Quality or quantity? Is it better to live a short life to its fullest, or to live a less rewarding but long life? Rather than seeing these two options as opposed to each other, research by Patricia A. Boyle, Lisa L. Barnes, Aron S. Buchman, and David A. Bennett (all of the Rush University Medical Center) suggests that quality and quantity of life go hand-in-hand. More precisely, having meaning in life elongates life.
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What role might a reminder of God play in self-regulation? Researchers from Waterloo and Duke University analyzed two aspects of self-regulation: active goal pursuit and temptation resistance. They hypothesized that reminders of God might play a negative role in active goal pursuit since people might trust in a God that has everything under control. They also hypothesized that reminders of God would play a positive role in temptation resistance since they would want to earn and maintain God’ approval. To test these hypotheses they designed experiments that would separate active goal pursuit from temptation.
In most religious congregations, consuming illegal drugs during the service would result in a less than enthusiastic response from the ecclesiastical leadership. Indeed, survey after survey has shown that religiosity and drug use are reliably negatively correlated – the more religious you are, the less likely you are to do drugs of any kind. But the story may not be so simple. Researchers in Eastern Europe are finding a potential counter-phenomenon: consumers of certain drugs, particularly marijuana and psychedelics, may be more inclined to mystical and spiritual experiences.
Human life depends absolutely on cooperation. Unlike other animals, we don’t have big fangs, sharp claws, or leather-thick hides. Instead, we have our ability to work efficiently with each other. In modern industrial civilization, we take this flair for cooperation to the next level, depending each day on thousands of strangers to bring food to our cities, keep the roads clean, and mine coal to power our homes. And it just might be religion that makes this all possible.
Ever been angry with God? Was it after a loss or due to sickness? If so you are not alone, a recent article suggests that anger towards God is common, shows particular patterns, and these patterns of anger towards God are correlated with life adjustment to illness or loss. In short, people tended to be angrier toward God when they saw him as responsible and attributed these events to cruel intentions.
What do you do when you meet people who hold views that are outside of your belief system? What is your physical response? Psychologists studying this question suggest that when we entertain the ideas of an outgroup (people who have a fundamentally different view of the world than those of our social and intellectual circles), we have a physical disgust reaction.
In 2006, scientists who worked on the John Templeton Foundation study of anonymous, intercessory prayer released their conclusion that such prayer does not aid in recovering from illness. However, religion may still play an important role in recuperating from disease. Religion can contribute to combating diseases in other ways than asking for supernatural intercession. Evolutionary biologist David Hughes (Pennsylvania State University, University Park) argues that religious social structures and how a group handles epidemics mutually shape each other.
During the current American presidential campaign, several candidates have stated that God told them to run for office or otherwise implied that God endorsed their candidacy. Most pundits dismissed such borderline blasphemous statements as the product of a typical politician’s ego. However, research by Nicholas Epley, Benjamin A. Converse (both Booth School of Business, University of Chicago), Alexa Delbosc (Institute of Transport Studies, Monash University, Australia), independent researcher and artist George A. Monteleone, and John T. Cacioppo (University of Chicago) suggests that people in general (not just politicians) egocentrically reason about God’s beliefs—most think that God thinks as they do.
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You come home from a long day, tired and worn out. The boss chewed you out, so you’re also anxious and blue. You flop down in your recliner, reach for the remote – and feel the familiar, loving nuzzle of your faithful dog. It’s a heartwarming image, but does your dog’s concerned-sounding whining and extra attentiveness really mean he feels empathy for you? New research – and one local news story – hint that the answer may be yes, raising questions about the origins of empathy, altruism, and other traits often associated both with humanity and with religion.
Unfortunately for American atheists, the majority of their country dislikes them. A 2007 poll indicates that, unlike any other minority group, most Americans would not vote for an atheist presidential candidate, regardless of credentials. Research from 2006 suggests that Americans would more disapprove of their children marrying an atheist than other minority. Wanting to get to the bottom of this prejudice against atheists, psychologists Will Gervais, Ara Norenzayan (both University of British Columbia), and Azim Shariff (University of Oregon) found that prejudice against atheists stems from distrust.
Are studies that show a relationship between religion and health flawed? Is there any direct connection between religiosity, spirituality, and well-being? Karen Hwang, Joseph Hammer, and Ryan Cragun (Center for Atheist Research) argue that most studies in the area of religion and health have serious flaws. Specifically, according to these authors, the studies show flaws in construct validity, sampling difficulty, problematic analyses, and lack of atheist control samples.
According to Darwinian theory, the point of life is simple: produce more life. But this vast agenda doesn’t always seem to motivate our countless humdrum, daily decisions. Instead, James A. Morris (Royal Lancaster Infirmary, UK) argues that we’re motivated by a single, simple choice in all our decisions: pleasure and pain. Importantly, consciousness is vital for this mechanism to work, since only conscious beings can actually experience good or unpleasant feelings. And religion may be one of the tools our societies use to tell us what to feel good, or bad, about.
