Existential Quest Scale (EQS)
(2025) Handbook of assessment in mindfulness research — ISBN: [978-3-030-77644-2], 959-973, published
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- Abstract
- The 9-item Existential Quest Scale (EQS) measures flexibility in one’s own existential beliefs and worldviews by questioning, valuing doubt on, and being open to change them. The measure applies to all people, independently of the specific content of their existential beliefs and worldviews. It has successfully been used in research across 17 countries of various religious, including secular, heritage and has thus been translated into 13 languages. Beyond its psychometric qualities (reliability, unidimensionality, item response theory analysis) and cross-cultural validity, accumulated research reviewed or meta-analyzed here offers solid evidence of interest for the construct and predictive validity of the measure. Indeed, the EQS is mostly independent from religiosity/spirituality and is related but not reduced to several indicators of cognitive open-mindedness, liberalism in sociomoral attitudes, and flexibility in group identity. In addition, existential quest, as measured by the EQS, reflects humility, other-oriented disposition, and tolerance, but also prevention regulatory focus and some negative emotionality impacting life satisfaction. As focusing on flexibility specifically in the existential domain, the EQS has unique power, beyond the effects of sociomoral liberalism and low religiosity, in predicting low scores on fundamentalism, prejudice, and moral opposition to issues such as abortion, euthanasia, or same-sex parenting. Finally, research indicates that existential questers are open to various types of mindfulness interventions (secular or spiritual) and are receptive of the positive effects of mindfulness interventions.
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Saroglou, V. (2025). Existential Quest Scale (EQS). In O. N. Medvedev, C. U. Krägeloh, R. J. Siegert, & N. N. Singh (ed.), Handbook of assessment in mindfulness research (pp. 959-973). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-77644-2_102-1