Religious Identity and Religious Orientation of Hindus and Muslims in Traditional Schools

Abstract

The study examined religious identity and religious orientation in Hindu and Muslim girls in the context of their schooling. The study was conducted with 30 Hindu and 30 Muslim girls, aged 17-22 years, drawn from traditional Muslim and Hindu schools situated in the city of Varanasi. The participants were given scales for the assessment of religious orientation and religious identity. Findings revealed that Muslim groups exhibited stronger religious identity than Hindu group. With respect to religious orientation, the two groups differed on intrinsic religious orientation and personal extrinsic orientation. No significant difference was found on the scores of social extrinsic religiosity and fundamentalist orientation between the two groups.