Study Shows People Link Kindness With Religion

Experiments conducted by researchers at UC Merced have shed light on the perception of religious believers and atheists based on their acts of kindness. The study found that individuals who perform good deeds are much more likely to be associated with religious faith than atheism, suggesting a global cognitive bias that connects kindness and helpfulness with religious belief. This is prepared by SSP.

Previous research on the connection between moral behavior and religious belief has usually focused on the negative side of this association. Questions would revolve around whether a serial killer would be more likely to believe in God or be an atheist, with many participants from various countries assuming that the latter was more probable.

However, the studies conducted at UC Merced, led by cognitive science graduate student Alex Dayer and published in Scientific Reports, took a different perspective. They explored the concept of an individual being a "serial helper" inclined towards extraordinary benevolence.

The research revealed that the stereotype of an exceptionally good person being religious was significantly stronger than the stereotype of an extremely cruel person being an atheist. Colin Holbrook, a professor in UC Merced's Department of Cognitive and Information Sciences and co-author of the study, explained that while atheism is intuitively linked with immoral behavior, the belief in God is associated with generosity, helpfulness, and care to a far greater extent.

The experiments were conducted in two different countries with varying levels of religious belief: the United States and New Zealand. Participants were presented with descriptions of a man who displayed increasing acts of kindness, from helping stray animals as a child to providing food and shelter to homeless individuals during harsh weather conditions. They were then asked to assess the probability of the man being a teacher and either believing in God or not believing in God.

Interestingly, the results showcased a significant bias. In the United States, respondents were nearly 20 times more likely to assume that the helpful man believed in God compared to being an atheist. In New Zealand, participants were 12 times more prone to thinking that the compassionate individual was religious.

Furthermore, the bias associating religious belief with socially uplifting behavior was considerably stronger than the inverse bias, which stereotypes atheists as antisocial. The researchers concluded that rather than the belief of atheists being immoral driving this effect, it is the perception of the moral person of faith that plays a more vital role.

In conclusion, the findings suggest a strong cognitive bias that connects acts of kindness and helpfulness with religious faith. Understanding this association has implications for understanding intergroup dynamics and may shed light on the historical development of major world religions. It also emphasizes the importance of further research to delve into the complexities of the relationship between religious belief and prosocial behavior.