Religiosity in Middle Adulthood Among Alumni of U.S. Jesuit Higher Education

Abstract

U.S. Jesuit Catholic universities are called not only to be excellent academic institutions but also to carry out a mission to educate and form “students in such a way and in order that they may become men and women of faith and of service to their communities” (Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, 2012, p. 3). This formative goal calls Jesuit institutions to engage in practices that provide students with experiences that support the continued growth of a strong and engaged religious faith. Based on the American Association of Colleges & Universities’ nine high impact practices and seven additional Jesuit Catholic high impact practices, this study investigated the relationship between individuals’ engagement in these specific high impact practices and their middle adult religiosity or strength of religious faith. In this research, 483 alumni from 16 Jesuit colleges and universities reported high levels of religiosity in middle adulthood, as measured by the Santa Clara Strength of Religious Faith Questionnaire (Plante & Boccaccini, 1997b). Descriptive statistics and OLS multiple regression analysis showed a statistically significant, positive relationship between adult religiosity and participants’ engagement in Jesuit Catholic high impact practices as undergraduates, both across practices and specifically associated with participation in the Jesuit practice of the Examen of Conscience.