Spiritual Well-Being Scale – SWBS
A 20-item self-report instrument designed to measure overall spiritual well-being, divided into religious and existential dimensions.
Scale Development & Technical Details
Scale Overview
The Spiritual Well-Being Scale – SWBS was developed by Raymond F. Paloutzian & Craig W. Ellison (1982). It is designed to measure Spiritual Well-Being. The scale is intended for use with Adults.
Scale Structure
This instrument consists of 20 items organized into 2 factors/subscales: Religious Well-Being, Existential Well-Being.
| Factor / Subscale | Items | N |
|---|---|---|
| Religious Well-Being | 1,3,5,7,9,11,13,15,17,19 | 10 |
| Existential Well-Being | 2,4,6,8,10,12,14,16,18,20 | 10 |
Response Format
Respondents rate each item using a custom response format.
Response anchors: 1 = Strongly Disagree, 2 = Disagree, 3 = Moderately Disagree, 4 = Moderately Agree, 5 = Agree, 6 = Strongly Agree.
The scale includes 9 reverse-scored items to reduce acquiescence bias.
Scoring
Items are scored by subscale, with each subscale sum representing a distinct dimension.
Total scores range from 20 to 120. Interpretation guidelines:
- Low Spiritual Well-Being: 20 – 40
- Moderate Spiritual Well-Being: 41 – 99
- High Spiritual Well-Being: 100 – 120
Psychometric Properties
Internal Consistency: The scale has demonstrated good to excellent internal consistency with reported Cronbach’s alpha values of SWB alpha: 0.89, RWB alpha: 0.87, EWB alpha: 0.78.
Administration
The scale is self-administered and typically takes approximately 5 minutes to complete. It can be administered individually or in group settings. No special training is required for administration.