Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

The Altruism Trait: The Role of Religiousness

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Journal of Religion and Health Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

The aim of this study was to investigate the role of religiousness in predicting the altruism in students at Islamic Azad University of Neyshabur. The statistical population of this study included all students who studying at Islamic Azad University of Neyshabur in 2016–2017 academic years. Among them, 150 subjects were selected based on stratified sampling method upon humanities, science, engineering, physical education and medical fields. To collect the data, participants were administered Glock and Stark’s religiousness scale (Religion and society in tension, Chicago, Rand McNally, Skokie, 1965) and Rushton, Chrisjohn and Fekken’s altruism scale. The results indicated that the religiousness could predict the altruism. Regarding the findings of this study, religiosity is good predictor for altruistic behaviors in young adults. The results show that considering moral and spiritual issues can have a positive effect on altruism as a trait.

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

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Amini, F., Doodman, P., Edalati, A., Abbasi, Z., & Redzuan, M. R. (2014). A study on the relationship between religiosity and forgiveness among students. Applied Science Reports, 5(3), 131–134. https://doi.org/10.15192/PSCP.ASR.2014.1.3.131134.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baier, C. J., & Wright, B. R. (2001). “If you love me, keep my commandments”: A meta-analysis of the effect of religion on crime. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 38(1), 3–21.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bolghan-Abadi, M., Ghofrani, F., & Abde-Khodaei, M. S. (2014). Study of the spiritual intelligence role in predicting university students’ quality of life. Journal of Religion and Health, 53(1), 79–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bolghan-Abadi, M., & Zarghi, M. (2017). The relationship between parenting styles, religiousness and Altruism. (M.A.), Islamic Azad University, Neyshabur Branch, Neyshabur.

  • Camerer, C. F. (2011). Behavioral game theory: Experiments in strategic interaction. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • de Kemp, R. A., Overbeek, G., de Wied, M., Engels, R. C., & Scholte, R. H. (2007). Early adolescent empathy, parental support, and antisocial behavior. The Journal of Genetic Psychology, 168(1), 5–18.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Decety, J., Cowell, J. M., Lee, K., Mahasneh, R., Malcolm-Smith, S., Selcuk, B., et al. (2015). The negative association between religiousness and children’s altruism across the world. Current Biology, 25(22), 2951–2955.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Dillon, M., Wink, P., & Fay, K. (2003). Is spirituality detrimental to generativity? Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 42(3), 427–442.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Donahue, M. J., & Benson, P. L. (1995). Religion and the well-being of adolescents. Journal of Social Issues, 51(2), 145–160.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Furrow, J. L., King, P. E., & White, K. (2004). Religion and positive youth development: Identity, meaning, and prosocial concerns. Applied Developmental Science, 8(1), 17–26.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Glock, C. Y., & Stark, R. (1965). Religion and society in tension. Skokie, IL: Chicago, Rand McNally.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, J., & Haidt, J. (2010). Beyond beliefs: Religions bind individuals into moral communities. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 14(1), 140–150.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heath, A. C., Madden, P. A., Grant, J. D., McLaughlin, T. L., Todorov, A. A., & Bucholz, K. K. (1999). Resiliency factors protecting against teenage alcohol use and smoking: Influences of religion, religious involvement and values, and ethnicity in the Missouri Adolescent Female Twin Study. Twin Research and Human Genetics, 2(2), 145–155.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, B. R., Jang, S. J., Larson, D. B., & De Li, S. (2001). Does adolescent religious commitment matter? A reexamination of the effects of religiosity on delinquency. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 38(1), 22–44.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jolliffe, D., & Farrington, D. P. (2007). Examining the relationship between low empathy and self-reported offending. Legal and Criminological Psychology, 12(2), 265–286.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kendler, K. S., Liu, X.-Q., Gardner, C. O., McCullough, M. E., Larson, D., & Prescott, C. A. (2003). Dimensions of religiosity and their relationship to lifetime psychiatric and substance use disorders. American Journal of Psychiatry, 160(3), 496–503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Koenig, L. B., McGue, M., Krueger, R. F., & Bouchard, T. J. (2005). Genetic and environmental influences on religiousness: Findings for retrospective and current religiousness ratings. Journal of Personality, 73(2), 471–488.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Markstrom, C. A., Huey, E., Stiles, B. M., & Krause, A. L. (2010). Frameworks of caring and helping in adolescence: Are empathy, religiosity, and spirituality related constructs? Youth & Society, 42(1), 59–80.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Mason, W. A., & Windle, M. (2002). A longitudinal study of the effects of religiosity on adolescent alcohol use and alcohol-related problems. Journal of Adolescent Research, 17(4), 346–363.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Morgan, S. P. (1983). A research note on religion and morality: Are religious people nice people? Social Forces, 61(3), 683–692.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oswald, P. A. (2000). Subtle sex bias in empathy and helping behavior. Psychological Reports, 87(2), 545–551.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Reti, I. M., Samuels, J., Eaton, W., Bienvenu Iii, O., Costa, P., Jr., & Nestadt, G. (2002). Adult antisocial personality traits are associated with experiences of low parental care and maternal overprotection. Acta Psychiatrica Scandinavica, 106(2), 126–133.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Rhee, S. H., & Waldman, I. D. (2002). Genetic and environmental influences on antisocial behavior: A meta-analysis of twin and adoption studies. Psychological Bulletin, 128(3), 490.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rushton, J. P., Chrisjohn, R. D., & Fekken, G. C. (1981). The altruistic personality and the self-report altruism scale. Personality and Individual Differences, 2(4), 293–302.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saroglou, V. (2010). Religiousness as a cultural adaptation of basic traits: A five-factor model perspective. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 14(1), 108–125.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saroglou, V. (2013). Religion, spirituality, and altruism. In K. I. Pargament, J. J. Exline, & J. W. Jones (Eds.), APA handbook of psychology, religion and spirituality (Vol. 1, pp. 439–457). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Saroglou, V., Pichon, I., Trompette, L., Verschueren, M., & Dernelle, R. (2005). Prosocial behavior and religion: New evidence based on projective measures and peer ratings. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 44(3), 323–348.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shafranske, E. P. (1996). Religion and the clinical practice of psychology. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Smith, T. W. (2009). Loving and caring in the United States: Trends and correlates of empathy, altruism, and related constructs. In B. Fehr, S. Sprecher, & L. G. Underwood (Eds.), The science of compassionate love: Theory, research, and applications (pp. 79–119). Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.

    Google Scholar 

  • Soenens, B., Duriez, B., Vansteenkiste, M., & Goossens, L. (2007). The intergenerational transmission of empathy-related responding in adolescence: The role of maternal support. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 33(3), 299–311.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verona, E., Hicks, B. M., & Patrick, C. J. (2005). Psychopathy and suicidality in female offenders: Mediating influences of personality and abuse. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 73(6), 1065.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Verona, E., & Sachs-Ericsson, N. (2005). The intergenerational transmission of externalizing behaviors in adult participants: The mediating role of childhood abuse. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 73(6), 1135.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Funding

Islamic Azad University, Neyshabur Branch.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Neyshabur Branch, Islamic Azad University, Neyshabur, Iran

    Masoumeh Zarghi

  2. Young Researcher and Elite Club, Neyshabur Branch, Islamic Azad University, Neyshabur, Iran

    Mustafa Bolghan-Abadi

Authors
  1. Masoumeh Zarghi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Mustafa Bolghan-Abadi
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mustafa Bolghan-Abadi.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all participants included in the study. After the initial interview with the participants, they were asked to complete an informed consent form. Participants were guaranteed that all their information would be kept confidential and will be identified with a code only available to the first author. They were also told they could stop answering the questionnaire package at any time they desire. All questionnaires were then kept in a locker at the University.

Additional information

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Zarghi, M., Bolghan-Abadi, M. The Altruism Trait: The Role of Religiousness. J Relig Health 60, 684–691 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-019-00900-z

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10943-019-00900-z

Keywords

Search

Navigation