Psychology Commons^™

Faith And Clutter: A Christian Perspective To Understand, Treat, And Prevent Hoarding Disorder, Mary Katherine Flage

NEXUS: The Liberty Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies

No abstract provided.

Reinventing Holistic Healthcare: Pastoral Perspectives Of Biblical Insights For The American Healthcare System, Leanne Michelle Bergey

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this case study was to examine pastoral perspectives of Biblical healthcare. These perspectives are essential to consider due to the long history of the connection between spirituality and healthcare and the church’s successful intervention worldwide for increasing healthcare outcomes. Since the church has been successful worldwide at creating faith-based organizations that meet community needs, it is vital that research focus on how churches might continue this success within the United States. This study used semi-structured interviews to examine the research questions of 1) What is the Biblical responsibility of healthcare? 2) How does culture influence the role …

Family Discipleship: Forming A Biblical Worldview For Godly Decisions, Eric Spencer Mccrickard

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This action research project focuses on equipping parents to disciple their children in home-based worship, Bible study, and developing a biblical worldview. The problem at The Mission Church is poor decision-making from teens in the student group. The students make decisions from a malformed biblical worldview, resulting in decisions contrary to God’s Word. Further analysis of this problem revealed the need for home-based discipleship. Contemporary literature demonstrates the need for family ministry, specifically family-based discipleship. Thus, this research is critical to developing parents to teach their families God’s precepts (Deut 6:7-9). This thesis intervention seeks to instruct the parents about …

Galileo And The Church: An Ecological Perspective, Holly J. Lawson

Montview Journal of Research & Scholarship

The post-medieval church was surrounded by intense sociocultural factors, including the recent Protestant Reformation and the Catholic Counter-Reformation. Although “the Galileo affair,” as it has been dubbed in the years since, is generally presented as a case example of the conflict between science and faith or religion, it is far more complex than these two issues alone. Galileo’s discoveries supporting the Copernican theory entered a complex interplay of factors, eventually leading to a highly pressurized encounter between Galileo and the Inquisition. Galileo’s indictment is a nuanced, poignant example of the rich cultural and contextual factors that drive clashes of religion …

Wounding Words: A Phenomenological Study Of How Individuals Experience Receiving Spiritual Bypass, Peridot Reed-Gilbert

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Currently spiritual bypass refers to a person's attempt to evade or sidestep significant events in his or her life by focusing solely on the spiritual dimension “bypassing” important psychological tasks necessary for healing (Cashwell & Young, 2004; Clarke et al., 2013). Several studies have been conducted proving that spiritual bypass is a phenomenon that individuals implement on themselves. However, the purpose of this study was to address the gap in the existing research literature by examining the lived experiences of those who have experienced receiving spiritual bypass from another person. Through semi-structured interviews, fourteen participants who self-identified as having experienced …

Centrality Of Religiosity As A Predictor Of Motivational Needs For The Gen Z Cohort, Ryan A. Willcockson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Past research has focused exhaustively on the motivational needs of older generational cohorts, while Gen Z receives minimal attention. Simultaneously, no research exists examining Gen Z’s centrality of religiosity or how their religiousness might affect motivational needs. This focus by research is crucial because the global number of Gen Z individuals now eclipses the current population of Baby Boomers and Gen X (Ajzen, 2020). This gap in motivational and religious centrality research is arguably due to many studies downplaying Gen Z’s motivational needs with claims that their motivations, centrality of religiosity, and behavioral choices are like that of Gen X …

The Impact Of The Fall On Behavior, Intellect, And Emotion, Robert Monte Nelson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this research is to explore theological doctrines surrounding the Fall and to examine the impact of the Fall on human behavior, intellect, and emotion. This research maintains that the Fall of Adam led to the corruption of the volition, intellect, and emotions of Adam and Eve, who were created in the image of a perfect and holy God, without sin, and argues that humanity’s fallen condition impacts human emotions; however, they are distinct from divine emotions and are not an aspect of the imago Dei. Therefore, this dissertation will explore the meaning of the imago Dei, the …

Bias As A Worldview Engine, The Terminus A Quo Of The Problem Of Evil, Eric Spencer Mccrickard

Masters Theses

Evidential evil is an encompassing title for moral evil, natural disasters, disease, famine, divorce, suffering, or other calamities in life that yield dissatisfaction or discernable discomfort. This area of evidential evil is the focus of this paper generally, including the argument posed by William Rowe from evidential evil and contemporary treatments offered by Bruce Russell. The argumentation is God’s nonexistence from the platform, or derivative of no greater good observed or known, of the justification or allowance of evil. It is not a refutation of the premises, per se, but instead, the biases associated with them are de facto statements …

Where Faith Meets Freud: Why The Church Rejected Psychology And The Rise Of Nouthetic Counseling, Kayla Sargent

Liberty University Research Week

Graduate

Textual or Investigative

Great Men Are Almost Always Bad Men: The Cultural Revolution Of The Techno-Totalitarians, Gregory S. Mckenzie

Helm's School of Government Conference - 2021-2024

No abstract provided.

Ranking Objections To Christian Theism: A Survey Of Subjective Declarations And Their Correlations With Expert Opinions, David Ochabski, Ronnie P. Campbell, Kelly Budd, Jaelyn Morgan, Hope N. Lassiter, Hunter W. Brown, Madison S. Schmidt, Kristen G. Brown

Eleutheria: John W. Rawlings School of Divinity Academic Journal

There have been numerous books written on the top objections to Christianity—sometimes stated as “common,” “major,” “frequent,” “every day,” “cultural,” “tough,” “difficult” objections. However, there is a dearth of behavioral studies in the literature that show how and given population ranks objections to Christianity. As such, the apologist has had to rely on expert opinions from the books that have been authored. These expert opinions are based on familiarity with the literature in the field and contact with laity from university, church, and other speaking engagements. The purpose of this study is to document trends in how people report the …

Barriers To Belief: Why Do The Resistant Resist God?, Jana S. Harmon

Eleutheria: John W. Rawlings School of Divinity Academic Journal

Barriers to belief in God and Christianity in an increasingly antagonistic culture are considerable. Reasons for resisting belief were studied in an intellectually-driven population of educated atheists in Western culture (N = 50) through survey and interview analysis. This mixed-method research study evaluated a broad range of functional (socio-cultural, psycho-emotional, existential, experiential, moral, volitional) and substantive (intellectual and spiritual) variables influencing disbelief. Based upon extensive data collection, these findings advance the case for viewing obstacles to belief as diverse, interactive, and complex in nature. These barriers should not be easily reduced to broad brushed presumptions, but should be engaged thoughtfully, …

The Effectiveness Of Christian Accommodative Mindfulness To Reduce Burnout Of Parents And Educators Of Disabled Children, Donna M. Weston

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research project utilized a four-week Christian accommodated mindfulness protocol with parents and educators of disabled children as a dissertation in completion of the author’s doctoral studies. Chapter one provides an introduction to the need for the study, both in terms of the gap in research and the needs of the population to be studied, as well as the problem, purpose, and significance of the study, research questions and definitions. Chapter two discusses the relevant literature regarding the stressors and mental health challenges facing parents and educators of disabled children, especially in light of the increased risks and challenges posed …

Spiritual And Religious Interventions For Medically High-Risk Adults: A Systematic Review, Nathanael J. Strissel

Senior Honors Theses

This systematic review is an update and expansion to the population and methods of a previous systematic review concerning spiritual and religious interventions for the well-being of terminally ill adults. After expanding the criteria to incorporate a more diverse population and including non-randomized experimental studies that contained relatively few concerns of bias, the results of the review are inconclusive due to insufficient data. The lack of usable data in the field highlights the ethical and theoretical issues with the use of experimental trials in analyzing the efficacy of spiritual and religious interventions. The development of spirituality in healthcare will remain …

The Origins Beliefs Of Christian College Students, Emily Wilkinson

Senior Honors Theses

Many studies have focused on creation and evolution in academia, origins beliefs and biblical interpretation, and how students respond to origins challenges. The author then conducted a phenomenology of Christian college students’ origins beliefs, factors that influence those beliefs, and impacts that the beliefs have on students’ lives. Methods included a 44-Item Big Five Inventory and semi-structured interviews. Participants were eight residential undergraduate students at a Christian university who were currently or previously in a creation studies course. Results indicated that all participants held to young-earth creationism, and that family, Christian faith, education, personality, and academic major influenced the development …

Stress Perception And Measurement In Missionary Populations, Laurie A. Tone, Fernando Garzon, John C. Thomas, Brigitte Ritchey, Mike Malek-Ahmadi

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Christian missionaries experience numerous stressors across multiple domains. To understand their unique experiences, a targeted assessment is required. There is no known psychometrically tested measure that captures the nuances of stress for this population. To that end, as part of a larger study, the quantitative CHOPS Stress Inventory, a new tool for measuring missionary stress was developed and showed good initial psychometric qualities when compared to an established stress measure. Furthermore, the Analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) of survey findings on 267 cross-cultural evangelical missionaries noted that both age and sex demonstrated significant effects on perceived stress scores. Implications for missionary …

The Impact Of Lyric Choices On Spiritual Edification, Hanna Jane Byrd

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Modern Christian worship music has gained influence within the evangelical community. The words of these songs, sung corporately, have the potential to influence the spiritual lives of church congregants, making it important for worship leaders and songwriters to identify the most beneficial lyrics. Despite numerous opinions about theological and personally relevant lyrics, little research has been conducted on the spiritual effects of lyric content within the lives of Christian believers. Diminutive scholarly inquiry has been limited to historical, theological or qualitative methodologies. Utilizing the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) and the Spiritual Transcendence Index (STI), this quantitative quasi-experimental study …

The Presentation Of Postmodern Sexuality In Short Fiction, Allie J. Kapus

Senior Honors Theses

Shifting norms in twentieth century western society, coupled with emerging postmodern thought in the 1960s, radically changed the ways in which people viewed sexuality, gender roles, and the institutions of marriage and the family. The literature of the postmodern era, namely short fiction, also reflects such ideological shifts. Literature is a powerful communicator of the human condition as well as a crucial means for reflecting the customs, beliefs, and norms of a society at the time of its writing. Such evolving differences as were occurring in the realm of sexuality came to be represented in postmodern literature. This thesis aims …

A How-To Guide To Single-Parent Ministry: An Inside Look To The Single Parent World In The Christian Community, John E. Walker Ii

Senior Honors Theses

The status of the family dynamic in the church has changed significantly, but the cultural understanding of ministers regarding the dynamic has changed little to none. As a result, the church’s ministry has become ineffective to the single-parent community because of ignorance. The goal of this thesis is to help educate Christian ministers and lay staff on the single-parent family condition and ministry opportunities to serve this demographic. This proposition includes information gained from interviews of single-parents, and ministers with experience regarding single-parents by someone with a single-parent upbringing. Overall, the single-parents interviewed stated that the Christian church is missing …

The Unspoken Truth: A Practical Guide For Pastors, Helping Abusers Break The Cycle Of Sexual Abuse, Teresa Johnson

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

For years, men, women and children have suffered silently as a result of sexual abuse. The abuser suffers and the cycle continues. Destroying the silence of sexual abuse is the beginning of breaking the cycle. Research has shown that the abuse goes far beyond the actual act and causes physical, emotional, and psychological damage. This project will investigate and encourage open discussion, address the abuse, and give valuable insight to the causes and consequences of sexual abuse. This project will offer prescriptive and preventative measures to all parties involved, in an effort to heal and stop sexual abuse. Through research …

Through A Glass Darkly: Defining Love In A Nation Of Tolerance, Jonathan T. Hogue

Senior Honors Theses

This paper features an original one-act drama Through a Glass Darkly and analyzes its constructs and themes. The play, written in the contemporary style, depicts the tension between homosexuals and Christians in American culture through emphasizing the contrasting interpretations of love between both communities. It tells the story of Ben, a young gay man struggling to find fulfillment, whose new-found friendship with a Christian named Adam causes him to reevaluate his understanding of love. The play explores the variations of love in an attempt to not only answer what love truly means, but rather what form of love carries the …

Establishing A Solid Foundation Through An Identity In Christ, Matthew S. Pedersen

Senior Honors Theses

An identity in Christ is the only solid foundation on which adolescents or adults can build their life. Identity is a major building block in a person’s life. Individuals with an unhealthy identity as a result of the culture will need to make many changes to this foundation in order to keep an accurate view of their lives. The definition of identity can show examples of negative consequences of an unhealthy identity. An identity based on the views of culture can show areas of weakness. Examining what the Bible says about man before and after a relationship with Christ will …

The Economic And Financial Effect Of Single Parent Homes, Douglas Sidey

Senior Honors Theses

A crisis is facing the American population today because of the growing prevalence of single parent homes. This single parenthood produces a cyclical nature in which the families that get started have a hard time removing themselves from the patterns and problems of this cycle. This is due in large part to the financial issues that a family will face due to the divorce from, or loss of, a spouse. These financial issues affect not only the parent that is raising children alone, but it affects the children, the spouse that has left, and the economy at large. This phenomenon, …

Examining The Relationship Between Mindfulness, Religious Coping Strategies And Emotion Regulation, Mark Myers

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study was conducted to explore the relationship Mindfulness has on Religious Coping and Emotion Regulation. Three hundred and fifty-seven participants attending an evangelical Christian university were studied using self-report measures of Mindful Awareness, Religious Coping style, and Emotion Regulation. A statistical mediation analysis was used to compare the relationship between these variables. The results indicate that although the relationship between Collaborative Religious Coping and the reappraisal function of Emotion Regulation was slight, Mindfulness mediated this relationship. The results and implications, as well as recommendations for further research, are discussed.

Idealism & Reality: A Phenomenological Exploration Of Pastoral Expectations & Ministry Realities Experienced By Protestant Church Planting Pastors, Dwayne Bond

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

With the majority of literature focused on reducing clergy stressors, there is a need to explore how pastors respond when ministry idealism dissipates, while familial and congregational expectations increase. When idealized expectations fade, how do clergy experience resiliency? The purpose of this study was to explore how idealism affects clergy resiliency and their responses, coping, and longevity in ministry. Ten new church-planting Protestant pastors were selected using snowball sampling. Each pastor was interviewed. Data from the two-hour in-depth interviews was collected, organized and analyzed. The findings for each interview were compared and contrasted, and themes were identified - a) utilizing …

The Efficacy Of Christian Devotional Meditation On Stress, Anxiety, Depression, And Spiritual Health With Korean Adults In The United States: A Randomized Comparative Study, Jinse Kim

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This study investigated the comparative effectiveness of Christian devotional meditation (CDM) versus progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) on stress, anxiety, depression, and overall spiritual health among a sample of nonclinical Korean Christian adults in the United States. Seventy nine individuals at two churches in the northern Virginia area completed the study. At each church, the subjects were randomly assigned to a two-hour session of CDM training or PMR training. Each participant then was asked to practice the technique at home at least once a day for two weeks with audio recorded instructions. The participants' perceived level of stress, anxiety, depression, and …

A Case Analysis Of The Foundational Ministry Principles Of Rev. Jerry Falwell From 1956-1966, Iain Lyttle

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This research examines principles employed by Dr. Jerry Lamond Falwell between 1956 and 1966 and the early developmental stages of his church, Thomas Road Baptist Church (TRBC). The foundation built during these formative years facilitated precipitous growth within the church plant for decades, allowing TRBC to become one of America’s most prominent megachurches and to found Liberty University, the world’s largest evangelical university. As church plants are more likely to fail than to succeed, this research aimed to investigate key characteristics of a church planter who was highly successful, which can be replicated. Using primarily twenty-three interviews of TRBC congregants …

The Influence Of Religiosity And Adult Attachment Style On Marital Satisfaction Among Korean Christian Couples Living In South Korea, Dae Woon Cho

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The primary purpose of this study was to investigate the influence of religious commitment, spirituality and adult attachment style on marital satisfaction among South Korean Christian couples living in South Korea. Three hundred sixty nine South Korean Christian couples from nine Presbyterian churches in Seoul, Dejeon, Daegu, Gumi, and Busan participated in this research. The current study evaluated the psychometric utility of the Spiritual Assessment Scale (SAS) and investigated the relationships among religiosity (religious commitment and spirituality), attachment style (anxious and avoidant attachment) and marital satisfaction. For the psychometric evaluation of the SAS, Confirmatory Factor Analysis was conducted for the …

An Exploratory Study Of Recovery And Recovery Maintenance For Victims Of Childhood Sexual Abuse Who Completed Faith-Based Residential Treatment Programs, Ann Kerlin

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

This interpretive phenomenological analysis of the experience of recovery and recovery maintenance for women with a history of childhood sexual abuse and its sequelae included interviews and a non-standard questionnaire. Ten women with this history who had completed a faith based treatment program for substance abuse and/or eating disorders described recovery. Themes that emerged related to the process of change included: Changes in Relationships with Others, to Self, to God, and lastly, Forgiveness as a Catalyst for Change. Six practices emerged in the exploration of maintenance recovery. This research highlighted the need for thorough bio-psycho-social-spiritual assessment and areas of concern …

Christian Devotional Meditation For Anxiety, Fernando L. Garzon

Faculty Publications and Presentations

Preliminary research suggests Christian devotional meditation is efficacious with conservative Christian clients. This chapter describes three Christian devotional meditation strategies that may be useful in psychotherapy for anxiety: Scriptural Truth Meditation, Scriptural Drama Meditation, and Christ-Centered Present Moment Awareness. A clinical case study highlights their application. Handouts for clients are provided.