psychological theories of religion black letters -...

63
Huber: Psychology of Religious Beliefs Psych Theories of Religion 1 PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF RELIGION Many theories of religions assume: Religion as concept motivated by fear, helplessness, feeling of imperfectness etc. Gods guide and protect Religion offers afterlife instead of final death …. some authors: cognitive aspects – religion as one guide to understand the world

Upload: trinhkhuong

Post on 06-Feb-2018

216 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

1

PSYC

HO

LOG

ICA

L T

HEO

RIE

S

ON

TH

E O

RIG

IN O

F R

ELIG

ION

Man

y th

eorie

s of

relig

ions

ass

ume:

Rel

igio

n as

con

cept

mot

ivat

ed b

y fe

ar, h

elpl

essn

ess,

fe

elin

g of

impe

rfect

ness

etc

.G

ods

guid

e an

d pr

otec

t R

elig

ion

offe

rs a

fterli

fe in

stea

d of

fina

l dea

th …

.

som

e au

thor

s:

cogn

itive

asp

ects

–re

ligio

n as

one

gui

de to

und

erst

and

the

wor

ld

Page 2: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

2

I.P. P

awlo

wW

illia

m J

ames

S

. Fre

udTe

rror

man

agem

ent t

heor

y/ie

sA

ttrib

utio

n-th

eore

tical

app

roac

hE

volu

tiona

ry p

ersp

ectiv

es

Phi

loso

pher

s w

ith p

sych

olog

ical

arg

umen

tatio

nX

enop

hane

sM

arx

Feue

rbac

h

Page 3: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

3

PHIL

OSO

PHER

S W

ITH

PS

YCH

OLO

GIC

AL

AR

GU

MEN

TATI

ON

Page 4: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

4

XEN

OPH

AN

ES

(pre

socr

atic

phi

loso

pher

-

6th-

5th

cent

ury

BC

)

note

s an

thro

pom

orph

ic te

nden

cies

in c

once

ptio

ns o

f god

s

“Mor

tals

sup

pose

that

the

gods

are

bor

n, a

nd

have

thei

r ow

n dr

ess,

voi

ce, a

nd b

ody”

“E

thio

pian

s sa

y th

at th

eir g

ods

are

snub

-nos

ed

and

dark

, Th

raci

ans,

that

thei

rs a

re g

rey-

eyed

and

red-

haire

d”)

Page 5: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

5

Sugg

ests

that

hor

ses,

oxe

n, a

nd li

ons

wou

ld h

ave

equi

ne, b

ovin

e, a

nd le

onin

e go

ds

Page 6: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

6

Ludw

ig A

ndre

as F

EUER

BA

CH

(18

04 –

1874

)

1841

Das

Wes

en d

es C

hris

tent

ums

(The

Ess

ence

of C

hris

tiani

ty)

God

is a

pro

ject

ion

of m

an-a

pro

duct

of h

is h

opes

and

des

ires.

Page 7: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

7

Hum

ans

•co

uld

not e

ndur

e th

eir i

mpe

rfect

ness

and

fini

tene

ss,

ther

efor

e in

vent

ion

of a

per

fect

and

om

nipo

tent

bei

ng.

•do

not

wan

t to

die

ther

efor

e in

vent

ion

of a

n im

mor

tal s

oul

•co

uld

not b

ear t

he e

xist

ing

inju

stic

eth

eref

ore

imve

ntio

n of

a h

eave

nly

just

ness

Page 8: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

8

Kar

l Hei

nric

h M

AR

X (1

818

–18

83)

Rel

igio

n -

orig

inat

es fr

om a

liena

tion

-ai

ds th

e pe

rsis

tenc

e of

alie

natio

n

Alie

natio

nW

hen

wor

k its

elf b

ecom

es a

com

mod

ity th

at is

sol

d an

d bo

ught

th

e la

bore

r giv

es u

p hi

s ca

paci

ty to

tran

sfor

m th

e w

orld

-th

is a

liena

tes

him

from

his

true

nat

ure

Page 9: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

9

“Rel

igio

us s

uffe

ring

is, a

t one

and

the

sam

e tim

e, th

e ex

pres

sion

of r

eal s

uffe

ring

and

a pr

otes

t aga

inst

real

su

fferin

g. R

elig

ion

is th

e si

gh o

f the

opp

ress

ed c

reat

ure,

th

e he

art o

f a h

eartl

ess

wor

ld, a

nd th

e so

ul o

f sou

lless

co

nditi

ons.

It is

the

opiu

m o

f the

peo

ple.

”C

ontri

butio

n to

the

Crit

ique

of H

egel

’s P

hilo

soph

y of

Rig

ht (1

843

)

Rel

igio

n as

a s

ourc

e of

hap

pine

ss, t

houg

h ill

usor

y an

d te

mpo

rary

, or a

t lea

st a

sou

rce

of c

omfo

rt.

Rel

igio

n is

not

as

a ne

cess

ary

part

of h

uman

cul

ture

(Lib

erat

ion

theo

logy

: com

bine

s C

hris

tiani

ty a

nd M

arxi

sm)

Page 10: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

10

PSYC

HO

LOG

Y

PAW

LOW

, I.P

. (1

849

–19

36)

Rel

igio

sity

–se

arch

for p

rote

ctio

n

Whe

n hu

man

s ev

olve

d fro

m a

nim

als:

m

any

aspe

cts

of n

atur

e w

ere

expe

rienc

ed a

s th

reat

enin

g an

d fri

ghte

ning

.H

uman

s cr

eate

d re

ligio

n w

hich

hel

ped

them

to s

urvi

ve

in v

iew

of a

mer

cile

ss a

nd o

mni

pote

nt n

atur

e.Fr

om th

en o

n:

tend

ency

to re

ligio

n is

tran

smitt

ed p

hylo

gene

tical

y

Page 11: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

11

Ont

ogen

etic

ally

:R

elig

ious

reac

tions

are

trig

gere

d on

ly w

ith “w

eak”

in

divi

dual

s (w

eak

neur

al s

yste

m) e

spec

ially

in c

rises

.In

divi

dual

s w

ith s

tong

neu

ral s

yste

m o

verc

ome

relig

ious

te

nden

cies

and

hav

e a

ratio

nalis

tic v

iew

of t

he w

orld

.S

ocie

ty s

houl

d le

t wea

k in

divi

dual

s ha

ve th

eir r

elig

ion.

Pro

blem

: ac

quire

dcu

ltura

l beh

avio

r ca

nnot

be

hand

ed d

own

gene

tical

ly

Page 12: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

12

Will

iam

JA

MES

(184

2 –

1910

)

The

varie

ties

of re

ligio

us e

xper

ienc

e (1

902)

Was

not

so

muc

h in

tere

sted

in th

e or

igin

of r

elig

ion

in

hum

ans,

but

pro

mot

ed th

e in

vest

igat

ion

of re

ligio

us

expe

rienc

e .

Acc

ordi

ng to

Jam

es:

Stu

dy o

f rel

igio

n sh

ould

stu

dy a

s pr

imar

y to

pic

relig

ious

ex

perie

nce

(gen

ius)

, rat

her t

han

relig

ious

in

stitu

tions

—si

nce

inst

itutio

ns a

re m

erel

y th

e so

cial

de

scen

dant

of g

eniu

s.

Page 13: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

13

The

inte

nse,

eve

n pa

thol

ogic

al v

arie

ties

of e

xper

ienc

e (r

elig

ious

or o

ther

wis

e) s

houl

d be

inve

stig

ated

by

psyc

holo

gist

s, b

ecau

se th

ey re

pres

ent t

he c

lose

st th

ing

to a

mic

rosc

ope

of th

e m

ind—

that

is, t

hey

show

us

in

dras

tical

ly e

nlar

ged

form

the

norm

al p

roce

sses

of

thin

gs.

Jam

es in

vest

igat

ed m

ysic

al e

xper

ienc

e,

expe

rimen

ted

with

diff

eren

t sub

stan

ces

like

nitro

us o

xide

(L

achg

as, g

az h

ilara

nt) (

1882

), P

eyot

e (1

896)

. C

oncl

uded

that

whi

le th

e re

vela

tions

of t

he m

ystic

hol

d tru

e, th

ey h

old

true

only

for t

he m

ystic

; fo

r oth

ers,

they

are

cer

tain

ly id

eas

to b

e co

nsid

ered

, but

ca

n ho

ld n

o cl

aim

to tr

uth

with

out p

erso

nal e

xper

ienc

e of

suc

h.

Page 14: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

14

S. F

REU

D(1

856

–19

39)

two

phas

es o

f exp

lain

ing

relig

ion

(1)R

elig

ion

as O

bses

sive

-com

puls

ive

neur

osis

(Zw

angs

neur

ose)

(cau

sed

by u

ncon

scio

us c

onfli

cts)

-Zw

angs

hand

lung

en u

nd R

elig

ions

übun

gen

(190

7)-

Tote

m u

nd T

abu

(191

2)(2

) Rel

igio

n is

not

onl

y O

bses

sive

-com

puls

ive

neur

osis

bu

t als

o re

gres

sive

wis

h fo

r pro

tect

ion

by a

n om

nipo

tent

fath

er-

Die

Zuk

unft

eine

r Illu

sion

(192

7)-

Neu

e Fo

lge

der V

orle

sung

en z

ur E

infü

hrun

g in

die

Psy

choa

naly

se(1

932)

Page 15: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

15

1 R

elig

ion

as O

bses

sive

-com

puls

ive

neur

osis

Freu

d: fu

ndam

enta

l sim

ilarit

y be

twee

n re

ligio

us ri

tual

s an

d co

mpu

lsiv

e ac

tions

of p

eopl

e w

ith O

bses

sive

-co

mpu

lsiv

ene

uros

is

•N

euro

tic d

oes

not k

now

why

he/

she

perfo

rms

the

com

puls

ive

actio

ns -

mos

t pio

us p

eopl

e do

not

kno

w

why

they

do

or q

uest

ion

relig

ious

cer

emon

ies

(Prie

sts

or re

ligio

us e

xper

ts m

ay k

now

sym

bolic

char

acte

r of c

erem

onie

s)

Page 16: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

16

•N

euro

tic p

erfo

rms

ritua

ls a

s pr

otec

tive

actio

ns

beca

use

of fe

ar a

nd g

uilt

Pio

us p

eopl

e af

firm

that

they

are

sin

ners

and

sta

rt th

eir

da

ys a

nd e

xtra

ordi

nary

act

ions

with

pra

yers

etc

•N

euro

sis

orig

inat

es fr

om im

perfe

ct re

pres

sion

and

re

pres

sion

of s

exua

l des

ires

Orig

in o

f rel

igio

n se

ems

to li

e al

so in

a re

pres

sion

of

de

sire

s ca

used

by

driv

es (s

exua

l and

agg

ress

ive)

Th

eref

ore,

relig

ion

conn

ecte

d w

ith g

uilt

beca

use

the

te

mpt

atio

n is

retu

rnin

g al

l the

tim

e. It

is a

ccom

pani

ed

by fe

ar o

f god

’s p

unis

hmen

t and

pen

ance

s

Page 17: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

17

•In

obs

essi

ve-c

ompu

lsiv

ene

uros

is s

omet

hing

un

impo

rtant

can

bec

ome

the

mos

t im

porta

ntIn

relig

ion,

nitp

icki

ng c

erem

onie

s te

nd to

bec

ome

the

mos

t im

porta

nt (h

ow e

xact

ly to

cro

ss o

nese

lf)

Freu

d’s

conc

lusi

on:

Rel

igio

n is

a u

nive

rsal

obs

essi

ve-c

ompu

lsiv

e ne

uros

is

Page 18: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

18

PR

OB

LEM

S

relig

ion ≠

relig

ious

ritu

al

(ritu

als

usua

lly o

nly

in s

peci

fic s

ituat

ions

, e.g

., m

ass;

but n

ot in

oth

er re

ligio

us a

ctiv

ities

like

priv

ate

pray

ing)

Rel

igio

us ri

tual

s ar

e –

in c

ontra

st to

com

puls

ive

actio

ns –

regu

larly

, pub

lic, b

egin

is o

ften

base

d on

obj

ectiv

e cr

iteria

(e.g

., ca

lend

ar)

Eve

n if

relig

ious

peo

ple

perfo

rm ri

tual

s th

ey d

o no

t un

ders

tand

, thi

s is

not

(nec

essa

rily)

com

puls

ive

(may

be

lear

ned

and

auto

mat

ized

, soc

ial e

xpec

tatio

ns)

Indi

vidu

al re

ligio

sity

may

be

caus

ed b

y ot

her f

acto

rs, n

ot

only

dic

tate

d by

Sup

ereg

o

Page 19: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

19

2 R

elig

ion

as re

gres

sive

wis

h to

be

prot

ecte

d by

an

omni

pote

nt fa

ther

Bas

ed o

n th

e O

edip

us c

ompl

ex

•m

ale

child

wan

ts s

exua

l int

erco

urse

with

his

mot

her

•fa

ther

doe

s no

t allo

w th

at -

thre

aten

s w

ith c

astra

tion

•so

n so

lves

con

flict

by

acce

ptin

g fa

ther

’s m

oral

rule

s ( =

birt

h of

Sup

ereg

o)

Page 20: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

20

In O

edip

al p

hase

:

-A

mbi

vale

nt fe

elin

gs o

f son

tow

ards

fath

er

-w

ants

fath

er d

ead

beca

use

he is

a p

ower

ful r

ival

in

fig

ht fo

r mot

her’s

favo

r

-th

erfo

re, s

on fe

els

guilt

y an

d ha

s fe

ar

Idea

of O

edip

us c

onfli

ct tr

ansf

erre

d to

pre

hist

oric

tim

es:

Page 21: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

21

In th

e pr

imal

hor

de, s

ons

hate

d th

e fa

ther

Fa

ther

cla

imed

all

pow

er a

nd a

ll se

xual

inte

rcou

rses

w

ith th

e w

omen

of t

he h

orde

. A

t the

sam

e tim

e so

ns a

dmire

d fa

ther

for h

is p

ower

an

d w

ante

d to

take

his

pla

ce.

Son

s ki

lled

fath

er a

nd a

te h

im c

anni

balis

tical

ly.

How

ever

, bec

ause

of t

heir

love

to h

im th

ey fe

lt de

ep

guilt

and

rem

orse

.

Son

s de

fined

a s

urro

gate

of t

he k

illed

fath

er:

a to

tem

ani

mal

Page 22: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

22

Son

s at

tem

pted

to u

ndo

thei

r bad

dee

d by

cre

atin

g tw

o ta

boos

(mor

al la

ws)

:

1 ki

lling

the

tote

m a

nim

al w

as fo

rbid

den

2 In

cest

was

forb

idde

n

For o

bser

ving

thes

e ta

boos

, the

fath

er a

ssur

ed

ever

ythi

ng a

chi

ld c

an e

xpec

t fro

m th

e fa

ther

: pr

otec

tion,

car

e an

d be

ing

spar

ed

(from

fath

er’s

reve

nge)

.

Page 23: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

23

Tabo

o to

kill

the

tote

m a

nim

al w

as o

nly

can

cele

d to

sa

crify

the

tote

m a

nim

al a

nd to

eat

it ri

tual

istic

ally

.

Late

r fat

her a

nd to

tem

ani

mal

wer

e re

plac

ed b

y go

d.

For e

ach

one

god

is th

e fa

ther

.

Late

r Fre

ud s

tress

ed th

e pr

otec

ting

and

help

ing

aspe

ct

of th

e fa

ther

or g

od re

spec

tive.

Page 24: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

24

Bel

ievi

ng in

god

= r

egre

ssio

n to

an

infa

ntile

and

id

ealiz

ed p

ictu

re o

f the

fath

erth

at is

con

stru

cted

as

a d

efen

ce a

gain

st fe

ars

and

the

dang

ers

of li

fe.

Thes

e w

ishe

s ar

e pr

ojec

ted

at u

nkno

wn

pow

ers

–th

e go

ds –

that

hav

e th

e fe

atur

es o

f a a

lmig

hty

and

prot

ectin

g fa

ther

.

Page 25: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

25

Thre

e fu

nctio

ns o

f god

s an

d re

ligio

n:

1.In

stru

ctio

n ab

out t

he o

rigin

of t

he w

orld

In o

rder

to s

atis

fy h

uman

’s th

irst o

f kno

wle

dge

relig

ion

teac

hes

that

(and

how

) the

wor

ld is

cre

ated

by

idea

lized

sup

erna

tura

l bei

ngs

(god

s)Fr

eud

take

s in

to a

ccou

nt a

lso

the

role

of r

elig

ion

as

teac

her a

bout

the

wor

ld

2.C

omfo

rting

and

pac

ifyin

g fe

ars

3.M

oral

prin

cipl

es

Page 26: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

26

PRO

BLE

MS

Eve

n if

one

wou

ld a

ccep

t Fre

ud’s

idea

s ab

out r

elig

ion,

th

ey c

anno

t exp

lain

the

wor

ship

of g

odde

sses

How

ever

: ba

sic

idea

s ar

e no

t acc

epta

ble

Page 27: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

27

Freu

d’s

expl

anat

ion

of th

e or

igin

of r

elig

ion

(and

cu

lture

, etc

) re

sts

on O

edip

us c

onfli

ct.

Freu

d: O

edip

us c

onfli

ct a

s fu

ndam

ent/b

ase

of

Psy

choa

naly

sis.

How

ever

: hyp

othe

sis

of O

edip

us c

onfli

ct a

s a

univ

ersa

l ph

enom

enon

in h

uman

dev

elop

men

t fal

sifie

d !

(cf.,

Gre

ve &

Roo

s, 1

996)

. [ E

ven

the

answ

ers

of th

e bo

y on

whi

ch F

reud

ba

sed

his

theo

ry, h

ave

been

sho

wn

as a

pro

duct

of

an in

ferio

r met

hodo

logy

: not

Fre

ud ta

lked

with

the

boy,

but

the

boy’

s fa

ther

pos

ed s

ugge

stiv

e qu

estio

ns (E

sche

nröd

er, 1

984)

]

Page 28: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

28

Ince

st: I

n co

ntra

st to

Fre

ud’s

ass

umpt

ions

, hig

her

mam

mal

s us

ually

do

noth

ave

sexu

al in

terc

ours

e w

ith p

oten

tial p

artn

ers

they

kno

w fr

om c

hild

hood

(cf.

Hin

de, 1

999,

p 1

78ff)

Ther

efor

e, to

avo

id in

cest

, the

who

le O

edip

us c

onfli

ct is

un

nece

ssar

y

Page 29: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

29

CO

NC

LUS

ION

Freu

d’s

expl

anat

ion

of o

rigin

of r

elig

ion

base

d on

the

Oed

ipus

con

flict

is u

nsus

tain

able

(+:

Fre

ud ta

kes

into

acc

ount

als

o th

e ro

le o

f rel

igio

n as

te

ache

r abo

ut th

e w

orld

)

Page 30: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

30

TER

RO

R-M

AN

AG

EMEN

T TH

EOR

YM

alin

owsk

i (18

84-1

942)

(Ant

hrop

olog

ist)

Mag

ic, S

cien

ce, a

nd R

elig

ion

(194

8)S

. Sol

omon

, J. G

reen

berg

and

T. P

yszc

zyns

ki (

from

19

80 o

n) (

soci

al-p

sych

olog

ical

ly o

rient

ed)

Hum

an’s

aw

aren

ess

of o

wn

mor

talit

y (m

orta

lity-

salie

nce)

cau

ses

inte

nsiv

e te

rror

Page 31: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

31

This

terr

or c

an b

e co

ntro

lled

with

the

help

of t

wo

copi

ng

mec

hani

sms:

cultu

ral w

orld

-vie

ws

(con

cept

s of

the

orig

in o

f the

wor

ld,

norm

and

pro

tect

ion

from

evi

l by

obse

rvin

g no

rms,

id

eas

of im

mor

talit

y)(n

ot n

eces

saril

y re

ligio

us, b

ut o

ften

so)

self-

este

em th

at is

gai

ned

by b

elie

ving

in s

uch

a w

orld

-vie

w

Page 32: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

32

Pro

blem

:re

latio

n be

twee

n fe

ar o

f dyi

ng a

nd b

elie

f in

life

afte

r de

ath

not r

eally

wel

l inv

estig

ated

fear

of d

ying

≠fe

ar o

f dea

th(a

per

son

may

hav

e no

fear

of d

eath

, but

may

fear

the

proc

ess

of d

ying

)

Gro

m (2

007)

:on

ly w

eak

(neg

ativ

e) c

orre

latio

n be

twee

n in

trins

ic

relig

iosi

ty a

nd fe

ar o

f dea

th a

nd d

ying

Rel

atio

n be

twee

n re

ligio

sity

and

fear

of d

eath

and

dyi

ng

seem

s to

be

curv

iline

ar (

inve

rted

U):

Per

sons

with

med

ium

relig

iosi

ty h

ave

high

est f

ear o

f de

ath

and

dyin

g,lo

w a

nd h

igh

relig

ious

per

sons

hav

e lo

w fe

ar.

Page 33: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

33

ATT

RIB

UTI

ON

-TH

EOR

ETIC

AL

APP

RO

AC

H

Spilk

a, B

., H

ood,

R.W

., H

unsb

erge

r, B

., &

Gor

such

, R. L

. (2

003)

. The

psy

chol

ogy

of re

ligio

n: A

n em

piric

al

appr

oach

. 2nd

Edi

t., N

ew Y

ork:

Gui

lford

.

Attr

ibut

ion

theo

ry: P

eopl

e ex

plai

n ev

ents

(esp

ecia

lly

succ

ess

and

failu

re) b

y at

tribu

ing

caus

es, i

nten

tions

and

m

otiv

es

(e.g

., su

cces

s in

exa

m –

may

be

attri

bute

d to

-g

ood

lear

ning

-luc

k-b

enev

olen

t exa

min

er)

Page 34: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

34

Rel

igio

sity

: ten

denc

y to

pre

fer r

elig

ious

attr

ibut

ions

to

non-

relig

ious

one

s w

hen

expl

aini

ng a

n ev

ent

Rel

igio

us a

ttrib

utio

ns s

erve

thre

e m

ain

mot

ives

:

1 D

esire

to u

nder

stan

d th

e w

orld

as

som

ethi

ng m

eani

ngfu

lR

elig

ion:

wor

ld is

ord

ered

and

just

all e

vent

s ar

e pa

rt of

a g

loba

l pla

n

Page 35: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

35

2D

esire

for c

ontro

l and

pre

dict

abili

tyR

elig

ion:

(som

e) p

erce

ived

con

trol b

y m

eans

of p

raye

rs,

ritua

ls, o

bser

ving

rel.

norm

sC

onvi

ctio

n th

at g

od c

ontro

ls e

very

thin

g an

d, th

eref

ore,

eve

ryth

ing

is c

orre

ct

3D

esire

for g

ood

self-

conc

ept

Rel

igio

n: te

lls p

eopl

e th

at g

od c

ares

abo

ut e

ach

sing

le o

nepr

ovid

es re

info

rcem

ent b

y be

ing

activ

e in

re

ligio

us c

omm

unity

Page 36: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

36

Pre

fere

nce

for r

elig

ious

attr

ibut

ion

over

non

-rel

igio

us o

ne

depe

nden

t on

four

fact

ors

(Dat

a fro

m q

uest

ionn

aire

s):

(1) C

hara

cter

istic

s of

attr

ibut

ing

pers

on

(edu

catio

n, fa

mily

bac

kgro

und,

sel

f-con

cept

, typ

e of

se

lf-es

teem

[bas

ed o

n go

d, b

ased

on

othe

r peo

ple]

)

(2)C

onte

xtM

ore

likel

y if

parti

cipa

tion

in re

ligio

us a

ctiv

ities

,if

expe

rienc

e w

ith re

ligio

us e

xpla

natio

ns

(e.g

., su

cces

s of

pra

yers

)

Page 37: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

37

(3) C

hara

cter

istic

s of

eve

nt

Rel

igio

us a

ttrib

utio

n m

ore

likel

y if

attri

buiti

on o

f eve

nt

help

to k

eep

up s

elf-c

once

pt(e

.g.,

relig

ious

vic

tims

of a

ccid

ents

bla

me

them

selv

es

mor

e lik

ely

than

non

-rel

igio

us o

nes)

(4) C

onte

xt o

f eve

nt

Loca

tion

and

timin

g of

eve

nt a

ffect

pla

usib

ility

of

spe

cific

exp

lana

tion

(e.g

., if

som

ebod

y pr

ayed

just

bef

ore

a su

cces

sful

m

edic

al o

pera

tion,

she

will

mor

e lik

ely

see

pray

ers

as m

eans

to c

ontro

l bad

eve

nts)

Page 38: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

38

Attr

ibut

ion-

theo

retic

al a

ppro

ach:

•C

ogni

tion

is ta

ken

into

acc

ount

Cog

nitio

n an

d m

otiv

atio

n co

mbi

ned

•C

ombi

natio

n of

attr

ibut

ion

rese

arch

and

psy

chol

ogy

of

relig

ion

seem

s to

be

fruitf

ul

•A

ssum

ptio

n of

sim

plis

tic th

inki

ng in

term

s of

re

war

d-pu

nish

men

t crit

iciz

ed

(suc

cess

–go

d‘s

grac

e / f

ailu

re -

god‘

s pu

nish

men

t)(m

aybe

spe

cific

for s

ome

type

s of

pro

test

antis

m?)

Page 39: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

39

NEU

RO

THEO

LOG

Y„a

re w

e ha

rdw

ired

for r

elig

ion?

“te

rm „n

euro

theo

logy

“by

d‘A

quili

& N

ewbe

rg (1

999)

Inve

stig

ated

with

(ext

raor

dina

ry) r

elig

ious

exp

erie

nces

:

New

berg

, d‘A

quili

& R

ause

(200

3): d

urin

g sp

iritu

al

med

itatio

n re

duce

d ac

tivity

in a

rea

in th

e pr

efro

ntal

br

ain

that

is c

onne

cted

with

spa

tial o

rient

atio

n an

d di

stin

ctio

n be

twee

n ou

r bod

y an

d th

e ou

ter w

orld

(8

Bud

dhis

ts, 3

Fra

ncis

can

nuns

)si

mila

r: A

ustin

(199

8) -

Zen-

med

itatio

n

Page 40: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

40

Pers

inge

r (19

87, 2

002)

Hel

met

that

pro

duce

s m

agne

tic fi

elds

and

indu

ces

hype

ract

ivity

in te

mpo

ral l

obe:

80%

of (

>100

0) s

ubje

cts:

ex

perie

nce

of le

vita

tion,

hea

ring

voic

es,

sens

ed p

rese

nce

of s

omeb

ody

who

is o

ften

repo

rted

as g

od o

r ang

el.

Crit

ique

by

psyc

holo

gist

s: im

prop

er e

xper

imen

tal d

esig

n

Page 41: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

41

impr

oper

exp

erim

enm

tal d

esig

n: n

o do

uble

-blin

d de

sign

Peh

r Gra

nqvi

st e

t al.

(200

5):

Dou

ble-

blin

d st

udy

helm

et w

as s

witc

hed-

on ra

ndom

ly in

onl

y 50

% o

f tria

ls-n

eith

er e

xper

imen

ter n

or s

ubje

ct k

new

whe

n

resu

lt: s

ame

resu

lts (l

ike

Per

sing

er) w

ith s

witc

hed-

on a

nd

switc

hed-

off h

elm

et

Gra

nqvi

st, P

., Fr

edrik

son,

M.,

Ung

e, P

., H

agen

feld

t, A

., V

alin

d,S

., La

rham

mar

, D. &

Lar

sson

, M. (

2005

). S

ense

d pr

esen

ce a

nd m

ystic

al

expe

rienc

es a

re p

redi

cted

by

sugg

estib

ility

, not

by

the

appl

icat

ion

of

trans

cran

ial w

eak

com

plex

mag

netic

fiel

ds.

Neu

rosc

ienc

e Le

tters

, 379

, 1-6

Page 42: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

42

Crit

ique

on

Neu

roth

eolo

gy

rest

ricte

d to

(ext

raor

dina

ry) e

xper

ienc

essh

ows

mer

ely

that

cog

nitiv

e, e

mot

iona

l and

mot

or b

rain

ar

eas

are

invo

lved

dur

ing

such

exp

erie

nces

(as

they

are

in m

ost k

inds

of b

ehav

ior)

No

indi

catio

n th

at th

ese

neur

al a

ctiv

ities

dev

elop

ed

excl

usiv

ely

for r

elig

ion

or a

re s

olel

y de

dica

ted

to

relig

ious

func

tions

If hu

man

s ar

e „h

ardw

ired“

for r

elig

ion,

why

relig

iosi

ty is

qu

ite lo

w in

man

y E

urop

ean

coun

tries

? (G

reel

ey,

2002

), w

hy B

uddh

ism

, Cof

uzia

nism

?

Page 43: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

43

EVO

LUTI

ON

AR

Y A

PPR

OA

CH

ES to

REL

IGIO

N

Focu

s on

role

of n

atur

al s

elec

tion

in th

e em

erge

nce

and

pers

iste

nce

of re

ligio

n

rece

nt o

verv

iew

: B

oyer

, P. &

Ber

gstro

m, B

. (20

08).

Evo

lutio

nary

pe

rspe

ctiv

es o

n re

ligio

n.

Ann

ual R

evie

w o

f Ant

hrop

olog

y, 3

7, 1

11-1

30al

so S

pilk

a et

al.

(200

33)

Page 44: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

44

Two

mai

n po

sitio

ns:

1 R

elig

ion

is a

dire

ct p

rodu

ct o

f evo

lutio

n (B

ehav

iora

l eco

logy

)

2R

elig

ion

is a

by-

prod

uct o

f evo

lutio

n br

ain

and

men

tal m

echa

nism

s ev

olve

d in

ord

er to

in

crea

se fi

tnes

sth

ese

mec

hani

sms

can

also

be

used

for t

hing

s th

ey

wer

e no

t des

igne

d

Page 45: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

45

2R

elig

ion

is a

by-

prod

uct o

f evo

lutio

n

Theo

retic

al p

ositi

ons

with

in th

is g

roup

►R

elig

ion

is th

e by

-pro

duct

of c

ogni

tive

syst

ems.

Thes

e sy

stem

s ar

e th

e re

sult

of e

volu

tion,

but

not

ex

clus

ive

for r

elig

ion

(Evo

lutio

nary

psy

chol

ogy;

e.g

., B

oyer

)

►R

elig

ion

deve

lope

d be

caus

e it

serv

es th

ree

basi

c

need

s (th

at a

re th

e re

sult

of e

volu

tion)

:co

gniti

ve, m

otiv

atio

nal,

soci

al( S

pilk

a, H

ood,

Hun

sber

ger &

Gor

such

)

Page 46: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

46

1 R

elig

ion

as a

dire

ct p

rodu

ct o

f evo

lutio

npi

onee

r: H

ardy

(197

6)re

cent

: Beh

avio

ral e

colo

gy

(Neu

roth

eolo

gy c

an b

e in

terp

rete

d as

evo

lutio

nary

ap

proa

ch, e

ven

if it

does

not

stre

ss to

pic

of e

volu

tion)

effe

ct o

f rel

igio

n on

incl

usiv

e fit

ness

has

to b

e sh

own

Fitn

ess

(indi

vidu

al):

Cha

nce

of a

n in

divi

dual

to

prod

uce

offs

prin

gIn

clus

ive

fitne

ss: C

hanc

e of

an

indi

vidu

al a

nd

gene

tical

ly re

late

d in

divi

dual

s

to p

rodu

ce o

ffspr

ing

Page 47: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

47

Con

cept

of i

nclu

sive

fitn

ess:

expl

anat

ion

of e

.g. a

ltrui

stic

beh

avio

r

Som

e au

thor

s co

nsid

er re

ligio

n as

a c

ostly

sig

nal.

Cos

tly s

igna

ls: m

ay in

crea

se d

ange

r for

indi

vidu

al b

ut

is

ada

ptiv

e un

der c

erta

in c

ircum

stan

ces

Page 48: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

48

Exa

mpl

e:

Spe

cific

spe

cies

of g

azel

les

high

-jum

p in

fron

t of p

reda

tor

( „th

us a

dver

tisin

g th

eir s

treng

ht a

nd d

exte

rity“

)

Dire

ct fi

tnes

s co

st o

f thi

s be

havi

or

(incr

ease

d vu

lner

abili

ty, e

nerg

y sp

ent)

is o

ffset

if p

reda

tors

turn

to o

ther

-le

ss s

trong

-pr

ey

Page 49: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

49

Som

e au

thor

s:R

elig

ion

as fo

rm o

f cos

tly s

igna

lling

Irons

(200

1), S

osis

(200

3)

Rel

igio

ns in

volv

e el

abor

ate

ritua

ls th

at a

re c

ostly

in te

rms

of ti

me

and

poss

ibly

oth

er re

sour

ces

Rel

igio

us ri

tual

s us

ually

pub

lic

Ther

efor

e, p

artic

ipat

ing

in re

ligio

us ri

tual

is s

igna

lling

Rel

igio

us g

roup

s de

man

ding

hig

her i

nves

tmen

t in

cost

ly

ritua

ls te

nd to

rem

ain

mor

e co

hesi

ve

Sos

is &

Bre

ssle

r (20

03)

Page 50: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

50

Pro

blem

s –

relig

ion

as c

ostly

sig

nal

•R

elig

ion

is in

terp

rete

d m

ainl

y in

term

s of

co

mm

unic

atio

n (in

stea

d of

bel

iefs

)•

Rel

igio

n is

con

side

red

as a

dire

ctad

apta

tion

in

evol

utio

n

Page 51: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

51

Prob

lem

s –

relig

ion

as d

irect

pro

duct

of e

volu

tion

If re

ligio

n co

nsid

ered

as

a di

rect

adap

tatio

n in

evo

lutio

n-

effe

ct o

f rel

igio

sity

on

fitne

ss h

as to

be

mea

sure

d-

cost

of r

elig

ion

have

to b

e de

fined

(e.g

., re

ligio

us ri

tual

s ar

e co

stly

in ti

me,

bu

t pro

vide

als

o no

nrel

igio

us b

enef

its, e

.g.,

relig

ious

cer

emon

y as

ent

erta

inm

ent

buria

l of d

ead

prev

ents

sca

veng

ers

and

pred

ator

s)-

are

all k

inds

of r

elig

ion

equa

lly c

ostly

sig

nals

?

Page 52: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

52

2 R

elig

ion

as a

by-

prod

uct e

volu

tion

►R

elig

ion

is th

e by

-pro

duct

of c

ogni

tive

syst

ems.

►R

elig

ion

deve

lope

d be

caus

e it

serv

es th

ree

basi

c

need

s :

cogn

itive

, mot

ivat

iona

l, so

cial

Page 53: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

53

►R

elig

ion

is th

e by

-pro

duct

of c

ogni

tive

syst

ems

that

ev

olve

d fo

r oth

er re

ason

s.

for e

xam

ple:

Age

nt d

etec

tion:

abi

lity

to in

fer t

he p

rese

nce

of o

rgan

ism

s th

at m

ight

do

harm

(Gou

ld, 1

999)

Tele

olog

ical

aut

hors

hip

in th

e de

sign

of i

ndiv

idua

l sou

ls:

as o

bjec

ts a

re s

een

as b

eing

her

e fo

r som

e pu

rpos

e (c

loud

for r

aini

ng),

hum

an b

eing

s ar

e co

nsid

ered

as

bein

g he

re fo

r som

e pu

rpos

e (B

erin

g, 2

006)

Page 54: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

54

Cog

nitiv

e m

echa

nism

s pr

oduc

ing

illus

ions

of p

erso

nal

imm

orta

lity

(sim

ulat

ion

cobs

train

t hyp

othe

sis)

(B

erin

g, 2

006)

Peo

ple

cann

ot im

agin

e be

ing

dead

; at

tach

, e.g

. fee

lings

to d

ead

pers

ons

Theo

ry o

f Min

d

Som

e of

thes

e co

gniti

ve m

echa

nism

s de

alt

with

in m

ore

deta

il in

late

r cha

pter

s

Page 55: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

55

Pro

blem

s w

ith th

is a

ppro

ach:

•co

gniti

ve m

echa

nism

s ar

e no

t yet

wor

ked

out i

n de

tail

•no

t cle

ar w

heth

er a

spe

cific

mec

hani

sm is

bas

ic

or s

peci

al c

ase

of m

ore

gene

ral o

nes

(e.g

., ag

ent d

etec

tion

may

be

a sp

ecia

l cas

e of

ca

usal

thin

king

: se

arch

for c

ause

s of

an

obse

rved

effe

ct)

Page 56: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

56

•re

stric

tion

to c

ogni

tive

mec

hani

sms

(with

out

m

otiv

atio

nal a

spec

ts) p

roba

bly

too

narr

ow

•H

ow c

an w

e be

cer

tain

that

a c

ogni

tive

mec

hani

sm

is g

enet

ical

ly a

ncho

red,

not

lear

ned

Page 57: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

57

►R

elig

ion

deve

lope

d be

caus

e it

serv

es th

ree

basi

c

need

s :

cogn

itive

, mot

ivat

iona

l, so

cial

(Spi

lka,

Hoo

d, H

unsb

erge

r & G

orsu

ch, 2

003)

Cog

nitiv

e–ne

ed fo

r (hi

gher

-leve

l) kn

owle

dge,

in

form

atio

n, m

eani

ng

peop

le n

eed

to m

ake

sens

e ou

t of t

he w

orld

in o

rder

to

live

focu

s on

hig

her-

leve

l cog

nitio

ns a

nd u

nder

stan

ding

ou

rsel

ves,

our

rela

tions

hip

to o

ther

s, th

e w

orld

resu

lt is

mea

ning

Attr

ibut

ion

proc

ess

as c

entra

l pro

cess

Page 58: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

58

Rel

igio

us p

eopl

e: e

xpla

natio

n of

pra

ctic

ally

all

life

situ

atio

ns a

nd e

vent

s w

ith re

ligio

us a

ttrib

utio

nses

peci

ally

dis

tress

ing

life

situ

atio

ns (d

eath

, illn

ess)

ques

tion

(not

onl

y fo

r rel

igio

us e

xpla

natio

ns):

ofte

n w

e ar

e sa

tisfie

d w

ith v

ery

wea

k ex

plan

atio

ns

(„ps

eudo

-exp

lana

tions

“)

Page 59: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

59

Mot

ivat

iona

l -ne

ed fo

r con

trol

Nee

d fo

r con

trol a

s im

porta

nt b

asic

mot

ivat

ion,

e.g

.,Le

fcou

rt (1

973)

, Bau

mei

ster

(199

1), l

ack

of c

ontro

l co

nnec

ted

with

dep

ress

ion,

hel

ples

snes

s, e

tc.

Lack

if d

irect

con

trol i

ncre

ases

bel

ief i

n su

pern

atur

als

(Gob

bs, 1

994)

, als

o be

lief i

n su

pers

titio

n an

d m

agic

(V

yse,

199

7)

Rel

igio

us p

ract

ices

incr

ease

con

trol b

elie

f:pr

ayer

, sac

rific

e, ri

tual

s

Page 60: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

60

diffe

rent

type

s of

con

trol:

dire

ct c

ontro

l, in

dire

ct/s

econ

dary

con

trol

vica

risin

g co

ntro

l (ba

sed

on id

entif

icat

ion,

R

othe

nbau

m e

t al,

1982

))as

one

type

of s

econ

dary

con

trol

idea

to p

artic

ipat

e on

the

cont

rol o

f oth

ers

or to

pr

ofit

from

the

cont

rol o

f oth

ers

Page 61: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

61

Gib

bs (1

994)

: con

trol i

n ev

olut

iona

ry fr

amew

ork

Acc

ordi

ng to

twin

-stu

dies

: 1/3

to 1

/2 o

f var

ianc

e in

m

easu

res

of c

ontro

l bel

iefs

gen

etic

ally

cau

sed

(see

Spi

lka

et a

l 200

33)

Page 62: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

62

Soci

al -

need

for r

elat

ions

hips

Evo

lutio

nary

orig

ins

of s

ocia

l beh

avio

r alre

ady

assu

med

by

Dar

win

A

ffilia

tion

and

atta

chm

ent h

ave

been

sho

wn

to h

ave

biol

ogic

al fo

unda

tions

(als

o in

ani

mal

s), h

orm

ones

O

xyto

cin,

Vas

opre

ssin

, e.g

., C

arte

r (19

98)

Soc

ial c

oope

ratio

n an

d al

truis

m a

lread

y in

ani

mal

s (s

ee,

e.g.

, Hin

de, 1

999,

200

2)

Rel

igio

ns s

treng

then

: ing

roup

bon

ds,

posi

tive

soci

al e

valu

atio

ns, w

elfa

re

Page 63: Psychological Theories of Religion black letters - unifr.chcommonweb.unifr.ch/artsdean/pub/gestens/f/as/files/4660/13230... · PSYCHOLOGICAL THEORIES ON THE ORIGIN OF ... perspectives

Hub

er: P

sych

olog

y of

R

elig

ious

Bel

iefs

Psy

ch T

heor

ies

of R

elig

ion

63

•P

ositi

ve: I

nclu

sion

of m

otiv

atio

nal m

echa

nism

s

•so

cial

asp

ect –

it is

not

cle

ar h

ow th

e ne

ed fo

r re

latio

nshi

ps s

houl

d le

ad to

relig

ion