R. F., & Ellison, C. W. (1991). Norms for the Spiritual Well-Being Scale. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 19, 56–70.
Ellison, C. W. (1983). Spiritual well-being: Conceptualization and measurement. Journal of Psychology and Theology, 11, 330–340.
Genia, G. (2001). Does spirituality make a difference? Review of Religious Research, 42(4), 293–309.
Hammermeister, J., & Peterson, M. (2001). Does spirituality make a difference? Journal of Health Education, 32(5), 293–297.
Moberg, D. O. (1984). Subjective measures of spiritual well-being. Review of Religious Research, 25, 351–364.
Paloutzian, R. F., & Ellison, C. W. (1982). Loneliness, spiritual well-being and the quality of life. In L. A. Peplau & D. Perlman (Eds.), Loneliness: A sourcebook of current theory, research and therapy (pp. 224–236). New York: Wiley.