Notable People in Psychology of Religion

by Michael 1994 - 2001 Michael Nielsen E Nielsen, PhD Many psychological theorists have had interesting perspectives on religion !ere yo" #ill $ind an overvie# o$ so%e o$ the classic vie#s& 'illia% (a%es, )ig%"nd *re"d, +arl ("ng, ,ordon -llport, -braha% Maslo#, and -l$red -dler - recent addition to this page is a synopsis o$ Eri. Eri.son/s #or. 01thers #ill be added to this list as ti%e per%its 2 *or %ore in$or%ation on any o$ these people, chec. their #or. listed on %y reso"rces page 1ther good so"rces $or $"rther in$or%ation are *"ller/s Psychology and Religion boo., or '"l$$/s Psychology of Religion boo., #hich also are listed in %y reso"rce page

William James
1342-1910 - 4 ) psychologist and philosopher, (a%es served as president o$ -%erican Psychological -ssociation, and #rote one o$ the $irst psychology te5tboo.s 6n the psychology o$ religion, (a%es/s in$l"ence end"res !is Varieties of Religious Experience is considered to be the classic #or. in the $ield, and is #orth reading by anyone #ho is interested in psychology and religion 6ndeed, re$erences to (a%es/s ideas are co%%on at pro$essional con$erences 6t re%inds %e o$ the saying, 7to learn a ne# idea, read an old boo. 7

Sigmund Freud
1389-19:9 - psychiatrist, *re"d laid the $o"ndation o$ psychoanalysis and has had a tre%endo"s in$l"ence on %odern c"lt"re Many o$ people/s belie$s abo"t "nconscio"s tho"ght, childhood, and parenthood ste% $ro% *re"d 6n his broad theories, he atte%pted to e5plain abo"t ho# #e are in$l"enced by past events and by things o"tside o"r conscio"s a#areness ;ery si%ply stated, *re"d s"ggested that people e5perience con$licts bet#een #hat #e #ant to do 0represented by o"r 6d2 and #hat #e are told by society and parents that #e sho"ld do 0represented by the )"perego2 <his con$lict is resolved, to a greater or lesser degree, by the Ego *re"d vie#ed religion as originating in the child/s relationship to the $ather= hence in %any c"lt"res ,od is vie#ed as a !eavenly *ather 6n this #ay, religion re$lects an atte%pt to $"l$ill o"r #ishes, and is an ill"sion *re"d strived to be ob>ective, altho"gh by c"rrent standards the %ethods *re"d "sed probably allo#ed his biases to in$l"ence his data !is in$l"ence in psychology has declined over the years= $e#er than 10? o$ the -%erican Psychological -ssociation describe the%selves as having psychoanalytic perspectives 6n the -%erican Psychological )ociety, that $ig"re drops to less than 8? )till, psychoanalytic interpretations o$ religion re%ain pop"lar in so%e circles

Alfred Adler
13@0-19:@ -n -"strian psychiatrist #ho parted #ays #ith *re"d, -dler e%phasiAed the role o$ goals and %otivation in his Individual Psychology 1ne o$ -dler/s %ost $a%o"s ideas is that #e try to co%pensate $or in$eriorities that #e perceive in o"rselves - lac. o$ po#er o$ten lies at the root o$ $eelings o$ in$eriority 1ne #ay that religion enters into this pict"re is thro"gh o"r belie$s in ,od, #hich are characteristic o$ o"r tendency to strive $or per$ection and s"periority *or e5a%ple, in %any religions ,od is considered to be per$ect and o%nipotent, and co%%ands people li.e#ise to be per$ect 6$ #e too achieve per$ection, #e beco%e one #ith ,od By identi$ying #ith ,od in this #ay, #e co%pensate $or o"r i%per$ections and $eelings o$ in$eriority 1"r ideas abo"t ,od are i%portant indicators o$ ho# #e vie# the #orld -ccording to -dler these ideas have changed over ti%e, as o"r vision o$ the #orld--and o"r place in it--has changed +onsider this e5a%ple that -dler o$$ers& the traditional belie$ that people #ere placed deliberately on earth as ,od/s "lti%ate creation, is being replaced #ith the idea that people have evolved by nat"ral selection <his coincides #ith a vie# o$ ,od not as a real being, b"t as an abstract representation o$ nat"re/s $orces 6n this #ay, o"r vie# o$ ,od has changed $ro% one that #as concrete and speci$ic to one that is %ore general *ro% -dler/s vantage point, this is a relatively ine$$ective perception o$ ,od beca"se it is so general that it $ails to convey a strong sense o$ direction and p"rpose M"ch o$ -dler/s #riting is devoted to social %ove%ents 6n this conte5t, religion is i%portant in at least t#o #ays *irst, #e need to "nderstand that -dler is interested %ainly in the idea o$ ,od as a %otivator, and not in the C"estion o$ #hether or not ,od e5ists 'hat is i%portant is that ,od 0or the idea o$ ,od2 %otivates people to act, and that those actions do have real conseC"ences $or o"rselves and $or others -dler s"ggests that #e are le$t #ith t#o options 'e can either ass"%e that #e are at the center o$ the #orld--both o"rs and ,od/s--and that ,od #ill care $or "s as #e #ait passively $or attention, or #e can ass"%e that #e are the center o$ the #orld, and actively #or. to achieve society/s interest -dler/s point is that i$ #e ass"%e that #e have po#er over o"r s"rro"ndings, then #e #ill act in #ays that bene$it the #orld aro"nd "s 1"r vie# o$ ,od is i%portant beca"se it e%bodies o"r goals and directs o"r social interactions <he second #ay that religion is i%portant is that it e5erts a great in$l"ence on o"r social environ%ent, and is i%portant as a po#er$"l social %ove%ent itsel$ +o%pared to science, another social %ove%ent, religion is %ore advanced beca"se it %otivates people %ore e$$ectively -ccording to -dler, only #hen science begins to capt"re the sa%e religio"s $ervor, and pro%otes the #el$are o$ all seg%ents o$ society, #ill the t#o be %ore eC"al in people/s eyes 0)o%e people #o"ld say that this is already happening 'hat do yo" thin.D2 <o learn %ore abo"t -dler, chec. o"t his boo.s and these #eb sites

Carl Jung
13@8-1991 *or a ti%e ("ng #as *re"d/s p"pil, b"t le$t *re"d/s $ollo#ing #hen they disagreed over the i%portance o$ se5"ality and spirit"ality to one/s psychological develop%ent 0*re"d

e%phasiAed se5"ality over spirit"ality= ("ng disagreed 2 <heir parting is described as being C"ite intense, al%ost as tho"gh ("ng #ere being e5co%%"nicated $ro% *re"d/s 7ch"rch 7 ("ng #as concerned #ith the interplay bet#een conscio"s and "nconscio"s $orces !e proposed t#o .inds o$ "nconscio"s& personal and collective Personal "nconscio"s 0or 7shado#72 incl"des those things abo"t o"rselves that #e #o"ld li.e to $orget <he collective "nconscio"s re$ers to events that #e all share, by virt"e o$ having a co%%on heritage 0h"%anity2 *or e5a%ple, the i%age 0archetype2 o$ a %ythic hero is so%ething that is present in all c"lt"res -rchetypes s"ch as these %ight be vie#ed as ,ods, beca"se they are o"tside the individ"al/s ego ("ng had %"ch to say abo"t +hristian and Eastern religions !e #as $ascinated #ith non-'estern vie#s, and so"ght to $ind so%e co%%on gro"nd bet#een East and 'est 6n doing so, ("ng had a very broad vie# o$ #hat it %eans to be e%pirical )"ppose, $or e5a%ple, that 6 hear a voice $ro% deity b"t that yo" do not, even tho"gh #e are sitting ne5t to each other 6$ only one person e5periences so%ething, $or ("ng it is an e%pirical observation *or %ost conte%porary scientists, ho#ever, it #o"ld not be considered an e%pirical observation Beca"se o$ this, there has been regrettably little research in the psychology o$ religion $ro% a ("ngian perspective

Gordon Allport
139@-199@ -llport %ade i%portant contrib"tions to the psychology o$ personality, helping to re$ine the concept o$ 7traits 7 !is interest in di$$erences a%ong individ"als--#hich is #hat personality psychology is--carried over into his #or. in the psychology o$ religion !is classic boo., The Individual and His Religion, sho#s -llport/s interest in people as individ"als 6t also ill"strates ho# people %ay "se religion in di$$erent #ays Mature religio"s senti%ent is ho# -llport characteriAed the person #hose approach to religion is dyna%ic, open-%inded, and able to %aintain lin.s bet#een inconsistencies 6n contrast, Immature religion is sel$-serving and generally represents the negative stereotypes that people have abo"t religion Eater, -llport and Foss devised 7religio"s orientation7 scales to %eas"re these t#o approaches to religion <he intrinsic religio"s orientation re$lects an interest in religion itsel$ <he e5trinsic orientation to#ard religion is one #here religio"s behavior is a %eans to so%e other end +onsider, $or e5a%ple, the %otivations behind people/s ch"rch attendance 6ntrinsically oriented people attend ch"rch as an end itsel$, #hile e5trinsically oriented people %ay do the sa%e action beca"se it is a #ay to %eet people, or beca"se it helps the% cope #ith stress in their lives Feligio"s orientation has re%ained a $ocal point in the psychology o$ religion, despite periodic criticis% that it has o"tlasted its "se$"lness

Abraham Maslow
1903-19@0 'hat %a.es so%eone psychologically healthyD <his #as the C"estion that g"ided Maslo#/s #or. !e sa# too %"ch e%phasis in psychology on negative behavior and tho"ght, and #anted to s"pplant it #ith a psychology o$ %ental health <o this end, he developed a hierarchy o$ needs, ranging $ro% lo#er level physiological needs, thro"gh

love and belonging, to sel$- act"aliAation )el$-act"aliAed people are those #ho have reached their potential $or sel$-develop%ent Maslo# clai%ed that %ystics are %ore li.ely to be sel$-act"aliAed than are other people Mystics also are %ore li.ely to have had 7pea. e5periences,7 e5periences in #hich the person $eels a sense o$ ecstasy and oneness #ith the "niverse -ltho"gh his hierarchy o$ needs so"nds appealing, researchers have had di$$ic"lty $inding s"pport $or his theory -n i%portant criticis% that Maslo# leveled at psychology concerned scientists/ e$$orts to .eep val"es o"t o$ their #or. Most psychologists see this as an atte%pt to avoid bias, b"t to Maslo# it re$lects a lac. o$ val"e $or things that are i%portant -ccording to Maslo#, a science #itho"t val"es can not be "sed to sho# that %"rder or genocide is bad <his can be re%edied by adopting a broader approach to the s"b>ect %atter, and by concerning o"rselves #ith people/s choices and val"es 1ne o"tgro#th o$ Maslo#/s #or. is #hat has beco%e .no#n as <ranspersonal Psychology, in #hich the $oc"s is on the spirit"al #ell-being o$ individ"als, and val"es are advocated stead$astly <ranspersonal psychologists see. to blend Eastern religion 0B"ddhis%, !ind"is%, etc 2 or 'estern 0+hristian, (e#ish or Mosle%2 %ysticis% #ith a $or% o$ %odern psychology *reC"ently, the transpersonal psychologist re>ects psychology/s adoption o$ vario"s scienti$ic %ethods "sed in the nat"ral sciences <he in$l"ence o$ the transpersonal %ove%ent re%ains s%all, b"t there is evidence that it is gro#ing 6 s"spect that %ost psychologists #o"ld agree #ith Maslo# that %"ch o$ psychology -- incl"ding the psychology o$ religion -- needs an i%proved theoretical $o"ndation

Erik H. Erikson
01902-19942 Eri.son is best .no#n $or his theory o$ psychological develop%ent, #hich has its roots in the psychoanalytic i%portance o$ identity in personality Eri.son believed that proper psychological develop%ent occ"rs in a series o$ eight stages, #hich %"st $ollo# a speci$ic seC"ence -ssociated #ith each stage is a positive resol"tion o$ an identity con$lict, a 7virt"e,7 or a negative $ail"re to resolve the con$lict, a 7pathology 7 positive resol"tion to the con$lict helps prepare the person to %ove on to address challenges o$ the ne5t con$lict Eri.son/s theory places %ost o$ the e%phasis on the $irst t#o decades o$ li$e, #ith si5 o$ the eight stages happening by yo"ng ad"lthood )till, Eri.son is noted $or e5tending the notion o$ develop%ent into ad"lthood !is biographies o$ ,andhi and E"ther reveal Eri.son/s positive vie# o$ religion !e considered religions to be i%portant in$l"ences in s"ccess$"l personality develop%ent beca"se they are the pri%ary #ay that c"lt"res pro%ote the virt"es associated #ith each stage o$ li$e Feligio"s rit"als $acilitate this develop%ent Eri.son/s theory has not bene$ited $ro% syste%atic e%pirical st"dy, b"t it re%ains an in$l"ential and #ellregarded theory in the psychological st"dy o$ religion