The Spiritual Bypass Scale-Brazilian Adaptation: How Religious Affiliation, Age, and Gender Can Predict Levels of Psychological Avoidance and Spiritualizing

Author/s: Gabriela Picciotto, Jesse Fox, Craig S. Cashwell, Félix Neto

DOI: 10.12738/spc.2018.1.0034 

Year: 2018 Vol: 3 Number: 1

Abstract

The purpose of this article is to present and discuss three validation studies of the Spiritual Bypass Scale-13 (SBS-13) on a sample of the Brazilian population. These studies have three purposes (a) to recover the twofactor solution of the SBS-13 among a Brazilian population sample; (b) understand how religious affiliation, age, and gender can predict levels of psychological avoidance and spiritualizing; and (c) explore the relationships between spiritual bypass and psycho-social variables, which include depression, anxiety, stress, narcissism, and preference for solitude. All data have been collected using an online self-report survey, and the pre-requisites for filling out the questionnaire are: (a) Brazilian citizenship, (b) a minimum of 18 years of age, and (c) ascribing to some form of spirituality or religion. Based on two different samples of the Brazilian population (N1 = 193 and N2 = 729) that follow, the studies evidence acceptable reliability and validity of the Spiritual Bypass Scale-Brazilian Translation (SBS-BT) for use in the Brazilian Portuguese-speaking community. Using confirmatory factor analysis, we have successfully replicated a two-factor structure of the SBS-BT while controlling for the effects of age, gender, and religious affiliation. The model replicates the two-factor structure of the Brazilian version of the SBS with indications of good fit: X2 (49, N = 729) = 190.9, p <. 001; CMIN / df = 3.89; CFI = .95, SRMR = .04, RMSEA = .06. All items load onto two factors with coefficients ranging from .49 to .65. Alpha coefficients range from .72 to .86 across the two different samples. Results show a significant multivariate effect for religious affiliation and spiritual bypass. The dimensions of spiritual bypass predict the variances in stress, anxiety, and depression. For depression and anxiety, spiritualizing adds a unique, predictive value over and above the demographic variables and superiority (facet of narcissism).

Keywords
Spiritual bypass, Scale adaptation, Confirmatory factor analysis, Stress, Anxiety, Depression