The change of Concept of Response to Prayer in Children and Adolescents

The present paper aimed at elaborating on the stages and content of change in the concept of response to prayer in children and adolescents. This research was conducted with emphasis on Islamic sources and texts and based on a cross-sectional design. The sample includes 157 students (82 female and 75 male) from 6 to 17 years olds from Qom city. It should be said that these students were selected through a multi-stage cluster sampling. The data were gathered by a clinical method and a semi-structured individual interview whose questions were framed according to experimental and theoretical foundations of religious concepts and scored by seminary and psychology experts (five experts). The content analysis of interviews and conducting ANOVA showed that understanding the response to prayer includes five stages of ambiguous answers, characteristics of prayer, content features of prayer, value and religious concepts, and rational-religious analyses. Its developmental stages were in four age groups of 6-7, 8-11, 12-14, 15-17 and the rate of understanding the response to prayer increased as age increased. The research findings are discussed with regard to theoretical and experimental foundations of understanding religious concepts and in comparison with other developmental classifications.