Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Religious motivations for everyday goals: their religious context and potential consequences

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Motivation and Emotion Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The present studies explored different religious reasons for everyday goals. We proposed that religious reasons can include transcendental religious motivation (TRM, e.g. striving for spiritual communion with the transcendent) and normative religious motivation (NRM, e.g. following church norms). In the study, transcendental and normative religious motivation for personal projects was explored in three cross-sectional samples of Hungarian adults (Study 1, N = 158 and 224, Study 2, N = 512). In Study 1 TRM and NRM were found to be interrelated, however differently associated with constructs of religiosity (sanctification of projects, types of religious self-regulation, intrinsic-extrinsic religiosity, and basic religious attitudes). In Study 2, TRM was associated with autonomous regulation of personal projects while NRM was associated with controlled regulation. Moreover, path analysis showed that NRM predicted negatively and TRM predicted positively indices of well-being and that these links were partially mediated by regulation types. Results indicated that the description of religiosity on the level of everyday goals is a viable concept, although it cannot be treated as a uniform phenomenon. Further theoretical and practical implications of the results are discussed in terms of the link between forms of religiosity, everyday functioning and autonomy support.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Similarly, we ran these analyses in a subsample made up exclusively of participants who were Catholic. Once again, though, the results did not differ significantly from those presented.

References

  • Allport, G. W., & Ross, J. M. (1967). Personal religious orientation and prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 5, 423–443.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Austin, J. T., & Vancouver, J. B. (1996). Goal constructs in psychology: Structure, process, and content. Psychological Bulletin, 120, 338–375.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrett, D. W., Patock-Peckham, J. A., Hutchinson, G. T., & Nagoshi, C. T. (2005). Cognitive orientation and religious motivation. Personality and Individual Differences, 38, 461–474.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Chamberlain, K., & Zika, S. (1992). Religiosity, meaning in life and psychological well-being. In J. F. Schumaker (Ed.), Religion and mental health (pp. 138–148). New York: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Dezutter, J., Soenens, B., & Hutsebaut, D. (2006). Religiosity and mental health: A further exploration of the relative importance of religious behaviors vs religious attitudes. Personality and Individual Differences, 40, 807–818.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., & Clifton, D. (2002). Life satisfaction and religiosity in broad probability samples. Psychological Inquiry, 13, 206–209.

    Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., Emmons, R. A., Larsen, R. J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The satisfaction with life scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, 71–75.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Duriez, B. (2003). Vivisecting the religious mind: Religiosity and motivated social cognition. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 6, 79–86.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Duriez, B., Soenens, B., & Beyers, W. (2004). Personality, identity styles, and religiosity: An integrative study among late adolescents in Flanders (Belgium). Journal of Personality, 72, 877–910.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Emmons, R. A. (1996). Motives and life goals. In S. Briggs, R. Hogan, & J. A. Johnson (Eds.), Handbook of personality psychology (pp. 485–512). San Diego: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emmons, R. A. (1999). The psychology of ultimate concerns: Motivation and spirituality in personality. New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Emmons, R. A. (2005). Striving for the sacred: Personal goals, life meaning, and religion. Journal of Social Issues, 61, 731–745.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Emmons, R. A., Cheung, C., & Tehrani, K. (1998). Assessing spirituality through personal goals: Implications for research on religion and subjective well-being. Social Indicators Research, 45, 391–422.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Flere, S., & Lavric, M. (2008). Is intrinsic religious orientation a culturally specific American Protestant concept? The fusion of intrinsic and extrinsic religious orientation among non-Protestants. European Journal of Social Psychology, 38, 521–530.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fontaine, J. R. J., Duriez, B., Luyten, P., Corveleyn, J., & Hutsebaut, D. (2005). Consequences of a multi-dimensional approach to religion for the relationship between religiosity and value priorities. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 15, 123–143.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fontaine, J. R. J., Duriez, B., Luyten, P., & Hutsebaut, D. (2003). The internal structure of the Post-critical belief scale. Personality and Individual Differences, 35, 501–518.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • French, S., & Joseph, S. (1999). Religiosity and its association with happiness, purpose in life, and self-actualisation. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 2, 117.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Gorsuch, R. L. (1994). Toward motivational theories of intrinsic religious commitment. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 33, 315–325.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hackney, C. H., & Sanders, G. S. (2003). Religiosity and mental health: A meta-analysis of recent studies. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 42, 43–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, P. C., & Pargament, K. I. (2003). Advances in the conceptualization and measurement of religion and spirituality. American Psychologist, 58, 64–74.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Horváth-Szabó, K. (2003). Hazai vizsgálatok a Kritika Utáni Vallásosság skálával (The Hungarian version of the Post-critical belief scale). Magyar Pszichológiai Szemle, 58, 127–152.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hutsebaut, D. (1996). Post-Critical Belief: a new approach to the religious attitude problem. Journal of Empirical Theology, 9, 48–66.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, A., & Crandall, R. (1986). Validation of a short index of self-actualization. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 12, 63–73.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karoly, P. (1993). Mechanisms of self-regulation: A systems view. Annual Review of Psychology, 44, 23.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koenig, H. G., McCullough, M. E., & Larson, D. B. (2001). Handbook of religion and health. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koestner, R., Horberg, E. J., Gaudreau, P., Powers, T., Di Dio, P., Bryan, C., et al. (2006). Bolstering implementation plans for the long haul: The benefits of simultaneously boosting self-concordance or self-efficacy. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 1547–1558.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Konkolÿ Thege, B., Martos, T., Skrabski, Á., & Kopp, M. (2008). A Rövidített Stressz és Megküzdés Kérdőív élet értelmességét mérő alskálájának (BSCI-LM) pszichometriai jellemzői (Psychometric properties of the meaning in life subscale from the brief stress and coping inventory). Mentálhigiéné és Pszichoszomatika, 9, 243–261.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lewis, C. A., & Cruise, S. M. (2006). Religion and happiness: Consensus, contradictions, comments and concerns. Mental Health, Religion and Culture, 9, 213–225.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Little, B. R. (1983). Personal projects: A rationale and method for investigation. Environment and Behavior, 15, 273–309.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Little, B. R. (2007). Prompt and circumstances: The generative contexts of personal project analysis. In B. R. Little, K. Salmela-Aro, & S. D. Phillips (Eds.), Personal project pursuit. Goals, action and human flourishing (pp. 3–50). Mahwah: Lawrence Erlbaum.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mahoney, A., Pargament, K. I., Cole, B., Jewell, T., Magyar, G. M., Tarakeshwar, N., et al. (2005). A higher purpose: The sanctification of strivings in a community sample. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 15, 239–262.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mahoney, A., Pargament, K. I., & Demaris, A. (2009). Couples viewing marriage and pregnancy through the lens of the sacred: A descriptive study. Research in the Social Scientific Study of Religion, 20, 1–46.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maltby, J. (1999). The internal structure of a derived, revised, and amended measure of the religious orientation scale: The ‘age-universal’ I-E scale-12. Social Behavior and Personality: An International Journal, 27, 407–412.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Maltby, J. (2002). The age universal I-E scale-12 and orientation toward religion: Confirmatory factor analysis. Journal of Psychology, 136, 555–560.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Martos, T. (2009). Célok, tervek, törekvések II. A személyes célok és életcélok kapcsolata—módszertani kérdések és demonstráció (Goals, projects, strivings. II. Psychometric issues and empirical demonstration). Magyar Pszichológiai Szemle, 64, 573–592.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Martos, T., Kézdy, A., Robu, M., Urbán, S. Z., & Horváth-Szabó, K. (2009). Újabb adatok a Kritika Utáni Vallásosság Skála alkalmazásához—elmélet és módszertan. (New data for the application of the post critical belief scale–—heory and methodology). Magyar Pszichológiai Szemle, 64, 643–669.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McCullough, M. E., & Willoughby, B. L. B. (2009). Religion, self-regulation, and self-control: associations, explanations and implications. Psychological Bulletin, 135, 69–93.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miquelon, P., & Vallerand, R. (2006). Goal motives, well-being, and physical health: Happiness and self-realization as psychological resources under challenge. Motivation and Emotion, 30, 259–272.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Neyrinck, B., Lens, W., & Vansteenkiste, M. (2005). Goals and regulations of religiosity: A motivational analysis. In M. L. Maehr & S. Karabenick (Eds.), Advances in motivation and achievement (pp. 75–103). Greenwich: Jai Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Neyrinck, B., Vansteenkiste, M., Lens, W., Duriez, B., & Hutsebaut, D. (2006). Cognitive, affective and behavioral correlates of internalization of regulations for religious activities. Motivation and Emotion, 30, 321–332.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • O’Connor, B. P., & Vallerand, R. J. (1990). Religious motivation in the elderly: A French-Canadian replication and an extension. Journal of Social Psychology, 130, 53–59.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Pargament, K. I., & Mahoney, A. (2005). Sacred matters: Sanctification as a vital topic for the psychology of religion. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 15, 179–198.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Park, C. L. (2005). Religion and meaning. In R. F. Paloutzian & C. L. Park (Eds.), Handbook of the psychology of religion and spirituality (pp. 295–314). Guilford Press: New York.

    Google Scholar 

  • Preacher, K. J., & Hayes, A. F. (2008). Asymptotic and resampling strategies for assessing and comparing indirect effects in multiple mediator models. Behavior Research Methods, 40, 879–891.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rahe, R. H., & Tolles, R. L. (2002). The Brief Stress and Coping Inventory: A useful stress management instrument. International Journal of Stress Management, 9, 61–70.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Richards, P. S., & Bergin, A. E. (2002). A spiritual strategy for counseling and psychotherapy. Wasgington: American Psychological Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rózsa, S., Kő, N., Csoboth, C. S., Purebl, G. Y., Beöthy-Molnár, A., Szebik, I., et al. (2005). Stressz és megküzdés. A Rahe-féle Rövidített Stressz és Megküzdés Kérdőívvel szerzett hazai eredmények ismertetése (Stress and coping. First results with the Rahe Brief Stress and Coping Inventory). Mentálhigiéné és Pszichoszomatika, 6, 275–294.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ryan, R. M., Rigby, S., & King, K. (1993). Two types of religious internalization and their relations to religious orientations and mental health. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 65, 586–596.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ryff, C. D., & Singer, B. (1998). The role of purpose in life and personal growth in positive human functioning. In P. T. P. Wong & P. S. Fry (Eds.), The human quest for meaning. A handbook of psychological research and clinical applications (pp. 213–235). Mahwah, N.J: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sheldon, K. M. (2001). The self-concordance model of healthy goal striving: When personal goals correctly represent the person. In P. Schmuck & K. M. Sheldon (Eds.), Life-goals and well being. Towards a positive psychology of human striving (pp. 18–36). Seattle: Hogrefe and Huber.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sheldon, K. M. (2006). Catholic guilt? Comparing Catholics’ and Protestants’ religious motivations. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 16, 209–223.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sheldon, K. M., & Kasser, T. (1995). Coherence and congruence: Two aspects of personality integration. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 68, 531–543.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Silberman, I. (2003). Spiritual role modeling: The teaching of meaning systems. International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 13, 175.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Silberman, I., Higgins, E. T., & Dweck, C. S. (2005). Religion and world change: Violence and terrorism versus peace. Journal of Social Issues, 61, 761–784.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Spence, G., Lindsay, G. O., & Caputi, P. (2004). Trait emotional intelligence and goal self-integration: Important predictors of emotional well-being? Personality and Individual Differences, 37, 449–461.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steger, M. F., & Frazier, P. (2005). Meaning in life: One link in the chain from religiousness to well-being. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52, 574–582.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tix, A. P., & Frazier, P. A. (2005). Mediation and moderation of the relationship between intrinsic religiousness and mental health. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 31, 295–306.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

This research was partly supported by the Hungarian Scientific Research Fund (OTKA) under the grant numbers T042574 and K 68019.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Psychology, Pázmány Péter Catholic University, Piliscsaba, Hungary

    Tamás Martos, Anikó Kézdy & Katalin Horváth-Szabó

  2. Institute of Mental Health, Semmelweis University, 1086, Budapest, Hungary

    Tamás Martos

  3. Department of Psychology, Sapientia College of Theology, Budapest, Hungary

    Anikó Kézdy & Katalin Horváth-Szabó

Authors
  1. Tamás Martos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Anikó Kézdy
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Katalin Horváth-Szabó
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Tamás Martos.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

Martos, T., Kézdy, A. & Horváth-Szabó, K. Religious motivations for everyday goals: their religious context and potential consequences. Motiv Emot 35, 75–88 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-010-9198-1

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-010-9198-1

Keywords

Search

Navigation