An exploratory examination of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale among incarcerated Black and White male drug users

Anita Fernander, John F. Wilson, Michele Staton, Carl Leukefeld

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

24 Scopus citations

Abstract

A number of studies have examined the link between criminality and religiosity. However, only a limited number of studies have examined the relationship between spirituality and criminality: Because spirituality has been identified as a fundamental attribute of the personalities of Blacks, studies examining differences in the association between spirituality by ethnicity could provide information to understand the disparity of incarceration rates among Blacks and Whites. For this study, data were collected from 661 male prisoners with prior histories of drug use to examine spirituality that was assessed using two factors from a modified version of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale: relationship with a higher power and satisfaction with oneself in the world. Analyses revealed that White men reported significantly higher scores on both factors than Black men. The unexpected findings are discussed in light of the existing literature that identifies the significance of spirituality in the personality and coping style of Blacks.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)403-413
Number of pages11
JournalInternational Journal of Offender Therapy and Comparative Criminology
Volume48
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 2004

Keywords

  • Blacks
  • Drug users
  • Prisoners
  • Spiritual Well-Being Scale
  • Whites

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Pathology and Forensic Medicine
  • Arts and Humanities (miscellaneous)
  • Applied Psychology

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'An exploratory examination of the Spiritual Well-Being Scale among incarcerated Black and White male drug users'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this