The Relation between the Meaning in Life and the Sensitivity of Conscience in the Life of Polish Students with Different Levels of Experience of God's Presence

Abstract

Aims: The aims of the research was to define the level of meaning in life and the level of conscience sensitivity in groups of students with a high and low level of religious experience of God's presence, and to examine the relationship between these variables. Methodology: The study was conducted in Kraków among university students. All the respondents claimed to belong to the Roman-Catholic Church. 235 sets of correctly completed questionnaires were used for the results analysis. In the research the following methods were applied: The Scale of Religious Experience (SRE) by GÅ‚az, The Purpose in Life Test (PLT) by Crumbaugh and Maholick, and The Scale of Conscience Sensitivity (SCS) by Buksik. Results: Students with a high level of experience of God's presence appear to have a higher level of meaning in life and conscience sensitivity than students with a lower level of the experience. Moreover, in a group of students with a high level of experience of God's presence, meaning in life is more strongly related with conscience sensitivity than in a group of students with a low level of it. Conclusion: The findings of the author's study of the problem make an empirical contribution to increasing the understanding of religious experience concerning meaning in life and conscience sensitivity in the development of the psychology of religion.