Phra Thanissaro
Biographic Data
| ID | 1075541 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Phra Thanissaro |
| GIVEN NAMES | Phra |
| FAMILY NAME | Thanissaro |
| SIGNATURE | THANISSARO P |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Warwick |
| ORCID | 0000-0002-5924-921X |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 17 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 1 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 17 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2010 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2021 |
| H-INDEX | 1 |
Psychological type among Dhammakāya meditators in the West
The psychological type of 1032 students of Dhammakāya meditation at Buddhist centres in the UK and US was surveyed using the 50-question Francis Psychological Type Scales and compared with their respective normative populations. Meditators' psychological type generally showed significantly higher proportions of INFJ (5-8x higher), INTJ (6-8x higher), IN (2-31⁄2x higher), NJ (3-5x higher), NF (2x higher) and N (2x higher). Although these meditator…
The attitudes of British Buddhist teens towards school and Religious Education
To ascertain the relative contributions towards affinity for education made by being Asian and being Buddhist, a quantitative study explored, for teen Buddhists growing up in Britain, attitudes to their school learning environment with particular reference to Religious Education (RE). A variety of attitude statements concerning school and RE were rated for levels of agreement using postal and online surveys for 417 self-identifying Buddhists aged…
Understanding Young Buddhists
Buddhist shrines
Previous research has recognized shrines in homes as sites of shared cultural memory with the function of contextualising religious narratives and bringing the sacred into the home. For Buddhists, shrines occupy a grey area between the cultural and the religious and have not been widely considered as indicators of religiosity. A quantitative study of 417 British teenagers self-identifying as Buddhists found that the 70% who had a home shrine were…
Buddhist Understanding of Childhood Spirituality
Buddhist Understanding of Childhood Spirituality: The Buddha’s Children." Journal of Contemporary Religion, 33(1), pp. 159–160
The role of frequent personal religious practice in Buddhist teen religiosity
A quantitative study explored the relationship for teen Buddhists in Britain between the frequency of personal religious practice (PRP), affective religiosity (as measured by Thanissaro’s 24-item Scale of Attitude to Buddhism), individual differences in attitudes and Psychological Type (as measured by the Francis Psychological Type Scales). Those with frequent PRP (18% practising daily and 54% monthly) were more likely to want their children to g…
Validity and Reliability of a Revised Scale of Attitude towards Buddhism (TSAB-R)
The empirical properties of a revised 24-item instrument called the Thanissaro Scale of Attitude towards Buddhism (TSAB-R) designed to measure Buddhist affective religiosity are described. The instrument was tested on adolescents and teenagers in the UK. Discriminant validity of the instrument was found satisfactory in relation to Buddhist affiliation and content validity in relation to religious involvement with temple attendance, scripture read…
The spirituality of Buddhist teens
In the quantitative analysis of a survey of 417 13- to 20-year-old Buddhists, the 48% who had undergone a religious or spiritual experience (RSE) were significantly more likely to self-identify as a spiritual person. Buddhists who had undergone RSEs were also more positive about spiritual teachers, a monastic vocation, attitude to Buddhism, supernatural phenomena and mystical orientation. In the qualitative part of the analysis, descriptions of R…
Buddhist Teen Worldview
Although there are dangers in essentializing religious practice, to be able to typify the worldviews of healthy Buddhists becomes advantageous when health professionals need to recognize atypical worldviews that are potentially pathological. The paper is an anthology of potentially ambiguous claims expressed by healthy Buddhist teenagers during UK research including outlook on karma, rebirth, meditation, mindfulness, contact with spirit presences…
Internal Diversity in Buddhism
Self-assigned religious affiliation has been linked to different extents with other aspects of religiosity in Christians, but this correlation has not previously been studied for Buddhists. In this study, relevant attitudes were examined through focus groups conducted with 75 heritage- and convert-raised Buddhist teenagers at seven British locations. Issues investigated included identity, spirituality, congregational participation, hopes, worries…
What makes you not a Buddhist
This study sets out to establish which Buddhist values contrasted with or were shared by adolescents from a non-Buddhist population. A survey of attitudes toward a variety of Buddhist values was fielded in a sample of 352 non-Buddhist schoolchildren aged between 13–15 years in London. Buddhist values where attitudes were least positive concerned the worth of being a monk/nun or meditating, offering candles & incense on the Buddhist shrine, friend…
What Makes You Not a Sikh
This study sets out to establish which Sikh values contrasted with or were shared by non-Sikh adolescents. A survey of attitude towards a variety of Sikh values was fielded in a sample of 364 non-Sikh schoolchildren aged between 13 and 15 years in London. Values where attitudes were least positive concerned Sikh duties/code of conduct, festivals, rituals, prayer Gurdwara attendance, listening to scripture recitation and the amrit initiation. Sikh…
Measuring attitude towards Buddhism and Sikhism
This paper describes and discusses the development and empirical properties of two new 24-item scales – one measuring attitude towards Buddhism and the other measuring attitude towards Sikhism. The scale is designed to facilitate inter-faith comparisons within the psychology of religion alongside the well-established Francis Scale of Attitude towards Christianity. Data were obtained from a multi-religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between …
Finding a moral homeground
Values‐inspired issues remain an important part of the British school curriculum. Avoiding moral relativism while fostering enthusiasm for spiritual values and applying them to non‐curricular learning such as school ethos or children’s home lives are challenges where spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development might benefit from leadership by critical religious education (RE). Whether the school’s model of spirituality is that of an …
‘Heaven starts at your parents’ feet’
In a quantitative survey of religious attitudes and practices in a multi-religious sample of \n369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London, the practice of bowing to parents was \nfound widespread in 22% of adolescents spanning several religious affiliations and \nethnicities – especially Buddhists, Hindus and those of Indian, African and ‘Other Asian’ \nethnicity. Whether an adolescent bowed correlated significantly with spiritual attitud…
Home shrines in Britain and associated spiritual values
In a quantitative survey of religious attitudes and practices in a multi‐religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London, the presence of a home shrine was found widespread in 11% of adolescents spanning several religious affiliations and ethnicities – especially Buddhists, Hindus and those of Indian, Chinese and ‘Other Asian’ ethnicity. Having a home shrine correlated significantly with spiritual attitudes such as agreemen…
Teaching Buddhism in Britain's Schools
Dialogical approaches to Religious Education in Britain’s schools have opened the subject to input by Buddhist insiders more than ever in its history although shortcomings remain in the way Buddhism is portrayed in the classroom. With the proviso that insider input can move beyond the ‘do-ut-des’ religious style, this paper describes eight possible areas of classroom experience where Buddhist insiders can make a beneficial contribution. Of these,…
Buddhist shrines
Previous research has recognized shrines in homes as sites of shared cultural memory with the function of contextualising religious narratives and bringing the sacred into the home. For Buddhists, shrines occupy a grey area between the cultural and the religious and have not been widely considered as indicators of religiosity. A quantitative study of 417 British teenagers self-identifying as Buddhists found that the 70% who had a home shrine were…
Finding a moral homeground
Values‐inspired issues remain an important part of the British school curriculum. Avoiding moral relativism while fostering enthusiasm for spiritual values and applying them to non‐curricular learning such as school ethos or children’s home lives are challenges where spiritual, moral, social and cultural (SMSC) development might benefit from leadership by critical religious education (RE). Whether the school’s model of spirituality is that of an …
‘Heaven starts at your parents’ feet’
In a quantitative survey of religious attitudes and practices in a multi-religious sample of \n369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London, the practice of bowing to parents was \nfound widespread in 22% of adolescents spanning several religious affiliations and \nethnicities – especially Buddhists, Hindus and those of Indian, African and ‘Other Asian’ \nethnicity. Whether an adolescent bowed correlated significantly with spiritual attitud…
Home shrines in Britain and associated spiritual values
In a quantitative survey of religious attitudes and practices in a multi‐religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between 13 and 15 in London, the presence of a home shrine was found widespread in 11% of adolescents spanning several religious affiliations and ethnicities – especially Buddhists, Hindus and those of Indian, Chinese and ‘Other Asian’ ethnicity. Having a home shrine correlated significantly with spiritual attitudes such as agreemen…
Teaching Buddhism in Britain's Schools
Dialogical approaches to Religious Education in Britain’s schools have opened the subject to input by Buddhist insiders more than ever in its history although shortcomings remain in the way Buddhism is portrayed in the classroom. With the proviso that insider input can move beyond the ‘do-ut-des’ religious style, this paper describes eight possible areas of classroom experience where Buddhist insiders can make a beneficial contribution. Of these,…
Measuring attitude towards Buddhism and Sikhism
This paper describes and discusses the development and empirical properties of two new 24-item scales – one measuring attitude towards Buddhism and the other measuring attitude towards Sikhism. The scale is designed to facilitate inter-faith comparisons within the psychology of religion alongside the well-established Francis Scale of Attitude towards Christianity. Data were obtained from a multi-religious sample of 369 school pupils aged between …
What makes you not a Buddhist
This study sets out to establish which Buddhist values contrasted with or were shared by adolescents from a non-Buddhist population. A survey of attitudes toward a variety of Buddhist values was fielded in a sample of 352 non-Buddhist schoolchildren aged between 13–15 years in London. Buddhist values where attitudes were least positive concerned the worth of being a monk/nun or meditating, offering candles & incense on the Buddhist shrine, friend…
What Makes You Not a Sikh
This study sets out to establish which Sikh values contrasted with or were shared by non-Sikh adolescents. A survey of attitude towards a variety of Sikh values was fielded in a sample of 364 non-Sikh schoolchildren aged between 13 and 15 years in London. Values where attitudes were least positive concerned Sikh duties/code of conduct, festivals, rituals, prayer Gurdwara attendance, listening to scripture recitation and the amrit initiation. Sikh…
Internal Diversity in Buddhism
Self-assigned religious affiliation has been linked to different extents with other aspects of religiosity in Christians, but this correlation has not previously been studied for Buddhists. In this study, relevant attitudes were examined through focus groups conducted with 75 heritage- and convert-raised Buddhist teenagers at seven British locations. Issues investigated included identity, spirituality, congregational participation, hopes, worries…
The spirituality of Buddhist teens
In the quantitative analysis of a survey of 417 13- to 20-year-old Buddhists, the 48% who had undergone a religious or spiritual experience (RSE) were significantly more likely to self-identify as a spiritual person. Buddhists who had undergone RSEs were also more positive about spiritual teachers, a monastic vocation, attitude to Buddhism, supernatural phenomena and mystical orientation. In the qualitative part of the analysis, descriptions of R…
Buddhist Teen Worldview
Although there are dangers in essentializing religious practice, to be able to typify the worldviews of healthy Buddhists becomes advantageous when health professionals need to recognize atypical worldviews that are potentially pathological. The paper is an anthology of potentially ambiguous claims expressed by healthy Buddhist teenagers during UK research including outlook on karma, rebirth, meditation, mindfulness, contact with spirit presences…
Validity and Reliability of a Revised Scale of Attitude towards Buddhism (TSAB-R)
The empirical properties of a revised 24-item instrument called the Thanissaro Scale of Attitude towards Buddhism (TSAB-R) designed to measure Buddhist affective religiosity are described. The instrument was tested on adolescents and teenagers in the UK. Discriminant validity of the instrument was found satisfactory in relation to Buddhist affiliation and content validity in relation to religious involvement with temple attendance, scripture read…
The role of frequent personal religious practice in Buddhist teen religiosity
A quantitative study explored the relationship for teen Buddhists in Britain between the frequency of personal religious practice (PRP), affective religiosity (as measured by Thanissaro’s 24-item Scale of Attitude to Buddhism), individual differences in attitudes and Psychological Type (as measured by the Francis Psychological Type Scales). Those with frequent PRP (18% practising daily and 54% monthly) were more likely to want their children to g…
The attitudes of British Buddhist teens towards school and Religious Education
To ascertain the relative contributions towards affinity for education made by being Asian and being Buddhist, a quantitative study explored, for teen Buddhists growing up in Britain, attitudes to their school learning environment with particular reference to Religious Education (RE). A variety of attitude statements concerning school and RE were rated for levels of agreement using postal and online surveys for 417 self-identifying Buddhists aged…
Understanding Young Buddhists
Buddhist shrines
Previous research has recognized shrines in homes as sites of shared cultural memory with the function of contextualising religious narratives and bringing the sacred into the home. For Buddhists, shrines occupy a grey area between the cultural and the religious and have not been widely considered as indicators of religiosity. A quantitative study of 417 British teenagers self-identifying as Buddhists found that the 70% who had a home shrine were…
Buddhist Understanding of Childhood Spirituality
Buddhist Understanding of Childhood Spirituality: The Buddha’s Children." Journal of Contemporary Religion, 33(1), pp. 159–160
Psychological type among Dhammakāya meditators in the West
The psychological type of 1032 students of Dhammakāya meditation at Buddhist centres in the UK and US was surveyed using the 50-question Francis Psychological Type Scales and compared with their respective normative populations. Meditators' psychological type generally showed significantly higher proportions of INFJ (5-8x higher), INTJ (6-8x higher), IN (2-31⁄2x higher), NJ (3-5x higher), NF (2x higher) and N (2x higher). Although these meditator…
Psychology (15 works) · Social Psychology (13 works) · Buddhism (12 works) · Religion, Spirituality, and Psychology (12 works) · Philosophy (11 works) · Sociology (11 works) · Theology (10 works) · Religious studies (7 works) · Gender Studies (6 works) · Meditation (6 works)