“God Didn’t Bring Me This Far for Me to Fail”: The Relationship between Religiosity and Academic Performance Open Access

Abstract

Using both quantitative and qualitative data, this study explores the relationship between religiosity and academic performance among undergraduate students at Emory University. I employ the Duke University Religion Index (DUREL) and the Intrinsic Religious Motivation Scale (IRMS) to measure religiosity and use GPA to measure academic performance. I hypothesize that there is a positive correlation between religiosity and academic performance. This hypothesis is tested using survey data on 111 Emory undergraduates. Univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analyses of the survey data are presented. Additionally, I conducted several in- depth interviews with students to further understand the role religion plays in their lives and how it might influence their academic performance. Quantitative findings include an unexpected negative relationship between the DUREL and GPA, albeit the effect is only marginally significant (p < 0.10) and sensitive to one outlier as well as to different specifications of the regression model. Qualitative findings suggest that religious students rely on religion as a coping mechanism for the stress associated with test-taking and other academic demands. The strengths and weaknesses of my research and implications for future research are discussed.

Table of Contents

Introduction.....................................................................................................1

Literature Review..............................................................................................7

Data and Methods.............................................................................................32

Quantitative Analysis........................................................................................59

Qualitative Findings..........................................................................................78

Discussion and Conclusion................................................................................100

References.......................................................................................................108

About this Honors Thesis

Rights statement

• Permission granted by the author to include this thesis or dissertation in this repository. All rights reserved by the author. Please contact the author for information regarding the reproduction and use of this thesis or dissertation.

School	Emory College
Department	Sociology and Religion
Degree	B.A.
Submission	Honors Thesis
Language	English
Research Field	Religion, General Sociology, General
Keyword	Duke University Religion Index Intrinsic Religious Motivation Scale GPA Religiosity Academic performance
Committee Chair / Thesis Advisor	Jeff Mullis, Emory University
Committee Members	Pamela Hall, Emory University Katherine Rosenblatt, Emory University

Last modified

Primary PDF

Thumbnail	Title	Date Uploaded	Actions
	“God Didn’t Bring Me This Far for Me to Fail”: The Relationship between Religiosity and Academic Performance ()	2024-04-09 22:30:52 -0400	Press to Select an action Download

Supplemental Files

Thumbnail	Title	Date Uploaded	Actions