Description

The “Nearness to God Scale” (NGS) is a tool designed to assess the degree of closeness or connection an individual feels with God or a divine presence. The scale focuses on the subjective experience of nearness or distance from the divine, as experienced by the individual. It includes questions or statements related to the sense of God’s presence in the participant’s life, spiritual experiences, and personal relationships with the divine.

Purpose

The main goals of the Nearness to God Scale are:
To measure the sense of closeness with God: To evaluate how participants perceive their connection with God and how this sense affects their spiritual life.
To examine the relationship between nearness to God and other psychological and spiritual parameters: To understand how the sense of closeness impacts emotional well-being, religious satisfaction, and other aspects of spiritual life.
To analyze variations: To explore whether there are differences in the sense of nearness to God between different groups, e.g., based on religious identity, spiritual development, or personal experience.

Analysis

The analysis of the results from the Nearness to God Scale includes:
Analysis of Statements/Questions: Examining the responses to understand how participants express their sense of nearness to God.
Emotional and Spiritual Analysis: Studying the emotional and spiritual reactions associated with participants’ responses, such as the sense of God’s presence and its impact on their lives.
Statistical Analysis: Using quantitative methods such as factor structure analysis or correlation analysis to understand the relationships between the sense of nearness and other variables, e.g., emotional well-being or religious satisfaction.

Scoring

The scoring of the Nearness to God Scale includes:
Content Validity: Ensuring that the questions adequately cover the concept of nearness to God as experienced by the participants.
Internal Consistency: Evaluating the consistency of the questions using indicators like Cronbach’s alpha to determine the reliability of the scale.
Criterion Validity: Analyzing the relationship of the results with other relevant measures or criteria that can confirm the scale’s validity.
Test-Retest Reliability: Examining the stability of results over different time points to determine the reliability of the scale.

Bibliography

Pargament, K. I. (2007). Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy: Understanding and Addressing the Sacred. New York: Guilford Press.
Emmons, R. A., & Paloutzian, R. F. (2003). “The Role of Religion and Spirituality in Psychological Well-Being.” Handbook of Psychology and Religion. New York: Guilford Press.
Koenig, H. G. (2012). Spirituality and Health Research: Methods and Reviews. New York: Routledge.
Hill, P. C., & Pargament, K. I. (2003). “Advances in the Conceptualization and Measurement of Religion and Spirituality.” American Psychologist, 58(1), 64-74.