Introducing the Astley-Francis Theology of Religions Index: Construct Validity among 13- to 15-year-old Students

Astley, Jeff; Francis, Leslie J.

Abstract

The ‘theology of religions’ is concerned with the interpretation and evaluation of the divergent truth-claims and views of salvation that are asserted or implied by different religious traditions. This study proposes a new multi-choice index that distinguishes between six current positions within the theology of religions, characterised as Atheism, Agnosticism, Exclusionism, Inclusivism, Pluralism, and Interreligious perspective, with a further subdivision between two expressions of the pluralism perspective. The construct validity of this new measure is supported by the performance of the instrument in respect of a network of theories (regarding how these different positions may relate to the factors of sex, age, personal religiosity and attitude toward religious diversity) among a sample of 10,754 13- to 15-year-old students from England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.

Citation

Astley, J., & Francis, L. J. (2016). Introducing the Astley-Francis Theology of Religions Index: Construct Validity among 13- to 15-year-old Students. Journal of Beliefs and Values, 37(1), 29-39. https://doi.org/10.1080/13617672.2016.1141527

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Online Publication Date: Mar 7, 2016
• Publication Date: 2016-01
• Deposit Date: Mar 14, 2017
• Journal: Journal of Beliefs and Values
• Print ISSN: 1361-7672
• Electronic ISSN: 1469-9362
• Publisher: Taylor and Francis Group
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 37
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 29-39
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/13617672.2016.1141527
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1361354