Date

12-19-2023

Department

School of Behavioral Sciences

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy in Psychology (PhD)

Chair

Rachel Piferi

Keywords

Spiritual bypass, spiritual abuse, abuse, trauma, phenomenology

Disciplines

Psychology | Religion

Abstract

Currently spiritual bypass refers to a person's attempt to evade or sidestep significant events in his or her life by focusing solely on the spiritual dimension “bypassing” important psychological tasks necessary for healing (Cashwell & Young, 2004; Clarke et al., 2013). Several studies have been conducted proving that spiritual bypass is a phenomenon that individuals implement on themselves. However, the purpose of this study was to address the gap in the existing research literature by examining the lived experiences of those who have experienced receiving spiritual bypass from another person. Through semi-structured interviews, fourteen participants who self-identified as having experienced receiving spiritual bypass in a Christian context and were 18 years or older were selected for the study. The study implemented descriptive phenomenological analysis to convey experiences and themes developed from those experiences. Seven themes emerged from the research: misuse of spiritual authority, marginalization of feelings, dismissal of personal challenges and struggles, misuse of scripture, lack of trust in self, distrust of religious institutions and leadership, and intentional behavior with unintentional outcomes. Following the development of the themes, the Traumagenic Dynamics Model (Finkelhor & Browne, 1985) and the Sanctification Theory (Pargament & Mahoney, 2005) was used as a lens through which the phenomenon of receiving spiritual bypass was explored. The results of this research demonstrate that spiritual bypass can occur from one person toward another. Furthermore, the findings suggest that spiritual bypass does share qualities with spiritual abuse.

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