Development and validation of a religious health fatalism measure for the African-American faith community

J Health Psychol. 2008 Apr;13(3):323-35. doi: 10.1177/1359105307088137.

Abstract

Health researchers struggle to understand barriers to improving health in the African-American community. The African-American church is one of the most promising venues for health promotion, disease prevention, and disparities reduction. Religious fatalism, the belief that health outcomes are inevitable and/or determined by God, may inhibit healthy behaviors for a subset of religious persons. This study reports the development and validation of the Religious Health Fatalism Questionnaire, a measurement tool for studying faith-related health beliefs in African-Americans. Participants included 276 members of seven predominantly African-American churches. Factor analysis indicated three dimensions: (1) Divine Provision; (2) Destined Plan; and (3) Helpless Inevitability. Evidence is presented for the reliability, convergent and predictive validity of the Religious Health Fatalism Questionnaire.

Publication types

  • Validation Study

MeSH terms

  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Attitude to Health / ethnology*
  • Black or African American*
  • Female
  • Health Behavior / ethnology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Psychometrics
  • Religion*
  • Surveys and Questionnaires / standards*