Unravelling the Nexus Between Human Values and Competencies to Religion Among Educational Stakeholders in Mauritius Using Structural Equation Modelling

Abstract: Religion has been associated with human values and competencies needed to shape young people into responsible citizens able to make a positive difference in the lives of others. However, this correlation remains dependent on the context. As the correlation has not yet been investigated in Mauritius, which is a multicultural and multi-ethnic country, this study aims to bridge this knowledge gap using a purely positivist epistemological approach. It will analyze the Mauritius-specific data derived from a public data set which was part of the "Mapping the Terrain" project to examine the correlation between religion and a broad set of human values and competencies, namely forgiveness, individualistic orientation, collectivistic orientation, self-efficacy, problem-solving, meaning-making, sense of belongingness, religiosity/spirituality, hope, life satisfaction, gratitude, emotion, regulation, empathy, and self-regulation. The descriptive analysis and the Structural Equation Model (SEM), developed using the SPSS and AMOS software, revealed that (i) independent of ethnic group, educational stakeholders in Mauritius have a high affinity to most of the human values and competences, and (ii) as compared with others, the Muslim community has a slightly lower affinity to forgiveness, life satisfaction, individualistic orientation, self-efficacy, and problem solving. These data, which represent important baseline information needed to inform policymakers and other educational stakeholders, were used to derive a set of recommendations that will further the development of the key human values and competencies needed to promote harmony in a multicultural and multi-ethnic country.