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Scientific study of religion

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March 2017

March 21, 2017

A computer model of atheism?

Will secularism continue to grow? Computer models suggest that the answer worldwide is "not really."

February 2017

February 24, 2017

Want to study the science of religion? Start with this MOOC

A science of religion would help us understand some baffling things. Why do otherwise normal...

March 2016

March 21, 2016

How “big gods” make us play nice

Believing in gods that care about human morality may encourage people to treat each other...

October 2015

October 13, 2015

Hilbert problems in the study of religion

Journal editors at Religion, Brain & Behavior are calling for experts and researchers across religious...

September 2015

September 21, 2015

Simulating Religion

How do we get a handle on this vast, complicated realm of religion? Well, maybe...

June 2015

June 03, 2015

Animals evolve. People evolve. Can groups evolve?

It seems as if, evolutionarily speaking, groups are real entities. Mathematical modeling and lab studies...

May 2015

May 20, 2015

Religion and evolution, part deux

Rollicking debates about evolutionary theory are crucial for understanding how religion evolved – because many...

April 2015

April 16, 2015

Is religion evolutionarily adaptive?

Darwinian evolution is amoral. Evolutionary adaptations are often extremely nasty. Genetically maladaptive behavior can be...

April 01, 2015

Is belief in heaven good for you? No. Yes. Maybe.

Belief in hell is good for society – it frightens people into shaping up, toeing...

March 2015

March 16, 2015

Why the religion-science dialogue needs secular religious studies

Secular religious studies could add vibrant insight to a dialogue whose main purpose is to...

February 2015

February 18, 2015

Is willpower really a finite resource?

Publication bias is rampant in psychology. Has it led us astray with one of the...

December 2014

December 04, 2014

A new theory for why Buddhist meditation makes us feel good

Our brains build up stable patterns of activity over time, and these patterns may inhibit...

September 2014

September 15, 2014

Want a meaningful life? Stay away from rich countries

Countries with higher gross domestic products have higher suicide rates and less self-reported meaning in...

July 2014

July 14, 2014

The Wave of the Future: Experimental Religious Studies

Ted Slingerland's work at UBC-Vancouver shows that the scientific study of religion has undergone a...

July 07, 2014

Is religion good or bad for the world?

Across studies, there’s a regular but modest positive correlation between religiosity and prosocial behavior, and...

June 2014

June 19, 2014

Theories of religion: The early years

This week we’re looking at three early anthropologists who believed that cultures evolve from “primitive”...

June 10, 2014

Why do religions tell impossible tales? A testable hypothesis

Impossible imagery in religious narratives and folktales might, in part, serve as a solution to...

June 03, 2014

Awesome theories of religion, Part 2

This week, I’m focusing on four thinkers who have advanced our understanding of how ritual...

May 2014

May 27, 2014

4 neat theories of religion

Here's Part 1 of a list of very smart and interesting people with profound theories...

May 19, 2014

Religion influences ethics more in low-religiosity countries

Two researchers argue that religious believers are more likely to internalize their faiths’ values in...

April 2014

April 14, 2014

Awe increases religious belief

Two researchers from California have found that awe-inspiring images make people believe more in God....

March 2014

March 21, 2014

Is science more “unnatural” than religion?

Is religion more "natural" than science? Cognitive scientist Robert McCauley says yes, because religion depends...

January 2014

January 23, 2014

Spirit possession: everyone’s doing it

Anti-religion writers and cognitive scientists of religion alike tend to consider religion as if it...

January 13, 2014

My employer: The Institute for the Bio-Cultural Study of Religion

The Institute for the Bio-Cultural Study of Religion, also known as IBCSR, is an independent...

January 06, 2014

Does atheism arise from wealth?

is atheism a luxury of the wealthy? Yes. But this isn't simply because the wealthy...

December 2013

December 23, 2013

Is religion anthropomorphism?

Anthropologist Stewart Guthrie argues that religion arises from humans' inborn tendency to anthropomorphize the world...

December 13, 2013

Inclusive fitness, models, and religious evolution

New research in evolutionary theory sheds light on a long-simmering debate in the scientific study...

October 2013

October 25, 2013

Trust issues? The answer might be rhythm

Why do religions have rituals like bowing or praying in time with a group? Recent...

September 2013

September 18, 2013

Ritual reduces life’s noise-to-signal ratio

Our world is filled with unspoken social conventions that transform messy, continuous information into clearer,...

August 2013

August 08, 2013

Social Capital (and Religion?) Helped the Spread of Nazism

Areas of Germany with high social integration and social capital saw a much quicker expansion...