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Explaining moral religions.

Nicolas Baumard1, Pascal Boyer

  • 1Institute of Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology, Oxford and University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. nbaumard@gmail.com

Trends in Cognitive Sciences
|May 14, 2013
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Moralizing religions, emphasizing proportionality, are recent in human societies. This fairness-based morality is intuitive and explains the cultural success of moral movements.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Science
  • Anthropology
  • Religious Studies

Background:

  • Moralizing religions, characterized by proportionality, are a recent development in large-scale human societies.
  • Religions with morally indifferent deities or spirits represent an older, alternative religious structure.

Observation:

  • A key feature of moralizing religions is the principle of proportionality.
  • This principle is evident in divine reward/punishment systems, penance, and the Golden Rule.

Findings:

  • Cognitive science models of evolved fairness dispositions suggest proportionality is an intuitive moral framework.
  • This intuitive nature of proportionality aids in understanding religious and secular moral movements.

Implications:

  • The intuitive appeal of proportionality may explain the widespread cultural success of moralizing movements.
  • Understanding proportionality's role offers insights into the evolution and persistence of social norms and cooperation.