Validation of “Trust/Mistrust in God Scale” for Spanish Cancer Patients

Abstract

Trust/Mistrust in God have turned out to be two constructs that have great relevance in the study of the relationship between religion, spirituality, and health. In Spain, there are no instruments adapted to measure trust/mistrust in God, which limits the work of researchers interested in these aspects. Therefore, the aim of this study was to validate the Brief Trust/Mistrust in God Scale (BTMGS) in Spanish. The scale translated into Spanish was applied in a sample of 178 oncologic patients together with the Positive and Negative Affect Schedule (PANAS) and the significant others subscale of the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support, due to the existing evidence of relationships between the variables evaluated by these measures. Internal consistency, structural validity, convergent and discriminant validity were evaluated. The Spanish adaptation of the BTMGS obtained high internal consistency, both for trust subscale (α = 0.95) and for the mistrust subscale (α = 0.86). Furthermore, the correlations found between the BTMGS and the measures of positive and negative emotions and social add evidence of convergent and discriminant validity. These results suggest that the Spanish version of the BTMGS is a valid and reliable measure to be used in research on religion, spirituality and health in Spanish-speaking contexts.

Religiosity, Emotions and Health: The Role of Trust/Mistrust in God in People Affected by Cancer

“…The original instrument has a Cronbach’s alpha of 0.94 for the Trust in God subscale and 0.88 for the Mistrust in God subscale. In this study we used the Spanish [ 78 ] version, which, like the original, is a Likert-type scale with five response options (from “not at all” to “very much”), in which participants indicate their degree of belief towards the items. It also has three items for the trust in God factor (e.g., “God cares about my deepest concerns”) and three items for the mistrust in God factor (e.g., “God doesn’t care about me”).…”