Religious Coping Activities Scale – RCAS
Measures the extent to which individuals turn to religion to cope with stressful life circumstances.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Religious Coping Activities Scale – RCAS was developed by Kenneth I. Pargament, David S. Ensing, Karen Falgout, Hannah Olsen, Barbara Reilly, Kathryn Van Haitsma, & Richard Warren (1990). It is designed to measure Religious Coping. The scale is intended for use with Adults experiencing stressful life events.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 29 items organized into 6 factors/subscales: Spiritually Based Coping, Good Deeds, Discontent, Interpersonal Religious Support, Plead, Religious Avoidance.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Spiritually Based Coping | 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9,10,11,12 | 12 |
| Good Deeds | 13,14,15,16,17,18 | 6 |
| Discontent | 19,20,21 | 3 |
| Interpersonal Religious Support | 22,23 | 2 |
| Plead | 24,25,26 | 3 |
| Religious Avoidance | 27,28,29 | 3 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = not at all, 2 = somewhat, 3 = quite a bit, 4 = a great deal.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 1 to 4. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low utilization of coping activity: 1 – 2
- Moderate utilization of coping activity: 2 – 3
- High utilization of coping activity: 3 – 4
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of Spiritually Based Activities: alpha = .92; Good Deeds: alpha = .82; Interpersonal Religious Support: alpha = .78; Discontent: alpha = .68; Plead: alpha = .61; Religious Avoidance: alpha = .61.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 15 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.