Psychometric evaluation of the spiritual transcendence scale in a Chinese sample: Is there factorial invariance across gender, occupation, and religion?

This study investigated the reliability and validity of the widely used 23-item Spiritual Transcendence Scale and tested whether there was factorial invariance of the scale by demographic variables such as gender, occupation, and religion in a large Chinese sample (n = 1,894). Exploratory factor analysis with a random subsample supported the original 3-factor structure (prayer fulfillment, universality, and connectedness) in a revised 16-item scale. Confirmatory factor analysis suggested that a 15-item model provided a good fit to the data of the remaining subsample. The scale had alpha reliabilities ranging from .64 to .92 in the exploratory factor analysis and .60 to .92 in the confirmatory factor analysis. Subsequent factorial invariance tests indicated that the scale was invariant across gender and occupation but not religion. Evidence of construct validity was equivocal. Additional empirical studies should be conducted to evaluate the psychometric properties of the scale in other culturally and religiously diverse settings. Copyright © 2016 Taylor & Francis.