Personality expectations and perceptions of Roman Catholic clergy members

Authors

Thomas G. Plante, Santa Clara UniversityFollow
Marcus T. Boccaccini

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

3-1997

Publisher

Springer

Abstract

This study examined the expectations of Roman Catholic priests' personality characteristics. Personality measures (i.e., Symptom Check List-90-Revised, Weinberger Adjustment Inventory, Belief in Personal Control Scale, and several authordesigned measures) were administered to 102 undergraduate students. The subjects' perceptions of Roman Catholic priests' personality traits were examined by having the subjects complete the Personality Adjective Checklist (PACL) describing a typical Roman Catholic priest. These scores were compared to PACL scores from 12 successful applicants to the priesthood. Findings suggest that subjects tend to view Roman Catholic priests stereotypically as authority figures and that Catholic subjects view priests more positively than do non-Catholic subjects.

Comments

The final publication is available at Springer via http://doi.org/10.1007/BF02282658

Recommended Citation

Plante, T. G., & Boccaccini, M. (1997). Personality expectations and perceptions of Roman Catholic clergy members. Pastoral Psychology, 45, 301-315.