The Development of Faith and
Life Purpose Among College Students:
The Role of an International Living and
Learning Experience
Cindy Miller-Perrin
Don Thompson
Pepperdine University
ACSD National Conference
June 5, 2007
International Programs at
Pepperdine University
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Provide students a life changing international experience
designed for intellectual, social, personal and spiritual
transformation.
Buenos Aires, Costa Rica, Florence, Heidelberg, Honduras, Hong
Kong, Lausanne, London, Madrid, Thailand
55% of sophomores participate
Student Experiences
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Academic – Full Semester/Year Coursework
Living Community – House and Home-stay
Spiritual – Student Led Bible Studies, House Church
Service Projects
Cultural
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Extensive Local Travel Opportunities
Group Field trips – Spain, Greece, France, Austria, Brazil, Uruguay
Mentoring – Visiting Faculty, Staff, Peers
Heidelberg
Travel
Students travel each weekend
Program-wide field trip each term
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Living & Learning Community:
Moore Haus
Home to 55 sophomores &
the visiting faculty family
Library, computer lab, administrative
offices, dorm rooms, and student center
Spiritual Community
Weekly Bible
Studies and
House Church
Mentoring Community
The mentor-protégé relationship is
based on trust and love.
Question

Did you have an international
living/learning experience during your
college years?
Research Hypothesis
Students who participate in an
International Program have more
significant growth in faith and sense of
life purpose than those who do not.
Method
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Student Samples
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Seniors assessed in the spring of senior year
Students assessed longitudinally at baseline and
every year of college career
Sophomores in all International Programs
assessed each semester
Surveys
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Questionnaires assessing faith, identity, vocation,
and International Program experience
Measures
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Faith Attitudes and Behaviors
Faith Maturity
Spiritual Transcendence
Strength of Faith
Vocational Discernment and Action
Faith Attitudes and Behaviors
Subscales
Sample Items
Strength of Belief
•
(alpha = .81)
Faith Behavior
I view myself as a religious person.
•I have doubts about whether my
religious beliefs are true.
(alpha = .88)
How often do you attend religious
services?
•How often have you read a devotional,
religious, or spiritual book in the last
year?
Application of Faith
•
(alpha = .90)
•
I depend on my faith in God for
decision-making and direction.
•I try hard to carry my religious beliefs
into all other dealings in my life.
Faith Maturity Scale
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Measures values and behavioral manifestations
of faith
Sample items
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My life is filled with meaning and purpose
I have a real sense that God is guiding me
My faith shapes how I think and act each and every
day
I devote time to reading and studying the Bible
Spiritual Transcendence Scale
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Measures ability to step outside of oneself and immediate
surroundings to view life on large scale, yielding three
subscales:
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Connectedness: assesses participants’ sense of community and
relationships with others
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Prayer Fulfillment: assesses participants’ prayer or meditation
experience
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I am concerned about those who will come after me in life
I have experienced deep fulfillment and bliss through my prayers or
meditations
Universality: assesses participants’ sense of a greater meaning in life
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I believe that death is a doorway to another plane of existence
Santa Clara Strength of Faith
Scale
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Measures general construct of strength of faith
Sample items
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My religious faith is extremely important to me
I look to my faith as a source of inspiration
My relationship with God is extremely important to
me
I look to my faith as a source of comfort
Vocational Discernment and
Action
Subscales
Sample Items
Discernment and Purpose
•
(alpha = .76)
Service to Others
(alpha = .68)
I have a good sense for my life purpose.
•I know of the many ways that I can use
my gifts and talents within the context of
my professional career.
•I am unsure about what God is
specifically calling me to do.
I am motivated to choose a career that
will enable me to provide some type of
service to others.
•I feel a deep sense of responsibility for
reducing pain and suffering in the world.
•
Question
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What was your life purpose when you
graduated from college?
Results
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Senior Sample: IP vs. No IP Differences
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Longitudinal Sample: IP vs. No IP Over Time
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Faith Attitudes and Behaviors
Faith Maturity
Spiritual Transcendence
Strength of Faith
Vocational Discernment and Action
Faith Development
Vocational Discernment and Action
Sophomore Sample from International Programs
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Travel, Community, and Mentoring Experiences leading to
Spiritual Growth
Senior Sample
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283 Seniors
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IP Group = 133 seniors who participated in an
International Program
No IP Group = 150 seniors who did not participate
in an International Program
No significant differences between groups on
demographic variables (e.g., age, ethnicity, faith
tradition, gender, & socioeconomic status)
Faith Attitudes and Behaviors for
Seniors
40
38
36
34
32
30
28
26
24
22
20
IP
No IP
Strength of Belief
Faith
Faith Behavior*
Application**
Faith & Spiritual Transcendence
Scores for Seniors
200
180
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
IP
No IP
Faith
Maturity**
Spiritual
Transcendence*
Strength of
Faith**
Spiritual Transcendence
Subscores for Seniors
40
35
30
IP
No IP
25
20
15
Prayer
Fulfillment
Universality*
Connectedness
Vocation Scores for Seniors
30
29
28
IP
No IP
27
26
25
24
Discernment
Service*
Conclusions
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Summary of findings
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Students who participate
in an IP have higher faith
scores using a variety of
measures
Students who participate
in an IP are more likely
to engage in vocational
service
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Limitation
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Study design does not
allow for conclusions
about the direct impact
of an IP experience,
suggesting the need for a
longitudinal approach
Longitudinal Sample
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Participants (and Response Rates) from initial sample
of 300
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Baseline – 113 (38%)
First-Year – 191 (68%)
Sophomore – 111 (64%)
Junior – 132 (83%)
Senior – 114 (70%)
Analyzed subsample matched on age and sex
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IP Group = 43 students who attended an international
program during their sophomore year
No IP Group = 43 students who did not attend and
international program
Strength of Belief Scores for FirstYear and Senior Time Periods
35.5
35
34.5
34
IP
No IP
33.5
33
32.5
32
First-Year
Senior Year
Faith Application Scores for FirstYear and Senior Time Periods
23.5
23
22.5
IP
No IP
22
21.5
21
First-Year
Senior Year
Faith Behavior Scores for FirstYear and Senior Time Periods
41.5
41
40.5
40
39.5
IP
No IP
39
38.5
38
37.5
37
First-Year
Senior Year
Discernment Scores for First-Year
and Senior Time Periods
23.5
23
22.5
IP
No IP
22
21.5
21
20.5
First-Year
Senior Year
Service Scores for First-Year and
Senior Time Periods
22.5
22
21.5
21
IP
No IP
20.5
20
19.5
19
18.5
First-Year
Senior Year
Conclusions
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Summary of findings
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International Living and Learning Experiences
enhance
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Belief Strength
Faith Application
Vocational Discernment
Vocational Service
Faith Behavior decreases over time for all
students, and more so for IP students
Question
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What was the most spiritually
challenging experience you had during
your college years?
Sophomore International
Programs Sample
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300 Sophomores sampled each term
80-100% response rate
Factors Contributing to Spiritual
Growth in International Programs
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Travel
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Community
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Mentoring
Travel
What has been the most spiritually challenging
part of your International Program experience?
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This has been the hardest but also the best year of my life. Living
overseas forced me to either embrace or reject what I have
believed all my life. It removed my safety nets.
I have grown through having to lean on God in almost every
situation: from traveling to school to just living in a different
culture, speaking another language.
My month long trip to Africa between semesters challenged my
sense of self.
Traveling alone over Christmas Vacation showed me how to
depend on the grace of God for support.
A person I met in Greece helped me realize my selfishness, making
me want to be more generous.
Ego Identity Status Measures
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Classifies subjects into one of four identity groups:
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Achievement: exploration and commitment
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Moratorium: exploration without commitment
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“Religion is confusing to me right now. I keep changing my views on what is
right and wrong for me.”
Foreclosure: no exploration, but commitment
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“It took me a while to figure it out, but now I really know what I want for a
career.”
“My parents decided a long time ago what I should go into for employment
and I’m following through with their plans.”
Diffusion: no exploration or commitment
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“I haven’t really considered politics. It just doesn’t excite me much.”
Diffusion Identity Scores for IP
and No IP Groups
20
19.5
19
18.5
IP
No IP
18
17.5
17
16.5
First-Year
Sophomore Year
Foreclosure Identity Scores for
IP and No IP Groups
19
18.5
18
IP
No IP
17.5
17
16.5
16
First-Year
Sophomore Year
Moratorium Identity Scores for
IP and No IP Groups
25
24.5
24
23.5
IP
No IP
23
22.5
22
21.5
First-Year
Sophomore Year
Community
How has the community of the international program
experience enhanced your spiritual growth?
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Our weekly, student led Bible studies & student run worship
have had the greatest spiritual impact on me.
Women's small group and student-led worship were an
AMAZING support system. The best community I've ever had.
This is my home away from home.
The guys’ small group was a time where we could be open
and honest.
I have grown more here in my spirituality than I did in
Malibu and all of that growth was due to other students.
Simply by living with and engaging with such incredible
individuals, who have not only helped me through difficult
times, but who have encouraged me to seek God more, I've
experienced a growth in spirituality.
Mentoring
Who has been most instrumental in helping
you grow spiritually? Why?
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One of the other students in the program made me
challenge myself and helped me grow spiritually.
The host family impacted me the most because we are
in worship with them and they are the leaders that we
look up to in the house.
When I felt weak, my faculty “mom” knew and was
someone that would come up to me and ask what was
wrong. She would help me understand and trust in
God.
She made me feel at home and always made time to
check on me and how I was doing.
The program assistant had a great impact on me
spiritually this semester through her incredible yet
humble display of faith. She is such an inspirational
woman of God.
Transferability
Shake students loose. Introduce them to an
experience, preferably in another culture,
that demands that they question life
assumptions.
Facilitate a sense of community, requiring
mutual dependency and trust.
Practice mentoring. Train faculty and staff.
Provide opportunities for the mentor-protégé
connection.
Transformation will occur – watch for and
nurture it.
Final Conclusions
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International living and learning
experiences facilitate greater growth in
faith and sense of life purpose
Significant opportunities for spiritual
growth occur when students leave their
cultural comfort zone and rely on
communities with mentoring support.
cperrin@pepperdine.edu
thompson@pepperdine.edu