The Origin and Evolution of Religious Prosociality
Ara Norenzayan* and
Azim F. Shariff
We examine empirical evidence for religious prosociality, the
hypothesis that religions facilitate costly behaviors that benefit
other people. Although sociological surveys reveal an association
between self-reports of religiosity and prosociality, experiments
measuring religiosity and actual prosocial behavior suggest
that this association emerges primarily in contexts where reputational
concerns are heightened. Experimentally induced religious thoughts
reduce rates of cheating and increase altruistic behavior among
anonymous strangers. Experiments demonstrate an association
between apparent profession of religious devotion and greater
trust. Cross-cultural evidence suggests an association between
the cultural presence of morally concerned deities and large
group size in humans. We synthesize converging evidence from
various fields for religious prosociality, address its specific
boundary conditions, and point to unresolved questions and novel
predictions.
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: ara{at}psych.ubc.ca
