Religiosity and happiness: no evidence for an association among undergraduates

The aim of the present work was to test for an association between religiosity and happiness. In the first study, 154 undergraduate students completed the Francis Scale of Attitude towards Christianity (FSAC: Francis & Stubbs, 1987), the Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS: Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffen, 1985), and the Depression-Happiness Scale (D-H S: McGreal & Joseph, 1993). No association was found between scores on the FSAC and scores on the SWLS (r = 0.03, NS) or between scores on the FSAC and scores on the D-H S (r = - 0.02, NS). In the second study, 67 undergraduate students completed the FSAC, the Purpose in Life Test (PIL: Crumbaugh, 1968), and the D-H S, No association was found between scores on the FSAC and scores on the PIL (r = 0.12, NS) or between scores on the FSAC and scores on the D-H S (r = -0.09, NS). The present data provide no evidence that, among two samples of undergraduate students, religious people are happier.