Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Dissertations Graduate Research 2018 Religiosity and Ethnic Identity as Predictors of Identity Orientation Among African American and Caucasian American Women Helen N. Rolle Andrews University, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations Part of the Multicultural Psychology Commons, and the Women's Studies Commons Recommended Citation Rolle, Helen N., "Religiosity and Ethnic Identity as Predictors of Identity Orientation Among African American and Caucasian American Women" (2018). Dissertations. 1659. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dissertations/1659 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. ABSTRACT RELIGIOSITY AND ETHNIC IDENTITY AS PREDICTORS OF IDENTITY ORIENTATION AMONG AFRICAN AMERICAN AND CAUCASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN by Helen N. Rolle Chair: Carole Woolford-Hunt ABSTRACT OF GRADUATE STUDENT RESEARCH Dissertation Andrews University School of Education Title: RELIGIOSITY AND ETHNIC IDENTITY AS PREDICTORS OF IDENTITY ORIENTATION AMONG AFRICAN AMERICAN AND CAUCASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN Name of researcher: Helen N. Rolle Name and degree of faculty chair: Carole Woolford-Hunt, Ph.D. Date Completed: July 2018 Problem Research on the role of religion and ethnicity in the identity orientation of women has been largely neglected in psychology for many years. While previous identity studies have attempted to examine a range of variables as it relates to the general population, how women specifically experience identity based on their gender has not been included, resulting in gaps in the research literature. The present study is intended to add to the literature by focusing on the contributing factors of religiosity and ethnic identity to identity orientation and compare how they vary among African American and Caucasian American women. Method This study used the Aspects of Identity Questionnaire IV (AIQ-IV), the Brief Religiosity Scale 6 (BRS-6), and the Multigroup Ethnic Identity Measure (MEIM) to examine the relationships between the variables. A non-experimental, correlational survey research design was used to examine the personal, social, collective and relational factors of Identity Orientation. To store and organize the data, as well as generate descriptive statistics, the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS21) was used. To test the research hypothesis and perform structural equation modeling (SEM), IBM SPSS21 Amos 21 (Arbuckle, 2012) was used. Results The hypothesized structural equation model suggested a good fit with collected data. Therefore no respecifications of the model was warranted. Religiosity had a moderate impact on identity orientation in the full sample. The original model was also assessed to examine differences between African American women and Caucasian American women. The model achieved a good fit for African American women, as well as for Caucasian American women. When comparing the two groups, religiosity was found to have approximately three times as much impact on the identity orientation of African American Women than Caucasian American women. Conclusions This study demonstrated that religiosity and ethnic identity contribute to identity orientation. It also demonstrated that religiosity explains a moderate amount of the variance in identity orientation. Findings indicated variations according to ethnicity. These findings have implications for the field of counseling psychology, and for researchers studying identity orientation. In particular, this study suggested that the contribution of religiosity to the identity orientation may be an important target of clinical intervention. Andrews University School of Education RELIGIOSITY AND ETHNIC IDENTITY AS PREDICTORS OF IDENTITY ORIENTATION AMONG AFRICAN AMERICAN AND CAUCASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN A Dissertation Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Philosophy by Helen N. Rolle July 2018 ©Copyright by Helen N. Rolle 2018 All Rights Reserved RELIGIOSITY AND ETHNIC IDENTITY AS PREDICTORS OF IDENTITY ORIENTATION AMONG AFRICAN AMERICAN AND CAUCASIAN AMERICAN WOMEN A dissertation presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Philosophy by Helen N. Rolle APPROVAL BY THE COMMITTTEE: ______________________________ ____________________________ Chair: Carole Woolford-Hunt Dean, School of Education Robson Marinho ______________________________ Member: Elvin Gabriel ______________________________ Member: Tevni Grajales ______________________________ _____________________________ External: Lionel Matthews Date approved Until the lions have their own historians, the history of the hunt will always glorify the hunter. -Chinua Achebe iii Dedicated to my parents, John & Gwen iv TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES ..................................................................................................... ix LIST OF TABLES ....................................................................................................... ix LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS ...................................................................................... x ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ........................................................................................... xii Chapter 1. INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................ 1 Background ............................................................................................ 1 Rationale for the Study ........................................................................... 7 Statement of the Problem ....................................................................... 8 Purpose of the Study .............................................................................. 11 Conceptual Framework ........................................................................... 12 Conceptualization of Identity Orientation ........................................ 12 Conceptualization of Religiosity....................................................... 14 Conceptualization of Ethnic Identity ................................................ 16 Conceptualization of Women’s Identity Development ..................... 17 Conceptualization Applied to the Present Study .............................. 17 Hypothesis and Research Questions ...................................................... 18 Significance of the Study ....................................................................... 19 Definition of Terms ................................................................................ 20 Limitations ............................................................................................. 21 Delimitations .......................................................................................... 22 Organization of the Study ...................................................................... 22 2. LITERATURE REVIEW .............................................................................. 24 Introduction ............................................................................................ 24 Sources of Material ................................................................................ 25 Overview of Literature Review .............................................................. 25 A Conceptual Overview of Identity Orientation .................................... 26 Measuring Identity Orientation ...................................................... 29 A Conceptual Overview of Religiosity .................................................. 30 Measuring Religiosity ..................................................................... 33 A Conceptual Overview of Ethnic Identity ........................................... 34 v Measuring Ethnic Identity .............................................................. 35 The Relationship Between Religiosity and Identity Orientation............ 37 The Relationship Between Ethnic Identity and Identity Orientation ..... 39 The Relationship Between Identity Orientation and Women ................ 41 Identity Orientation and African American Women ...................... 44 Identity Orientation and Caucasian American Women .................. 46 The Relationship Between Religiosity and Women .............................. 46 Religiosity and African American Women .................................... 51 Religiosity and Caucasian American Women ................................ 55 The Relationship Between Ethnic Identity and Women ........................ 56 Ethnic Identity and African American Women .............................. 57 Ethnic Identity and Caucasian American Women .......................... 59 Summary of the Literature Review ........................................................ 61 3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY .................................................................. 63 General Introduction .............................................................................. 63 Type of Research ................................................................................... 63 Population and Sample ........................................................................... 65 Procedure........................................................................................