Impact of Spiritual Intelligence on Optimism among Men and

Women

A research proposal submitted to the faculty of

Maniben Meghji Pethraj Shah Women’s College,

S.N.D.T Women’s University

In partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of

Masters of Arts in Psychology;

Counseling Psychology

by

Prachiti Manoj Sawant

October 2018
Index

Abstract

 Introduction

 Literature review

 Methodology

 Research hypothesis

 Participants

 Research designs

 Operational definitions of Variables

 Tools

 Data analysis plan

 Ethical Considerations

 Limitations

 References
Abstract
The Spiritual intelligence represents a different set of skills and abilities,
each of which forms appear different in social and historical contexts.
And it maybe used to promote optimism .The present study was
designed to investigate the impact of spiritual intelligence on optimism.
A 100 samples (50 Male, 50 Female) were choosen by convenience
sampling method. Questionnarire on Spiritual Intelligence and
Optimism were distributed among the samples . results illustrates a
medium level of spiritual intelligence dimensions ( critical existensial
thinking, personal meaning production, transcendental awareness, and
conscious state expansion)

Keywords- Spiritual intelligence, Optimism

Introduction

Spirituality has been considered as an important aspect of human

development, which has a significant relationship with mental health and
well-being. It is not surprising that in its definition of mental health, the
World Health Organization has recently included spirituality as the
"fourth dimension" of human existence alongside physical,
psychological and social dimensions. Several researcher have pointed
out that during the past decade, spiritual intelligence has remained a
forerunner among different kinds of intelligence proposed originally by
Gardner in 1993. Spiritual intelligence is defined as a set of mental
capacities, which contribute to the awareness, integration, and adaptive
application of the nonmaterial and transcendent aspects of one's
existence, leading to such outcomes as deep existential reflection,
enhancement of meaning, recognition of a transcendent self, and mastery
of spiritual states. Four core components are proposed to comprise
spiritual intelligence: 1- critical existential thinking, 2- personal meaning
production, 3- transcendental awareness, and 4- conscious state
expansion 5-. Spiritual
intelligence is the set of abilities that individuals use to apply, manifest
and embody spiritual resources, values and qualities in ways that
enhances their daily functioning and well-being (4). Spiritual
intelligence assists in finding the deepest and most inner resource from
an individual from which the capacity to care, the power to tolerate and
adapt is obtained. It also aids in the development of a clear and stable
sense of identity among individuals especially in the context of
workplace relationships . Optimism or positive thinking tends to be the
most hopeful, and to a pre-emotional preparation and the cognition
refers to the fact that good things are more important than bad things,
which itself requires that a person assess and predict the outcomes and
consequences of life . Optimism, the generalized expectancy for good
rather than bad to happen in the future, is associated with a broad range
of positive outcomes, including better performance, higher likelihood of
goal attainment, better mental health, and better physical . Optimism is
seen as a relatively stable personality characteristic (a “trait” rather than
a “state”) that is associated with general assumptions about positive
future outcomes. Optimism is so closely related to happiness that the
two can practically be equated. And guess what: optimism is a teachable
skill. Hope, faith and optimism are all positive emotions about the future
. Some people can learn optimism, which can then contribute to happier
and more satisfying lifestyle
Mayer states that individuals attain spiritual awareness when the
following are achieved: 1) being attuned to the holistic harmony of the
world and surpassing self-limitation; 2) being aware of higher planes
and states of spiritual thought and contemplation; 3) being conscious of
the spiritual dimension of daily activities, events, and relationships; 4)
building awareness, which means considering daily problems in the
context of ultimate life parameters; and 5) desiring to improve or elevate
the self, consequently practicing forgiveness, expressing appreciation
and gratitude, and practicing humility and empathy
Tekkeveettil suggests that those individuals with spiritual intelligence
awareness reveal the following features and indications: flexibility (the
individual’s self-flexibility and ability to see the world realistically as a
place of diversity and variety; also refers to the person’s ability to
interact, understand, and adapt to developments and innovation), self-
awareness (examination of the inner self helps to comprehend one’s true
identity), the ability to face and learn from failure and fears, the ability
to examine the relationships between different things and think
collectively, and the ability to work
MacHovec sees that spiritual intelligence is a distinguished pattern of
intelligence that surpasses variances in time, culture, and religion, and is
an extension of Gardner’s theory of multiple intelligences. Although
spiritual intelligence differs from traditional intelligence, they share
common features: they increase with age, reflect the individual’s mental
performance pattern, and consist of a group of interdependent
abilities.14 In addition, spiritual intelligence is recognized as being the
representative of intelligence, which means that it refers to the
integration of all other types of intelligence
They argued that optimism is associated with, and leads to, securing
positive outcomes whereas pessimism is associated with greater negative
outcomes (Scheier and Carver 1992, Scheier, Carver and Bridges
2001). For example, in studies of young adults, optimism has been
found to be associated with greater life satisfaction (Chang, Maydeu-
Olivares & D’Zurilla, 1997) whereas pessimism has been found to be
associated with greater depressive symptoms (Chang et al 1997).
Carver and Scheier see optimism as dispositional. They have found that
optimists report fewer physical symptoms, better health habits and better
coping strategies. Even among a group who had experienced the bad
outcome of being diagnosed with breast cancer (Carver et al 1997) found
that optimistic personality types experienced less distress, engaged in
more active coping and were less likely to engage in avoidance or denial
strategies.
Hence, spirituality is considered to by one of the core needs of humans
and some experts have reiterated the fact that it may constitute one of
the highest levels of moral-cognitive development. Also, it has been
argued that spiritual intelligence together with other positive traits
such as happiness and optimism may play a salient role in promoting
and maintaining subjective as well as physical well-being and health.
Therefore it is hypothesized that the scores of spiritual intelligence will
correlate significantly and positively to scores of optimism.
The purpose of this research is to study the impact of spiritual
intelligence on optimism among men and women. We hypothesized
that optimism will significantly predict scores of spiritual intelligence.

Literature Review

Nazam (2014) conducted a study on gender difference on spiritual

intelligence among adolescents. The aim of the research was to
measure spiritual intelligence among adolescents studying in two
schools of Aligarh city. For this purpose, Spiritual Intelligence Self
Report Inventory (SISRI-24) developed by D. King (2008) was
administered to the sample of 60 adolescents. Of these, 30 were male
and 30 were female students. The main findings were as follows:
Significant difference were found between the two groups, on
subscales, namely, Personal Meaning Production (PMP),
Transcendental Awareness (TA) and Conscious State Expansion (CSE),
Critical Existential Thinking (CET) and composite scores on spiritual
intelligence.

Optimism doesn’t mean not accepting the responsibility of bad events

and it stems from the individuals’ thinking and clarifying methods about
the causes and reasons of the events (Seligman, 2005). Many of the
studies indicate that optimism is directly and positively correlated to
individuals’ mental hygiene (Aghayi et al, 2006). Optimism is one of the
main concepts of the positive psychology. This concept is in line with its
colloquial application as a worthy psychological source which will bring
higher degree of welfare and it’s regarded as a buffer against the
negative effects of stress (Scheier & Carver, 2003).
Optimism helps individuals to resist fiercely against depression which
provokes the failure and stressful life events. This blessing helps
individuals to achieve more success in life and work as compared to
what is expected of him. Optimism activates the immune system and
causes an individual to contract less infectious disease and make fewer
visits to the doctor (Seligman et al, 1995, translated by Davar Panah,
2009). Many studies have been carried out on the effect of positivism
on mental hygiene and coping with problems. Positivism benefits active
coping strategies. Optimists act actively using effective coping
strategies. Optimists are less probable not to get involved with their
goals, avoid or leave them. Evidence shows that optimism is related to
physical and psychological health, life satisfaction and psychological
welfare (Baldwin et al, 2008). Optimism predicts positive attitudes and
tendencies, planning for the improvement, searching for the
information and restructuring the bad events. Optimists use less blame,
sarcasm and determinism. They do not focus on the negative aspects of
a situation and do not attempt to suppress their symptoms. Positivists
accept unchangeable situations instead of escaping from them and
cope with serious diseases instead of worrying about the threats to the
health. Overall, positivists have better problem-solving abilities as
compared to the pessimists (Mousavi Nasab, 2005).

Spiritual intelligence (SQ) is genuine and credible intelligence which

covers concepts such as thinking, conceptualization and solving
problems. Since the concept of spirituality has different definitions and
this concept plays a major role in the definition of spiritual intelligence
(SQ), it can be mentioned that cultural differences impact on people's
spiritual and religious attitudes, practice, and skills related to their
spiritual intelligence (SQ). The concept of spiritual intelligence (SQ) is a
universal feature; however, it's meaning and how it emerges is diverse
among people of different cultures (Emmons, 2009). According to
Wolman (2012) spiritual intelligence (SQ) has seven components,
including divinity, mindfulness, extrasensory perception, community,
intellectuality, and trauma and childhood spirituality. With regard to
what was mentioned above, the research purpose was to assess the
relationship between religious attitude, optimism, spiritual intelligence
and mental hygiene of post-graduate students of Islamic Azad
University, Tehran Science and Research Branch.

Gupta (2012) investigated a study on the relationship between spiritual

intelligence and emotional intelligence with self efficacy and self
regulation among college students. The findings revealed that spiritual
intelligence and emotional intelligence were positively and significantly
correlated with self efficacy and self regulation. The significant
difference was found between male and female students of emotional
intelligence, self efficacy and self regulation. It was also found that male
students were better in spiritual intelligence and emotional intelligence
as compared to female students.
Jafari et al (2014), conducted a research entitled" Comparison of relation
between body image and spiritual intelligence among male and female
students". The purpose of this research was to analyze the relation
between body image and spiritual intelligence in Iranian male and
female students. The sample includes 376 students at Islamic Azad
University. The tools include Fisher's body image test and spiritual
intelligent SSI-29 questionnaire. The data were analyzed by t test,
Pearson correlation and Fisher’s Z test. The relation between spiritual
intelligence and Reliance on Internal Core with body image is
significant in both genders (p≤0.05). the results show that Understanding
and Communication with the Source of Existence in women is higher
than men. However, the relation between Understanding and
Communication with the Source of Existence with body image in male
is significant (p≤0.05) while it is not significant in female students.
There are no significant difference between females’ and males’ scores
in body image and spiritual intelligence.
Pant and Srivastava (2014) initiated the study on the "Effect of spiritual
intelligence on mental health and quality of life among college
students". The study was conducted on 50 Under Graduate and Post
Graduate college students in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. The aim of the
study was to examine the level of spiritual intelligence, mental health
and quality of life the findings of the study revealed that spiritual
intelligence and mental health are correlated significantly; there is a
significant relationship between spiritual intelligence and quality of life.

Jackson, Weiss, Lundquist (2002), the results of the study indicate that
there are fundamental differences between persons with more and less
optimistic views of idiosyncratic, goal-oriented activities. Compared
with their less optimistic peers, optimists rated their personal projects as
more congruent with and fulfilling of their values and identities. Projects
generated by optimists reflected positively on their sense of self and
other goals. In contrast, and perhaps paradoxically, pessimists perceived
self-generated goals as more alien to the fulfillment of their identities.
Fischer, Chalmers (2008), A meta-analysis of dispositional optimism
levels as measured by the life orientation test across 22 countries. Using
mixed effect modeling, overall culture differences were small. Greater
individualism was associated with greater optimism. Greater
egalitatianism was consistently associated with higher optimism. Claims
of fundamental cultural differences were not supported.
Wenglert, Rosen (2000), optimism-pessimism was defined in terms of
an expectancy-valur model based on subjective valve model on
subjective probabilites and subjective values for positive or negative
future events in students personal life and for positive or negative future
general World events. 177 of 183 students were classified as optimistic
about the personal future 155 students were optimistic and 28
pessimistic.
Sharpe, Martin, Roth (2011), the purpose of the study was to investigate
the relationship between the Big Five factors of personality and
dispositional optimism. Results indicated strong positive relationship
between optimism and four of the Big Five factors: Emotional Stability,
Extraversion, Agreeableness, Conscientiousness. Palgi, Shrira, Ben-
Ezra, Fridel, Bodner (2011), examined whether daily optimism and
pessimism differently related to each other among young adults and old
people. Findings Show that Daily optimism and pessimism were less
strongly related to each other among old people.
Hayes, Weathington (2007), the purpose of the study was to examine the
relationships among dispositional optimism, life satisfaction, stress, and
job burnout in a sample of restaurant managers. Restaurant managers
who reported having higher levels of dispositional optimism reported
lower levels of stress and job burnout. Managers who ranked higher in
levels of dispositional optimism reported higher life satisfaction. Higher
levels of stress were also related to increased job burnout and a
decreased life satisfaction.
Langabeer II, Dellifraine (2011), the purpose of the study is to examine
if optimism serves as a cognitive bias that short-circuits the strategic
process, or more specifically results in a greater use of incrementalism
versus a comprehensive rational process. They were found that at the
time of the study, executives were more optimistic than average. It was
further found that higher optimism is associated with less rational (and
more incremental) strategic decision-making processes. Organizational
size also had an interaction effect on the optimism-strategic process
relationship.
Methodology

The proposed study aims to validate one research hypothesis and one
research question-

 Hypothesis – There is impact of spiritual intelligence on

optimism among men and women.

 Research question – The impact of spiritual intelligence on

optimism.

Participants

The target population for this study will be 100 subject

(n=100, 50 males ; 50 females). The age range of the men and
women is 18- 25 years. In this study convenience sampling
technique was used to select the samples from population.

Research design

This study is correlation research, having one independent

variable and one dependent variable. The I.V is spiritual
intelligence and D.V is optimism.
Operational definitions of variables

Independent variable

Spiritual intelligence is operationally defined as “a set of adaptive

mental capacities based on non-material and transcendent aspect of
reality, specifically those that contribute to the awareness, integration,
and adaptive application of the non-material and transcendent aspects of
one’s existence, leading to such outcomes as deep existential
reflection, enhancement of meaning, recognition of a transcendent self,
and mastery of spiritual states.” ( King 2008 ). Measured by Spiritual
Intelligence Self-Report Inventory (SISrI-24) by David. B. King, further
classifies further core abilities 1. Critical Existensial Thinking – The
capacity to critically contemplate the nature of existence, reality, space
and time. 2. Personal Meaning Production – The ability to derive
personal meaning and purpose from all physical and mental experience,
the capacity to create and master a life purpose. 3. Transcendental
Awareness – The capacity to identify transcendental dimensions of the
self. 4. Conscious State Expansion – The ability to enter and exit higher
states of consciousness.

Dependent variable

Optimism is operationally defined as the mental attitude reflecting a

belief or hope that the outcome of some specific endevour or outcome in
general will be positive. Optimism is measured by Life Orientation Test
– Revised (LOT-R) by Scheier and Carver (1985) to assess dispositional
optimism – expecting positive or negative outcomes.
Control variable

The factor like age was considered as control variable for the proposed
study.
Tools

Spiritual Intelligence Self-Report Inventory (SISRI-24) – 2008

The Spiritual Intelligence Questionnaire was developed by

King and included 24 items for each of the four spiritual
intelligence constructs: critical existential thinking (7 items),
personal meaning production (5 items), transcendental awareness
(7 items), and conscious state expansion (5 items). The items are
rated on a five-point scale, ranging from the response (0) not at all
true of me to (4) completely true of me. Higher scores represent
higher levels of spiritual intelligence.
King reported coefficient Cronbach’s alpha for the subscale 0.78,
0.78, 0.87, and 0.91, respectively for critical existential thinking,
personal meaning production, transcendental awareness, and
conscious state expansion.9 El-Rabeea adapted and validated an
Arabic version of the King9 spiritual intelligence questionnaire for
Yarmouk University students in Jordan. Cronbach’s alpha was
calculated at 0.72, 0.78, 0.72, and 0.72, respectively for critical
existential thinking, personal meaning production, transcendental
awareness, and conscious state expansion.39 In the current study,
the reliability coefficient calculated using Cronbach’s alpha was
found to be 0.73, 0.81, 0.68, and 0.83, respectively for critical
existential thinking, personal meaning production, transcendental
awareness, and conscious state expansion.

Life Orientation Test Questionnaire Revised ( LOT-R) – 1985

Life Orientation Test – Revised (LOT-R) was designed

by Scheier and Carver (1985) to assess dispositional optimism –
expecting positive or negative outcomes. The LOT-R consists of
Optimism and Pessimism scales, with 10 items (three items assess
optimism, three assess pessimism, and four of them are fillers). The
respondents indicated the extent to which they agreed with each item on
a 5-point Likert scale that ranged from strongly agree to strongly
disagree. The internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha) ranged between
.74 and .78.

Procedure

The subjects of targeted age were approached and the aims, objectives
and applications of the proposed study were explained to them and the
consent forms were submitted to the subjects who were willing to
participate. The questionnaires were administered to the participating
subjects and the relevant data was taken.

Data Analysis Plan

T- test was used to analyse the data having one independent variable
and one dependent variable.
Independent variable is spiritual intelligence and Dependent variable is
Optimism.
Ethical Considerations

Before distributing the consent forms, measures will be taken to

provide appropriate and honest information regarding the aims and
objectives of the study. The consent forms will be personally signed by
the participants. The obtained data will be kept confidential. Steps will
be taken to ensure that after the conduction of the study, the obtained
results would not be published without the consent of the participants.

Limitations

A limitation of the current study is statistical significance and

adequate effect of spiritual intelligence on optimism as socioeconomic
status of the participant may not be considered and are generalizable
and applicable across all sections of population irrespective of their
socioeconomic status as gender is one of the control variable.
References

1. Emmons R. Is spirituality an intelligence? Motivation, cognition

and the psychology of the ultimate concern. Int J Psychol
Relig. 2000;10(1):3–26.

2. Emmons R. Spirituality and intelligence: Problems and

prospects. Int J Psychol Relig. 2000;10(1):57–64.

3. Noble K. Spiritual intelligence: A new frame of mind. Advanced

Development. 2000;9:1–29.

4. Vaughan F. What is spiritual intelligence? J Humanist

Psychol. 2002;42(2):16–33.

5. Zohar D, Marshall I. SQ: Connecting with Our Spiritual

Intelligence. New York: Bloomsbury; 2000.

6. Worthington E. Religion and

spirituality. Psychotherapy. 2001;38(4):473–478.
 7. Buzan T. The power of spiritual intelligence: 10 ways to tap into
your spiritual genius. New York: Harper Collins Publishers LTD;
2001.

8. Mayer J. Spiritual intelligence or spiritual consciousness? Int J

Psychol Relig. 2000;10(1):47–56.

9. King D. Rethinking claims of spiritual intelligence: A definition,

model, and measure [master’s thesis]Peterborough, ON, Canada:
Trent University; 2008.

10. Nasel D. Spiritual orientation in relation to spiritual

intelligence: A new consideration of traditional Christianity and
New Age/individualistic spirituality [doctoral
dissertation] Adelaide, Australia: University of South Australia;
2004.

11. Amram Y, Dryer C. The Integrated Spiritual Intelligence Scale

(ISIS): development and preliminary validation; Paper presented at the
116th Annual Conference of the American Psychological Association;
Boston, MA. August 2008; [Accessed November 26, 2014]. Available
at:http://www.yosiamram.net/papers.
12. Wigglesworth C. Spiritual intelligence: what is it? how can we
measure it? why would business care [webpage on the
Internet]? [Accessed November 26, 2014]. Available
at:http://www.kpokorny.com/content/user_files/spiritual_intelligence-
what_is_it.pdf.

13. Tekkeveettil CP. IQ and EQ give way to spiritual intelligence, the

ultimate intelligence that can add value and meaning to your life
[webpage on the
Internet]http://lifepositive.com/mind/evolution/iqgenius/intelligence.asp.

14. MacHovec FJ. Spiritual intelligence, behavioral sciences, and the

humanities. Lewiston, NY: Edwin Mellen Press; 2002.

15. Wink P, Dillon M. Spiritual development across the adult life

course: findings from a longitudinal study. J Adult Dev. 2002;9(1):79–
94.
16. Louchakova O. On advantages of the clear mind: Spiritual practices
in the training of a phenomenological researcher. Humanistic
Psychol. 2005;33(2):87–112.

17. Valentine ER, Sweet PLG. Meditation and attention: A comparison

of the effects of concentrative and mindfulness meditation on sustained
attention. Ment Health Relig Cult. 1999;2(1):59–70.
18. Vaitl D, Birbaumer N, Gruzelier J, et al. Psychobiology of altered
states of consciousness. Psychol Bull. 2005;131(1):98–127.
19. Emmons, R. A. (1999). The psychology of ultimate concerns:
Motivation and spirituality in personality. New York: Guilford Press.
Emmons, R. A. (2000). The International Journal for the Psychology of
Religion, 10 (1), 57-64.

20. Gupta, G.(2012). Spiritual intelligence and emotional intelligence in

relation to self-efficacy and self-regulation among college students.
International journal of social sciences and interdisciplinary research.
Vol.1(2), Feb.

21. King, D. B. (2008). Rethinking claims of spiritual intelligence: A

definition, model, and measure. Unpublished Master’s Thesis, Trent
University, Peterborough, Ontario, Canada.

22. Nazam, F. (2014). Gender difference on spiritual intelligence among

adolescents. Indian Journal of Applied Research.Vol.4 (11).
23. Nelms, L. W. (2005). The Relationship between Spirituality and the
Health of College Students in a University Setting. Doctoral dissertation,
University of Tennessee.

24. Pant, N., & Srivastava, S. K. (2014). Effect of spiritual intelligence

on mental health and quality of life among college students. Zenith
International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research. ISSN 2231-5780
Vol.4 (8), 208-215.

25. Vaughan, F. (2002). Journal of Humanistic Psychology. Vol. 42 (2),

16-33. Wigglesworth, C. (2012). The twenty one skills of spiritual
intelligence. Select books, Inc, New York.

26. Zohar, D., & Marshall, I. (2000). SQ - Spiritual intelligence, the

ultimate intelligence. USA, New York, NY, Bloom Burg. 2000; 15-18.
27. Asgari P, Roshani K, Adryani M.M. Relationship between religious
believes and optimism with spiritual well-being. (Persian text) Journal of
New Discoveries in Psychology.2010, 5, 27 - 39. 19-

28. Seligman ME. Learned optimism: How to change your mind and
your life. Vintage; 2011 Aug 10. 20-
29. Morgenstern LB, Sánchez BN, Skolarus LE, Garcia N, Risser JM,
Wing JJ, Smith MA, Zahuranec DB, Lisabeth LD. Fatalism, optimism,
spirituality, depressive symptoms, and stroke outcome. Stroke. 2011 Dec
1;42(12):3518-23. 21-

30. Bekhet AK, Zauszniewski JA, Nakhla WE. Happiness: theoretical

and empirical considerations. InNursing Forum 2008 Jan 1 (Vol. 43, No.
1, pp. 12-23). Blackwell Publishing Inc .22-Wolman, R. (2001).
Thinking With Your Soul: Spiritual Intelligence and Why it Matters.
Harmony Publications, NY, USA.

31. Abele, A. E., Gendolla G. H. E. (2007). Individual differences in

optimism predict the recall of personally relevant information.
Personality and Individual Differences. 43. 1125 1135.

32.Andersson, G. (1996). The benefits of optimism: A meta-analytic

review of the Life Orientation Test. Personality and Individual
Differences. 21. 719 725.

33. Bruininks,P., Malle, B.F. (2006). Distinguishing Hope from

Optimism and Related Affective States. Motivation and Emotion. 29 (4).
327- 355. Chang, E.C. (1996).
34.Cultural Differences in Optimism, Pessimism and Coping: Predictors
of Subsequent Adjustment in Asian, American and College Student.
Journal of Counseling Psychology. 43(1). 113-123.