Multi-Dimensional Fundamentalism Inventory (MDFI)

The Multi-Dimensional Fundamentalism Inventory (MDFI) is a 15-item questionnaire capturing the extent of religious fundamentalism. The instrument consists of three subscales of five items each: External/Internal authority, Fixed/Malleable religion, and Rejection/Affirmation of the world. The first dimension captures the belief that an individual’s actions are moral and right only if they are based on God’s authority. The second dimension represents the attitude that religious tradition is a given and exists independently of historical and cultural conditions. The third dimension captures the valuing of the sacred over secular experiences.

Length of completion

The MDFI takes approximately 5 minutes to complete.

Keywords

Multi-Dimensional Fundamentalism Inventory, MDFI, religious fundamentalism, religion, God

Scoring and interpretation

The total score is obtained by summing all items. Higher scores indicate higher levels of religious fundamentalism.

Response Scale

Subjects respond to the MDFI items on a five-point Likert scale: “strongly disagree” (1) to “strongly agree” (5).

References

Henry, R. S., Perrin, P. B., & Smith, E. R. (2022). Religiosity, Religious Fundamentalism, Heterosexism, and Support for Lesbian and Gay Civil Rights: A Moderated Mediation Approach. Social Sciences, 11(4), 174. https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11040174

Kosarkova, A., Malinakova, K., van Dijk, J.P., Tavel, P. (2021). Vaccine Refusal in the Czech Republic Is Associated with Being Spiritual but Not Religiously Affiliated. Vaccines, 9(10), 1157. 10.3390/vaccines9101157

Liht, J., Conway, L. G., Savage, S., White, W., & O’Neill, K. A. (2011). Religious Fundamentalism: An Empirically Derived Construct and Measurement Scale. Archive for the Psychology of Religion, 33(3), 299–323. https://doi.org/10.1163/157361211X594159

Wibisono, S., Louis, W., & Jetten, J. (2019). The Role of Religious Fundamentalism in the Intersection of National and Religious Identities. Journal of Pacific Rim Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.1017/prp.2018.25