After long neglect, the subject of religion has received growing attention in the economics profession over the past two decades. One of the reasons is that it has proven diffi cult to explain the levels of economic development of many nations around the world without reference to a national culture, and many of these cultures have been signifi cantly infl uenced by religion. Contrary to a wide...

BULLETIN FOR THE STUDY OF RELIGION 7 ity: A Fetschrift in Honor of E. Thomas Lawson, edited by Timothy Light and Brian C. Wilson, 27–43. Leiden: Brill. Fitzgerald, Tim. 2006. “Bruce Lincoln’s ‘Theses on Method’: Antithesis.” Method and Theory in the Study of Religion 18: 392–423. ———. 2010. “Religion and Violence: A Psychoanalytic Inquiry.” In Chasing Down Religion: In the Sights of History and...

How did religion evolve? What effect does religion have on our moral beliefs and moral actions? These questions are related, as some scholars propose that religion has evolved to enhance altruistic behavior toward members of one's group. I review here data from survey studies (both within and across countries), priming experiments, and correlational studies of the effects of religion on racial ...

The main goal of the workshop is to introduce CSS members to topics that are cutting edge in the cognitive science of religion. The papers draw on a variety of methodologies and disciplines, which is one of the main characteristics of the cognitive science of religion. Even though the focus is on religion, the researchers are involved in broader issues relevant to cognitive science. So the expe...

Although religion deals with humankind’s ultimate concerns, such as universal compassion or the quest for divine peace and perfection, to some people the psychological study of religion and spirituality may seem only marginally relevant to positive psychology. In part, this could be because of the negative stances that many theorists have taken toward religion. For instance, Freud (1927/1953) c...

BACKGROUND Despite expansive medical literature regarding spirituality and medicine, little is known about physician beliefs regarding the influence of religion on health. METHODS Semistructured interviews with 21 physicians regarding the intersection of religion, spirituality, and medicine. Interviews were transcribed, coded, and analyzed for emergent themes through an iterative process of q...

The notion that religion and modemity ate mutuaUy exclusive has been a leading theme oŸ the sociology of religion in France and has been amply confirmed by empirical studies of religious practice, clerical vocations, and parish culture. But recent work on popular religion, post-1968 ideological communities, and new religious movements has caUed the presumption of secularization into question. I...

After more than a century of research, the nature of the relationship between religion and mental health still is not fully understood. Some studies find that religion is associated with better mental health. Other studies find that religion is associated with worse mental health. Many prior studies have conceptualized religion either as individual religiosity or as religious group participatio...