Factor analysis and validation of the Brief Religious Coping Scale (Brief-RCOPE) in Iranian university students

The present study aimed to explore the factor analysis and validation of the Brief Religious Coping Scale among an Iranian population. The number of 339 university students participated in this research. Principal Component Analysis led to the extraction of positive and negative religious coping factors. Convergent validity coefficients were obtained equal to .85 and .83 for positive and negative religious coping subscales, respectively. Test-retest reliability of total and subscale was found equal to .90, .93, and .88, respectively. Split-half reliability of total scale and the two aforementioned subscales were, respectively, obtained equal to .75, .85, and .81. Cronbach's alpha scores were also obtained equal to .79 and .71 for positive and negative factors, respectively. Results showed that the female group gained higher scores of positive religious coping. According to desired psychometric properties, the current instrument can be applied as a useful scale for screening the larger sample sizes in the studies related to religion.