A qualitative and quantitative triangulation approach to validate the measurement of spiritual constructs

Measuring spirituality is complex, involving culture, context, theology, and discernment. This study attempts to validate closed survey questions for predicting spirituality according to the judgment of local leaders. Employing a triangulation approach, it utilizes the assessment of local church leaders, gathered via participant interviews, to categorize individuals according to maturity, providing a benchmark to compare the survey results against. Advanced statistical models were then applied to identify key quantitative survey questions that were best correlated with the local leader categorizations. This methodology situates the ‘decision making’ determination of spiritual maturity into the hands of local voices, and seeks to connect this knowledge to commonly used survey instruments in the field of spiritual measurement.