Religion, Meaning, and Prejudice

Links between religion and prejudice have been interpreted to suggest that religion can both reduce and exacerbate prejudice. Here, the analysis of religion as a meaning system illuminates how religion can affect intergroup attitudes. Traditional psychological perspectives on religion and prejudice are summarized, followed by a discussion of religion and prejudice in cross-cultural and cross-religious contexts, involving varying target groups. Next, we explore possible explanatory mechanisms by proposing how four levels of meaning associated with religion—cognitive, motivational, societal, and intergroup—may both promote and attenuate prejudice. Finally, additional factors that might facilitate the paradoxical coexistence of religious egalitarian intentions with prejudiced attitudes are considered, and we speculate about the potential for religious groups to reduce prejudice within their adherents.     

诸神之争的再阐释:一个社会学的结构视角

世俗化及逆世俗化范式的对立其实蕴含着更大的连续性，即如何理解宗教多元主义背后的诸神之争，总的来说，韦伯之后那些解释宗教变迁的理论范式均未突破韦伯对宗教的比较研究范畴，难以在当前复杂而多元的文化环境下为个人提供总体指导，但是二者共同揭露了诸神之争条件下西方宗教工具理性和价值理性交互作用所促成的理性化的动力机制，即西方宗教维护自身价值理性的方式从中世纪教会主导的政治性垄断过渡到现代性条件下宗教多元主义的市场化竞争。     

Religion as a Meaning-Making Framework in Coping with Life Stress

This article explores how religion, as a meaning system, influences coping with adversity. First, a model emphasizing the role of meaning making in coping is presented. Next, religion as a meaning system is defined, and theory and research on the role of religion in the coping process are summarized. Results from the author's study of 169 bereaved college students are then presented to illustrate some of the pathways through which religious meaning can influence the coping process in making meaning following loss. Findings indicate that associations between religion and adjustment vary across time since loss, and that these associations are mediated by meaning-making coping. Finally, implications for individual and societal well-being and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

Imagination and Peace: On the Inner Dynamics of Promoting Peace Activism

The relations between peace activism and the Utopian, anticipatory, sympathetic, and compensatory functions of the imagination are explored, and the results of a group process using inner dialogue to help participants understand the dynamics of their relation to peace activism are analyzed. Social action is viewed here as arising in part from a successful negotiation between inner voices that inhibit progressing from the awareness of social problems into action and voices that encourage this integration of awareness and action. A revised group method to facilitate and sustain peace action in one's life is described, building on both my findings and Elise Boulding's work on imagining a peaceful future.     

Religion as a Meaning System: Implications for the New Millennium

Every human action, ranging from benevolence to inhumane violence has been justified in the name of religion, which has been a pervasive feature of human life throughout history. This article describes religion as a meaning system that is unique in centering on what is perceived as sacred, and in its special ability to address the quest for meaning. The article recommends the meaning system approach for the study of religion, suggesting that this approach can illuminate the resiliency of religion, and its complicated relations with individual and societal well-being. It describes the outline of the volume, and concludes with recommendations for research, education, and policies in the arena of religion that can facilitate well-being in the new millennium.     

宗教、科学和自然主义

科学和宗教之间的冲突有两个来源,一是宗教与超自然主义的关联,一是宗教世界观和科学共同体的世界观的冲突.克服这种冲突是过程哲学的目的之一.怀特海为克服这种冲突提供了一种新形式的、拒斥了超自然主义、把宗教观念和科学观念等同起来的自然主义.     

“宗教礼物论”的可能性：礼物与宗教的内在联系

本文认为，“宗教礼物论”是一个具有潜力的理论视角，它以莫斯等人的礼物理论为基础，探讨宗教现象及其与社会的关系。本文在述评现有文献的基础上，探讨礼物与宗教的内在关系，进而分析礼物理论与宗教社会学的亲和性。文章认为：首先，礼物与宗教是双向关联的，两者相辅相成，不仅宗教现象中蕴含着礼物逻辑，而且宗教为礼物的内在价值提供了神圣性的基础；其次，礼物和宗教都与社会团结的法则直接关联，这一点体现在两者共通的自愿式义务性上，两者既融合了情感性联系和工具性联系，也融合了相互性伦理和等级性伦理；最后，“宗教礼物论”的优势最可能体现在对宗教之“非自主选择性”的分析上，而它的潜在挑战则主要在应对社会变迁与价值倾向上。     

马克思宗教本质观的六种解读之辨析

由于忽视了马克思哲学语境的变化和对宗教本质、属性、功能的混淆,人们对马克思的宗教本质观产生了种种误读,其中,宗教非理性说、宗教异化幻觉说、宗教意识形态说、宗教鸦片说、宗教文化论最有代表性。根据马克思的论述并借用恩格斯的概括,可以说,宗教是人间力量的超人间形式。与其他文化形式相比较,宗教最直观、最鲜明的特征就是其超验性。这是对马克思宗教本质观的准确把握。     

Religion and Value Systems

Uncovering the complex relationships between religiosity and values may provide a better understanding of what it means to be religious or nonreligious. This article reviews research on values and religiosity across cultural and religious groups. Although religious groups differ in the importance they attribute to different values, the pattern of correlations between religiosity and values is strikingly consistent across monotheistic religions: Persons more committed to religion attribute relatively high importance to values expressing motivation to avoid uncertainty and change and relatively low importance to values expressing motivations to follow one's hedonistic desires, or to be independent in thought and action.     

Religion and Conflict in Marital and Parent-Child Relationships

This article discusses how religion can substantively influence the manifestation and resolution of conflict in marital and parent-child relationships. Religious systems of meaning are proposed to influence conflict by promoting which goals and values should be sought in family life and the appropriate means to achieve these ends. Conflict can be amplified or inhibited based on the extent to which family members differ and agree about such religiously based parameters. Religion also offers families strategies that may facilitate or hinder the resolution of conflict after it erupts. The limited amount of empirical research on how religion shapes the manifestation and resolution of marital and parent-child conflict is highlighted, and suggestions are made to advance research and clinical practice on this topic.     

从类型学到动态研究：兼论信仰的流动

自从杨庆堃提出“混合宗教”与“制度化宗教”概念之后,类型学建构成为华人宗教研究的主流。本文尝试进行视角的转换,用“基于类型学基础上的动态研究”来分析华人社会中信仰的流动。该视角一方面强调类型学的重要性,认为在研究中国宗教时有必要对“灵”、“义”等本土概念予以社会科学化;另一方面它强调揭示类型之间的联系与变化,将静态的类型学考察转化为动态分析。本文认为,动态的视角有助于关照到被类型学忽略的过程以及隐匿于其中的趋势,继而发展诸多经典理论,即研究神灵的流动有助于理解“神灵的诞生与竞争”,研究信徒的流动可以丰富“改教”理论,对宗教组织流动的研究则可以拓宽“教派-教会”理论的视野。     

Ambiguity,pessimism, and rational religious choice

Using a subclass of the α-maximin expected-utility preference model, in which the decision maker’s degree of ambiguity and degree of pessimism are each parameterized, we present a theory of religious choice in the Pascalian decision theory tradition, one that can resolve dilemmas, address the “many Gods objection,” and address the ambiguity inherent in religious choice. Parameterizing both the degree of ambiguity and the degree of pessimism allows one to examine how the two interact to impact choice, which is useful regardless of the application. Applying this model to religious choice is a move beyond subjective expected-utility theory, allowing us to show that a change in either the degree of ambiguity or the degree of pessimism can lead a decision maker to “convert” from one religion to another.     

宗教信仰选择：一个西方宗教经济学的文献梳理

本文在回顾归纳国外宗教经济学相关理论和经验成果的基础上,建立了“供给-需求”分析框架。笔者认为,既有宗教经济学理论主要从供给和需求两个角度来解释信仰选择的作用机制。宗教市场理论从供给出发,认为宗教市场结构是宗教信仰的重要决定因素;宗教社会资本理论、宗教家庭生产模型、宗教人力资本模型和宗教事后保障模型则从需求角度出发,分别强调社会网络的人际依恋、宗教参与的机会成本、宗教产品的生产效率和宗教组织的公共物品供给因素等在宗教信仰选择方面发挥的影响。改革开放以来中国社会宗教信仰领域发生了极大的变化,引入宗教经济学视野一方面能为考察分析当今中国宗教信仰现状及推动其理论发展带来相应的契机,另一方面应考虑中国与西方社会之间的差异以及特殊性,对该视野的运用要有所甄别。     

Religion as a Meaning System: Policy Implications for the New Millennium

The development of social policy related to religion has received increasing focus in recent years, yet psychology continues to play a relatively minor role in this important domain. In the current article, religion's positive and negative influences as a meaning system on individual, community, and societal well-being are delineated. The challenges facing psychology in contributing to public policy development in the religious arena are examined, challenges that stem from profound differences in the meaning systems of religion, government, and psychology. These challenges notwithstanding, a number of different pathways in the domains of applied research, community practice, and policy development are delineated through which psychology can help to maximize positive, and minimize negative, outcomes in the religion and social policy arena.     

Religious affiliation and beliefs about racial inequality: White college students’ attitudes about Black-White and Native American-White inequality

Is religious affiliation associated with attitudes about racial inequality? While prior research has explored the relationship between religion and attitudes about Black-White inequality, studies exploring attitudes towards Native Americans are rare. Our study is the first to explore the association between religion and attitudes about Native American-White inequality. We find that religious subcultural differences do exist as Catholics, Protestants, and those with no religious affiliation tend to use different explanations for racial inequality, although the relationship between religious affiliation and attitudes is similar regardless of whether African Americans or Native Americans are the target. We also find that across religious groups there is a greater tendency to use person-centered or individual explanations for Native American-White inequality and structural explanations for Black-White inequality. We argue that consistent findings for the association of religious affiliation and attitudes for different racial groups provide support for the presence of religion specific cultural toolkits.     

Culture Religion and Infertility: A South African Perspective

¹ Dr Vishanthie Sewpaul, Department of Social Work, University of Natal, Durban 4041, South Africa. E-mail: sewpaul{at}mtb.und.ac.za Summary This paper contains data pertaining to cultural views on fertilityand infertility, and the use of traditional healing in infertility,from a sample of twenty-four case studies of infertile participantsand from twelve religious leaders representative of the faithsof the infertile participants. This is followed by a discussionon the impact of religion on the handling of infertility. Theunique differences between the Indian and African world viewscompared with those of Coloureds and Whites² are evident. However,the impact of religion on the handling of infertility reflectssimilarities across different religious groups. Within the variousthemes that emerged regarding religion and infertility, themost pervasive, across all religious faiths, was that infertilitywas seen as punishment for wrong-doing. The individual's levelof involvement with religion, their personal conception of God,and their sense of self in relation to God appeared to be importantfactors in influencing the impact of religion on the experienceof infertility.     

Religion and Giving in Australia

This article draws on a household survey of giving and volunteering undertaken as part of the Giving Australia project to explore the relationship between religion and the giving behaviour of adult Australians. We find that people who identify themselves as having a religion are more likely to give and to give more on average than people who do not but that this relationship is produced by a subset of this group; namely, people who regularly attend religious services. Indeed, the likelihood of giving and average amounts given by givers over a year increase with levels of attendance at religious services. The relationship holds even after allowing for other factors that affect the likelihood of a person giving and the amount given. It also holds for giving to nonreligious causes (ie when giving to religion is omitted). However, when we also omit giving to charities and look at giving to civic causes alone we find that the frequency of attendance at religious services has an ambiguous relationship with giving. A suggestion in overseas literature that it is participation in religious groups, rather than attendance at religious services that is associated with giving is not supported.     

Religion and Giving in Australia

This article draws on a household survey of giving and volunteering undertaken as part of the Giving Australia project to explore the relationship between religion and the giving behaviour of adult Australians. We find that people who identify themselves as having a religion are more likely to give and to give more on average than people who do not but that this relationship is produced by a subset of this group; namely, people who regularly attend religious services. Indeed, the likelihood of giving and average amounts given by givers over a year increase with levels of attendance at religious services. The relationship holds even after allowing for other factors that affect the likelihood of a person giving and the amount given. It also holds for giving to nonreligious causes (ie when giving to religion is omitted). However, when we also omit giving to charities and look at giving to civic causes alone we find that the frequency of attendance at religious services has an ambiguous relationship with giving. A suggestion in overseas literature that it is participation in religious groups, rather than attendance at religious services that is associated with giving is not supported.     

Anticipating modernity: the Jewish ‘welfare state’ in biblical and medieval times

The impact of religion on social policies and its role in the development, structuring and functioning of welfare states has only recently attracted significant attention. Studies of the relationship between religion and the welfare state have given little consideration to whether the religious precepts and values of the major religions, and the ways of life which they have shaped, are consistent with the idea of the welfare state. This paper shows that the elements of the definition of the modern welfare state were reflected in Jewish communal life as either prescribed by Jewish law (halakha) or lived during both ancient and medieval times, and that communal life was ‘welfare‐state‐like‘. In doing so this paper demonstrates that the idea of the welfare state is consistent with Judaism.