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23 - Moral and Religious Systems

from Part V - Applications and Extensions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 February 2025

By
Benjamin Grant Purzycki  and
Theiss Bendixen
Edited by
Bertram Malle  and
Philip Robbins
Bertram Malle
Affiliation:
Brown University, Rhode Island
Philip Robbins
Affiliation:
University of Missouri
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Summary

This chapter of the handbook discusses the complex, multifaceted connection between morality and religion from an evolutionary perspective. After providing some much-needed conceptual ground clearing, the authors focus on accounts of the linkage between morality and religion in terms of evolved psychological mechanisms that promote cooperation and inhibit competition. One of the better known of these accounts is the supernatural punishment hypothesis. On this view, the morality–religion link is sustained by the fact that belief in an all-knowing, all-powerful god who monitors people’s behavior and punishes their moral transgressions motivates people to behave less selfishly and more cooperatively. Another account emphasizes religious behavior and posits that participation in religious ritual is a form of costly signaling, indicating to others that the participant can be trusted to observe the moral norms of the community. While there is considerable support for the idea that aspects of religion function to curb selfishness, however, the authors caution that the psychological and sociological mechanisms underlying this function are not yet well understood.

Keywords

moralityreligiontheory of mindsupernatural punishmentcooperationritualsocial complexity
Type
Chapter
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The Cambridge Handbook of Moral Psychology , pp. 575 - 595
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2025

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