Development and Validation of the Sexual Minority and Religious Identity Integration (SMRII) Scale

Abstract

ABSTRACT Despite the psychosocial strain of homonegative religious attitudes, many people with minoritized sexual identities also hold religious identities and benefit from integrating their sexual minority and religious identities. However, for research and clinical practice to advance, a reliable and valid measure of sexual and religious identity integration is needed. The present study reports on the development and validation of the Sexual Minority and Religious Identity Integration (SMRII) Scale. Participants were comprised of two subsamples for whom sexual and religious identity is particularly salient (Latter-day Saints and Muslims) as well as a third subsample of the general sexual minority population—totaling 1,424 individuals (39% POC, 62% cisman, 27% ciswoman, 11% trans/non-binary/genderqueer). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses indicated that the 5-item scale measures a single unidimensional construct. This scale demonstrated good internal consistency in the total sample (α = .80) as well as metric and scalar invariance along relevant demographics. The SMRII also evidenced strong convergent and discriminant validity, significantly correlating with other measures of religious and sexual minority identity typically between r = .2 and r = .5. Taken together, initial findings indicate that the SMRII is a psychometrically sound measure that is brief enough to be utilized in research and clinical settings. Public Significance Statement: This article introduces the Sexual Minority and Religious Identity Integration Scale (SMRII) as a reliable and valid assessment of the degree to which individuals integrate their sexual minority and religious identities. This five-item measure is brief enough to be utilized in both research and clinical settings.