Adaptation of the Duke University Religion Index for Turkish speaking Muslims

Abstract

The Duke University Religion Index (DUREL) was developed as a brief and comprehensive religiosity scale designed to be used in large epidemiological studies. The purpose of this study was to adapt DUREL for Turkish-speaking Muslims (TDUREL). The Turkish and English versions were compared by administering them to bilingual Turkish participants (N = 46). The final reconciled version was then tested for factorial structure and convergent and criterion validity among 532 Muslim Turkish-speaking individuals about half of whom lived in the United States and the remaining around the world, including Turkey. Convergent and criterion validity was analysed through comparison to Religious Identity Index and Pemberton Happiness Index, respectively. Reliability of the translated items was found to be between.73 and 1.00 (Pearson’s r). The TDUREL’s internal consistency was high (Cronbach’s alpha =.90). The TDUREL adds to existing measures a shorter and psychometrically sound religiosity scale, which includes the important Muslim consideration of participation in organisational activities.