Public lecture: The basis of belief – the cognitive and cultural origins of religious belief

• 19 February 2019
  5:00 PM – 6:30 PM

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• Čítárna FF MU, budova D (přízemí), Arna Nováka 1, Brno

A. K. Willard

Religious and supernatural beliefs are one of the great puzzles of human psychology. Why are we uniquely a religious species? How has our predisposition towards religion affected our development? In this talk, I will discuss the roles of cognition and cultural in establishing and maintaining religious and supernatural beliefs, and how culturally evolved religious institutions can influence societal development. On the cognitive side, I will discuss research illustrating how cognitive biases linked to the theory of mind can predispose humans to hold supernatural beliefs. On the cultural side, I will examine how cultural learning mechanism, specifically credibility enhancing displays, can maintain specific sets of supernatural beliefs to form religious traditions. I will focus on research showing how religious ritual practices can help transmit religious traditions to new generations. Together, these mechanisms can create strong religious institutions that have shaped much of human history.

Organized by

HUME Lab - Experimental Humanities Laboratory (Faculty of Arts)

Responsibility

Mgr. et Mgr. Radek Kundt, Ph.D.

Further information, photos or videos on the event

https://www.facebook.com/events/1093841904156578/