Analytic thinking can decrease religious belief

[rnejdl]

I found this article today and my first thought was, isn't that what we're all about? Critically thinking about things and throwing away that which doesn't make sense.

http://www.publicaffairs.ubc.ca/2012/04 ... ubc-study/

Rusty

[rnejdl]

“Our study builds on previous research that links religious beliefs to ‘intuitive’ thinking,” says study co-author and Associate Prof. Ara Norenzayan, UBC Dept. of Psychology. “Our findings suggest that activating the ‘analytic’ cognitive system in the brain can undermine the ‘intuitive’ support for religious belief, at least temporarily.”

[tim]

The study was even more interesting in that it showed that people - ANY PEOPLE - were more than twice as likely to tilt towards religious disbelief if they were "primed" with things that activate analytic thinking such as solving word puzzles, having information presented in harder-t0-read fonts or just viewing a picture of Rodin's "The Thinke" sculpture as opposed to some other art. So:

1) Maybe we can encourage people to doubt religious doctrines not just by openly addressing such doctrines but just by offering cues that increase analytic thinking - maybe just wearing a shirt with Rodin's "The Thinker" on it, for example, could contribute to the general level of religious belief in society

but, on the other hand,

2) Next believers will be demanding that such cues as Rodin's "The Thinker" - or word puzzles, hard-to-read fonts, etc - be banned from public places because they tend to promote (which these scientists prove they do promote) religious disbelief