Relationship Between Formation Programme Components and Psycho-Spiritual Well-Being Among Novices in Female Religious Institutes in the Archdiocese of Nyeri, Kenya

Formation programmes play a critical role in fostering the holistic development and psycho-spiritual well-being of novices in religious life. This study examined the relationship between formation programme components and psycho-spiritual well-being among novices in selected female religious institutes in the Archdiocese of Nyeri, Kenya.
The study specifically focused on the relationship between spiritual, human, intellectual, and pastoral formation and psycho-spiritual well-being dimensions, namely self-awareness, connectedness, compassion, meaningfulness, and self-transcendence. The study adopted an embedded mixed-methods research design in which quantitative data formed the primary strand while qualitative data were embedded to enrich and explain the quantitative findings. Quantitative data were collected from 31 novices using the Formation Programmes Survey Scale (FPSS) and the Psycho-Spiritual Well-Being Scale (P-SWBS), while qualitative data were collected from four formators using semi-structured interviews. Quantitative data were analysed using descriptive statistics and Pearson Product Moment Correlation.The findings revealed that formation programmes were positively perceived across all dimensions, with pastoral formation recording the highest mean score (M = 4.31). Overall psycho-spiritual well-being was moderately high (M = 3.86), although self-awareness recorded the lowest score (M = 3.72). Correlation analysis revealed generally weak and mostly non-significant relationships between formation programme dimensions and psycho-spiritual well-being variables. The study concludes that although formation programmes provide a strong structural foundation for vocational preparation and spiritual growth, authentic psycho-spiritual well-being also depends on emotional maturity, psychological integration, self-awareness, and relational support. The findings have important implications for the design of holistic formation programmes and may inform policy, formation practice, and psycho-spiritual accompaniment within religious institutes in Kenya and similar contexts.

psycho-spiritual well-being, formation programmes, psychological integration, novices, religious formation, consecrated life, vocational formation

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