Psychology Colloquium w/ Ara Norenzayan, University of British Columbia
Nov
5
Thu 4:00 PM
When Thursday, November 5, 2009
Time
4:00 PM - 5:15 PM
Where Swift Hall/annex 107 2029 Sheridan Rd.
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Audience
- Faculty/Staff - Student - Public
Contact Sara Jensen
847-467-5027
Group Psychology Colloquium
More Info http://www.wcas.northwestern.edu/psych/events/colloquium_series/
"Religious Prosociality and The Rise of Large Cooperative Groups"
In this talk I explain the relation between religion and prosocial behaviours -- a much debated yet poorly understood topic. My central thesis is that belief in moralizing Big Gods played a critical role in the emergence of Big Groups, the large moral communities of genetically unrelated individuals in which the majority of humankind lives today. As groups grow in size, social situations become more anonymous, and prosocial tendencies are hard to sustain. However, if "watched people are nice people," then sincere belief in omniscient supernatural monitors encourages cooperative behaviour and trust even when no one is watching. This suggests that the relationship between religion and prosociality is conditional, dependent on reputational sensitivity. Experimental and cross cultural evidence will be presented to evaluate these claims, and controversies and open questions will be highlighted.
In this talk I explain the relation between religion and prosocial behaviours -- a much debated yet poorly understood topic. My central thesis is that belief in moralizing Big Gods played a critical role in the emergence of Big Groups, the large moral communities of genetically unrelated individuals in which the majority of humankind lives today. As groups grow in size, social situations become more anonymous, and prosocial tendencies are hard to sustain. However, if "watched people are nice people," then sincere belief in omniscient supernatural monitors encourages cooperative behaviour and trust even when no one is watching. This suggests that the relationship between religion and prosociality is conditional, dependent on reputational sensitivity. Experimental and cross cultural evidence will be presented to evaluate these claims, and controversies and open questions will be highlighted.
