Self-Actualization as Related to Frequency, Range, and Pattern of Religious Experience
This study investigated the relationship of frequency, range, and pattern of religious experience to self-actualization. The Religious Experience Measure (REM), a paper and pencil instrument, was constructed to provide measures of Stark's confirming, responsive, ecstatic, and revelational experiences. Validity and reliability studies yielded favorable results. In a classroom setting, the 401 undergraduates who comprised the sample were administered the Personal Data Sheet (PDS), the Personal Orientation Inventory (POI), and the REM. Results showed that high and low self-actualizers alike have religious experiences and that such experiences cannot inherently be viewed as either symptoms of pathology or evidence of positive mental health. However, frequency, range, and pattern are dimensional aspects of religious experience which are differentially related to self-actualization.