Belief system
Michael Doane & Marta Elliott
Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, forthcoming
Abstract:
Atheists are a marginalized group of people in the United States. Although studies have found that atheists perceive prejudice and experience discrimination, little is known about the consequences of such social rejection. To address this gap in research, we examined the associations among discrimination, identity, and well-being using original survey data from self-identified atheists (n = 960). We investigated their associations in the context of the Rejection-Identification Model, which posits that group identification reduces the negative effect of discrimination on well-being. Consistent with extant research on other marginalized groups, discrimination was negatively associated with well-being while positively associated with atheist identification. Further, atheist identification was positively associated with well-being. In support of the rejection-identification process, we found evidence that atheists may strengthen their group identification in the face of discrimination. Strengthened identification as an atheist may be a strategy that protects atheists from the harmful effects of social rejection.
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Ying Bai & James Kai-sing Kung
Journal of the European Economic Association, forthcoming
Abstract:
We provide an account of how Protestantism promoted economic prosperity in China - a country in which Protestant missionaries penetrated far and wide during 1840-1920, but only a tiny fraction of the population had converted to Christianity. By exploiting the spatial variation in the missionaries' retreat due to the Boxer Uprising to identify the diffusion of Protestantism, we find that the conversion of an additional communicant per 10,000 people increases the overall urbanization rate by 18.8% when evaluated at the mean. Moreover, 90% of this effect comes from knowledge diffusion activities associated with schools and hospitals erected by the missionaries.
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The Economic Effects of the Protestant Reformation: Testing the Weber Hypothesis in the German Lands
Davide Cantoni
Journal of the European Economic Association, forthcoming
Abstract:
Following Max Weber, many theories have hypothesized that Protestantism should have favored economic development. With its religious heterogeneity, the Holy Roman Empire presents an ideal testing ground for this hypothesis. Using population figures of 272 cities in the years 1300-1900, I find no effects of Protestantism on economic growth. The finding is precisely estimated, robust to the inclusion of various controls, and does not depend on data selection or small sample size. Denominational differences in fertility behavior and literacy are unlikely to be major confounding factors. Protestantism has no effect when interacted with other likely determinants of economic development. Instrumental variables estimates, considering the potential endogeneity of religious choice, are similar to the OLS results.
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The ecology of religious beliefs
Carlos Botero et al.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 25 November 2014, Pages 16784-16789
Abstract:
Although ecological forces are known to shape the expression of sociality across a broad range of biological taxa, their role in shaping human behavior is currently disputed. Both comparative and experimental evidence indicate that beliefs in moralizing high gods promote cooperation among humans, a behavioral attribute known to correlate with environmental harshness in nonhuman animals. Here we combine fine-grained bioclimatic data with the latest statistical tools from ecology and the social sciences to evaluate the potential effects of environmental forces, language history, and culture on the global distribution of belief in moralizing high gods (n = 583 societies). After simultaneously accounting for potential nonindependence among societies because of shared ancestry and cultural diffusion, we find that these beliefs are more prevalent among societies that inhabit poorer environments and are more prone to ecological duress. In addition, we find that these beliefs are more likely in politically complex societies that recognize rights to movable property. Overall, our multimodel inference approach predicts the global distribution of beliefs in moralizing high gods with an accuracy of 91%, and estimates the relative importance of different potential mechanisms by which this spatial pattern may have arisen. The emerging picture is neither one of pure cultural transmission nor of simple ecological determinism, but rather a complex mixture of social, cultural, and environmental influences. Our methods and findings provide a blueprint for how the increasing wealth of ecological, linguistic, and historical data can be leveraged to understand the forces that have shaped the behavior of our own species.
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Sinners or Saints? Preachers' Kids and Risky Health Behaviors
Jason Delaney & John Winters
Journal of Family and Economic Issues, December 2014, Pages 464-476
Abstract:
How do parents influence adolescent risky behavior? In this paper, we focus on a unique population: children of the clergy, more commonly known as preachers' kids (PKs). We used data on risky behavior among American adolescents from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1979 Cohort and used latent variable and zero-inflated count models to analyze the effect of being a PK on both uptake and intensity of use of alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana, and other drugs. We found that being a PK significantly reduced alcohol use. This effect came exclusively from a reduction in the probability of any alcohol use and this increased abstinence among children of the clergy persisted into adulthood. We found no significant effects of being a PK on cigarette uptake or intensity of use but some evidence of a negative PK effect on the uptake of marijuana and other drugs.
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Self-Reported Spirituality Correlates With Endogenous Oxytocin
Colin Holbrook, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook & Julianne Holt-Lunstad
Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, forthcoming
Abstract:
Spirituality involves a feeling of profound personal connection to a sacred reality (e.g., God), and is often characterized by experiences of comfort and peace. The neuropeptide oxytocin appears to be a plausible biological mediator of such spiritual experiences, as oxytocin is closely linked with social affiliation, intimacy, and stress-attenuation. Here, we investigated the relationship between endogenously generated oxytocin and self-reported trait spirituality among a group of devout North American Christians. In line with emerging perspectives linking oxytocin with social affiliation, but not with positive asocial feelings in general, trait spirituality predicted higher levels of salivary oxytocin, and this association was not explained by covarying positive mood, optimism, romantic relationship status, or sex. The results are discussed as they motivate future directions in research on oxytocin and spirituality.
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Mantram Repetition Fosters Self-Efficacy in Veterans for Managing PTSD: A Randomized Trial
Doug Oman & Jill Bormann
Psychology of Religion and Spirituality, forthcoming
Abstract:
Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a serious mental health condition that affects physical health. However, many military veterans with PTSD refuse or drop out of commonly used trauma-focused, evidence-based treatments. Growing research supports the value of spiritual components in diverse types of health care interventions. This study investigated the effects of the Mantram Repetition Program (MRP) on self-efficacy for managing PTSD symptoms. Outpatient veterans with PTSD (n = 132) were recruited through referrals, and were primarily male (98%), non-Hispanic white (59%) or black (23%), with mean age 58 years (SD = 9). Participants were randomized to case management plus MRP, or to case management alone. MRP participants chose a short, sacred phrase from a spiritual tradition (e.g., "Jesus," "Barukh attah Adonai," "Om mani padme hum"), repeating the phrase silently throughout the day to interrupt unwanted thoughts and behaviors, and to improve concentration and attention. Self-efficacy was assessed weekly, and participants were assessed at baseline (Week 1) and postintervention (Week 6) for PTSD symptoms, depressive symptoms, mental health, and spiritual well-being. Results revealed that MRP group self-efficacy means as well as treatment effects showed approximately linear weekly increases from baseline to postintervention. Treatment effects on self-efficacy were significant (p < .01), and mediated treatment effects on depression, mental health, spiritual well-being, satisfaction with physical health, and both self-reported and clinician-assessed PTSD symptoms (all ps < .05). We concluded that MRP fosters self-efficacy for managing PTSD symptoms, favorably affecting diverse facets of well-being, and that physical health effects merit investigation.
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Why was there no religious war in premodern East Asia?
David Kang
European Journal of International Relations, December 2014, Pages 965-986
Abstract:
In premodern East Asia, Korea, Japan, Vietnam, and China rarely experienced anything like the type of religious violence that existed for centuries in historical Europe, despite having vibrant religious traditions such as Confucianism, Buddhism, Daoism, and numerous folk religions. How do we explain a region in which religion was generally not a part of the explanation for war and rebellion? A unique data set of over 950 entries of Chinese and Korean violence over a 473-year span allows granular measurement of religious violence. I argue that the inclusivist religions of historical East Asia did not easily lend themselves to appropriation by political leaders as a means of differentiating groups or justifying violence. Addressing the paucity of religious war in historical East Asia is theoretically important because it challenges a large body of scholarly literature that finds a universal causal relationship between religion and war that is empirically derived mainly from the experience of only Christianity and Islam. In contrast, it may be that certain types of religious traditions are less amenable to mass mobilization for violence. Moving beyond Christianity and Islam to include East Asian religious traditions promises both to address a potentially serious issue of selection bias and also to be a rich field for theorizing about the relationship between religion and war.
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Abortion Politics and the Decline of the Separation of Church and State: The Southern Baptist Case
Andrew Lewis
Politics and Religion, September 2014, Pages 521-549
Abstract:
Between the late 1970s and early 1990s, the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) altered its First Amendment advocacy, shifting from being an ardent supporter of the strict separation of church and state to being a champion of the government accommodation of religion. At the same time, the denomination also became unswervingly pro-life. In this article, I use the SBC case to identify a previously under-analyzed link between abortion politics and church-state politics. I suggest that pro-life politics played an important role in the SBC's shift away from the separation of church and state. I focus on three areas where abortion politics aided this shift: (1) opposing separationists' assertions that anti-abortion policies violated the Establishment Clause; (2) becoming allies rather than foes with Catholics; and (3) promoting a greater emphasis on the free exercise of religion. I conclude by discussing the implications for the relationship between religion, law, and politics.
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The Role of Social Networks in the Recruitment of Youth in an Islamist Organization in Pakistan
Akhlaq Ahmad
Sociological Spectrum, November/December 2014, Pages 469-488
Abstract:
Drawing on data from 40 qualitative interviews, this article examines how young people are connected with one influential Islamist student organization in Pakistan. It provides deeper insight into the micro-level mechanisms and processes by which new members are approached and drawn closer to the particular organization. Findings reveal that young people who joined this organization did not necessarily do so because of their ideological affinity, political or social grievances or because of macro-level events occurring in the national or global arena, such as the U.S.-led war on terror. Rather, they predominantly ended up in the organization because of their friends and acquaintances who were activists in the organization.
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Parental Religiosity and Youth Religiosity: Variations by Family Structure
Richard Petts
Sociology of Religion, forthcoming
Abstract:
Many studies have explored the links between family structure, parental religiosity, and youth religiosity, but results across studies have been inconsistent and have largely ignored new diverse family forms. Using data on 2,320 youth and their parents from the National Study of Youth and Religion, this study focused on whether and why religious transmission from parents to youth varies among diverse family structures. Results suggest that family structure is not directly related to youth religious outcomes, but that the influence of parental religiosity on religious participation and religious salience (but not closeness to God or private religious practices) was weaker for youth raised in stepfamilies, never-married single-parent families, and cohabiting families than for those raised by married biological/adoptive parents. Results also suggest that less effective religious transmission within nontraditional families compared with traditional families is due (at least in part) to less effective religious socialization within these families.
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Does Religious Beliefs Affect Economic Growth? Evidence from Provincial-level Panel Data in China
Qunyong Wang & Xinyu Lin
China Economic Review, December 2014, Pages 277-287
Abstract:
More and more literature on economic growth and development has increasingly focused on long-run effects of geographic, historical, and cultural factors on productivity and income per capita. This paper investigates the effect of religious beliefs on economic growth using provincial panel data from 2001 to 2011 in China. It's very meaningful to study the role of religion playing in economic development since religion has influence on political preference, human capital and work ethic, especially in current China which is faced with income disparity, environmental pollution, and official corruption. Our results reveal that, among the different religions, Christianity has the most significant effect on economic growth. This conclusion is consistent among different estimators and robust with stability over time. However, no consistent or robust conclusions can be drawn for other religions. Different estimation methods give different signs or significance. Given the very few studies and limited data resources about China in this field, the paper as a tentative study provides a brand new viewpoint.
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The Choosing People: Interpreting the Puzzling Politics of American Jewry
Kenneth Wald
Politics and Religion, forthcoming
Abstract:
The political liberalism of American Jews is puzzling because it contradicts the assumption that economic self-interest drives political behavior. Attempts to solve this puzzle with "Judaic" explanations compound the problem by offering theories that are static and universal while American Jewish political behavior is dynamic and situational. Using both historical and behavioral data, I argue that the solution to these puzzles is found in the overriding concern of American Jews with maintaining their equal citizenship in a society with a classic liberal regime of religion and state. This situational model also helps integrate work on Jewish political studies with theories and concepts commonly used by political scientists to explain mass political behavior.
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Do Religious Proscriptions Matter? Evidence from a Theory-Based Test
Daniel Hungerman
Journal of Human Resources, Fall 2014, Pages 1053-1093
Abstract:
A large literature shows that religious participation is associated with various behaviors and outcomes, but researchers lack an accepted instrument for religion and have struggled to establish whether these associations are causal. Using the canonical economic model of religiosity, I develop an empirical test to investigate the importance of religious participation, in particular religious proscriptions and rules, on determining behavior. The test relies on exogenous variation in the cost of secular activities rather than an instrument for religious participation. Several empirical applications of this test are conducted; the results indicate a strong role for religious proscriptions in determining behavior.
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Does Religion Mitigate Tunneling? Evidence from Chinese Buddhism
Xingqiang Du
Journal of Business Ethics, December 2014, Pages 299-327
Abstract:
In the Chinese stock market, controlling shareholders often use inter-corporate loans to expropriate a great amount of cash from listed firms, through a process called "tunneling." Using a sample of 10,170 firm-year observations from the Chinese stock market for the period of 2001-2010, I examine whether and how Buddhism, China's most influential religion, can mitigate tunneling. In particular, using firm-level Buddhism data, measured as the number of Buddhist monasteries within a certain radius around Chinese listed firms' registered addresses, this study provides strong evidence that Buddhism intensity is significantly negatively associated with tunneling. This finding is consistent with the view that Buddhism has important influence on corporate behavior and can serve as a set of social norms and/or an alternative mechanism to mitigate controlling shareholders' unethical tunneling behavior. In addition, my findings also reveal that the negative association between Buddhism intensity and tunneling is attenuated for firms that have high analyst coverage. The results are robust to various measures of Buddhism intensity and a variety of sensitivity tests.