How Science Mimics Faith

photo: András Sümegi

People may use trust in science as others use religious faith to cope with life’s uncertainties

By Tori Rodriguez

Religion provides a sense of meaning and comfort for believers, and studies show that such beliefs intensify during threatening situations. Now research suggests that some people’s faith in science may serve the same role.Miguel Farias and other researchers at the University of Oxford and Yale University investigated whether it is belief in religion that is beneficial or in fact any belief about the world’s order and our place in it. In two related experiments published in November 2013 in the Journal of Experimental Psychology, the scientists developed a scale to measure belief in science—the view that scientific inquiry offers a superior guide to reality. As expected, belief in science was inversely correlated with religious beliefs. Next the researchers assessed whether belief in science increased in threatening situations. The first experiment compared a group of rowers at a low-stress training session with a group of rowers just about to compete in a high-stress regatta. The second experiment manipulated some participants’ existential anxiety by having them write about their thoughts and feelings regarding their own death. Participants reported greater belief in science in both threatening situations, just as subjects in past studies have displayed an increase in religiosity in similar scenarios. “It is likely that some people use their ideas about science to make sense of the world and for emotional compensation in difficult situations in the same way that religious people use their supernatural beliefs,” Farias says. “Our findings suggest that it may be belief itself, regardless of its content, that helps people deal with adverse situations.” This article is from Scientific American Mind March/April 2014

Total
0
Shares

3000-year-old Solutions to Modern Problems

Video with

Diné musician, scholar, and cultural historian Lyla June outlines a series of timeless human success stories focusing on Native American food and land management techniques and strategies.

Indigenous Kuikuro People’s ‘Dark Earth’

Article by

Indigenous people may have created the Amazon’s ‘dark earth’ on purpose

#118 Mythic Dharma

Podcast with

A discussion on the story of the Buddha’s awakening and the dharma through a mythic lens.

Remembering Mark Dyczkowski

Video with

It is with deep sadness we have learned of the passing Dr. Mark Dyczkowski, one of the world’s foremost scholars on Tantra and Kashmiri Trika Shaivism.

River of Words

Poem by

Write something!

Sacred Activism: Awakening the Spirit of Change

Article by

The alchemy of spirituality and activism —born from the understanding that true change starts from within and radiates outward

The Two Birds Within You

Video with

This timeless tale, inspired by the Mundaka Upanishad and Shvetashvatara Upanishad, offers profound insights into the nature of our existence.

#117 Minds Under Siege

Podcast with , ,

Exploring the complex intersection of collective trauma, political power in Israel/Palestine

Support SAND with a Donation

Science and Nonduality is a nonprofit organization. Your donation goes towards the development of our vision and the growth of our community.
Thank you for your support!