Psychology of Religion Module

The Scope of Religion and Links Between Psychology and Religion

How many religious people are there?  Looking at news events and casual observation of various peoples and cultures would seem to suggest that people believe in and follow many diverse religions and faith traditions.  What do the data tell us?

The Scope of Religion

One psychologist commented that religion is gradually disappearing from the face of the earth, and that what remains of it exerts little influence in most cases (Beit-Hallahmi, 1989). How accurate is this belief? Probably not very accurate. In one recent survey of a diverse sample of Americans, 78 percent rated themselves as religious and 90 percent said they were spiritual (Zinnbauer & others, 1999). About 60 percent of individuals attend religious services and 95 percent say they believe in God. Seventy-five percent say they pray (Religion in America , 1993). Religion also is an important dimension of people’s lives around the world - 98 percent of the population in India, 88 percent in Italy, 72 percent in France, and 63 percent in Scandinavia say that they believe in God (Gallup, 1985). Of the world’s 6 billion people, approximately two-thirds are either involved in religion or have been affected by religion in important ways.

Interestingly, females have shown a consistently stronger interest in religion than males have (Bijur & others, 1993; Francis & Wilcox, 1998; Miller & Hoffman, 1996). They participate more in both organized and personal forms of religion, are more likely to believe in a higher power or presence, and feel, more than men do, that religion is a very important dimension of their lives. In one recent study, men viewed God as more controlling than women did (Krejci, 1998).

The worldwide interest in religion suggests that knowledge of the psychological dimensions of religion would improve our understanding of human behavior and mental processes. A psychology of mental processes and behavior would be incomplete without an exploration of the psychology of religion.

The History of Psychology of Religion

Psychology of religion is among both the oldest and the newest research areas in psychology. It was part of the field of psychology from the beginning. The famous psychologist William James wroteThe Varieties of Religious Experience in 1902, shortly afterThe Psychology of Religion (Starbuck, 1899) was published. One of the first journals on any topic in psychology was titledThe American Journal of Religious Psychology and Education , and books were written about adolescent religious awakening and conversion.

Psychology of religion flourished until the 1930s but then remained dormant for about three decades. In the last several decades, a renewed interest in psychology of religion has emerged. A number of books and a host of empirical studies suggest that it is once again a viable area in the discipline of psychology (Batson, Schoenrade, & Ventis, 1993; Hood & others, 1996; Paloutzian, 1996; Wulff, 1997). Psychologists involved in the psychology of religion today work in a wide variety of settings, including colleges and universities, hospitals, clinics, counseling centers, churches and synagogues, schools, research institutes, and private practice.

Psychology of Religion and General Psychology

Areas in the study of psychology of religion and the study of psychology in general are directly linked. The main areas of inquiry in general psychology are the physiological mechanisms underlying behavior, sensation and perception, learning, cognition, human development, personality, social influences on behavior, and abnormal behavior. In psychology of religion, research is being conducted on the physiological or brain mechanisms that underlie religious experiences, and even on the possible genetic basis of religiousness (D’Onofrio & others, 1999; Waller & others, 1990); on self-perception of one’s own religious motivation and feelings (Hill, 1998); on how individuals can use the principles of cognition to understand their religious experience (McCallister, 1995); on the social psychological mechanisms involved in interpreting life circumstances in a religious way, such as attributing an event to God (Spilka & McIntosh, 1995); on links between personality and religion (Emmons, 1999; Piedmont, 1999); on stages of religious growth and development (Fowler, 1996); on whether religiousness promotes or impairs mental or physical health (Koenig, 1998; Plante & Sherman, 2001); and on the nature of religious persuasion (Rambo, 1993). Thus, for every main topic in general psychology, there is a parallel line of research in the field of psychology of religion (Paloutzian, 1996).

Psychological Models and Religion

Psychology of religion draws on a number of psychological models to explain religious thought and behavior (Miller & Jackson, 1995). Four such models are the behavioral model, the psychoanalytic or psychodynamic model, the humanistic model, and the sociocultural model. The behavioral model of religion emphasizes the importance of analyzing a person’s learning history to determine the extent to which, for that person, religious behavior has been and is being rewarded, punished, and imitated. By evaluating an individual’s learning history, we can determine the pattern of rewards and punishments the person has experienced for various aspects of religiousness. For example, a person who has been rewarded for attending church is more likely to attend church in the future than if she or he has been punished for attending. Similarly, if children imitate parents’ prayer behavior and this imitation is approved by the parents, the probability that the children will engage in prayer behavior as adults is increased.

The psychoanalytic (or psychodynamic) model of religion emphasizes that the key to understanding religiousness resides deep within the unconscious mind. Individuals are believed to have instinctual needs that they are not aware of, such as needs for safety and security, which can be met by relating to a higher power. For example, individuals who as children were not nurtured in a secure, loving way by their parents might develop an unconscious insecurity as adults. One way to satisfy this insecurity is to identify with God as a protector and provider. In ways like this, human unconscious needs can be met through religion.

The humanistic model of religion emphasizes that a person’s most important needs include needs for growth, purpose, and self actualization. Humans have innate tendencies to fulfill their potential and express their values. Religion serves as an important vehicle for fulfilling potential and expressing values.

The sociocultural model of religion emphasizes that individuals adopt a particular religious stance because of the experiences they have in the culture in which they live. Most people learn religion from the cultural group into which they are born. For example, someone who grows up in Rome is likely to be Catholic, while someone who grows up in Iran is likely to be a Muslim.

Does one of the aforementioned models provide a better model for psychology of religion than the others? Not necessarily. Like virtually all areas of psychology, the psychology of religion contains many viable approaches that can be used in combination to better understand the nature of religious life.