Attachment, evolution, and the psychology of religion / Lee A. Kirkpatrick.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kirkpatrick, Lee A., 1958-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Psychology, Religious.

Attachment behavior.

Evolutionary psychology.

Physical Description:

xvi, 400 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Guilford Press, [2005]

Summary:

In this provocative and engaging book, Lee Kirkpatrick establishes a broad, comprehensive framework for approaching the psychology of religion from an evolutionary perspective. Within this framework, attachment theory provides a powerful lens through which to reconceptualize diverse aspects of religious belief and behavior. Rejecting the notion that humans possess religion-specific instincts or adaptations, Kirkpatrick argues that religion instead is a collection of byproducts of numerous psychological mechanisms and systems that evolved for other functions. This integrative work will spark discussion, debate, and future research among anyone interested in the psychology of religion, attachment theory, and evolutionary psychology, as well as religious studies. It will also serve as a text in advanced undergraduate- and graduate-level courses.

Contents:

2 Introduction to Attachment Theory 25

The Attachment System 28

Attachment in Adulthood 39

Attachment and Evolutionary Psychology 47

3 God as an Attachment Figure 52

Religion as Relationship 53

But Is It Really an Attachment Relationship? 55

Seeking and Maintaining Proximity to God 56

God as a Haven of Safety 61

God as a Secure Base 65

Responses to Separation and Loss 70

4 More on Religion as an Attachment Process: Some Extensions and Limitations 75

Religion and Love 75

What Kind of Love?: Romantic Attachment versus Attachment to God 77

God as a Parental Figure 80

Individual Differences in Images of God 81

Beyond God: Extensions and Limitations 85

Other Forms of Attachment (or Not) in Religion 90

5 Individual Differences in Attachment and Religion: The Correspondence Hypothesis 101

Mental Models and the Correspondence Hypothesis 102

"Socialization" as an Alternative Explanation 117

6 God as a Substitute Attachment Figure: The Compensation Hypothesis 127

Individual Differences and Religious Conversion 128

Contextual Factors in Religious Change 145

7 Attachment in Context: Introduction to Evolutionary Psychology 160

Evolutionary Psychology as a Paradigm or Metatheory 161

Adaptation and Natural Selection 163

Domain-Specificity and the Mental-Organs Model 167

Nature "versus" Nurture 169

Stone Age Minds in Modern Environments 172

Individual Differences in Evolutionary Context 174

Some Illustrative Examples: Politics, Music, and Sports 180

8 Attachment Theory in Modern Evolutionary Perspective 188

Childhood Attachment in Modern Evolutionary Perspective 189

Attachment and Reproductive Strategies 192

Love Revisited 200

Implications for the Theory of Attachment and Religion 206

9 Religion: Adaptation or Evolutionary By-Product? 214

Is There a Unique Religious Instinct? 215

Problems with the Religion-as-Instinct View 224

Religion as an Evolutionary By-product, Not an Adaptation 232

10 Beyond Attachment: Religion and Other Evolved Psychological Mechanisms 240

Power, Status, and Intrasexual Competition 241

Kinship 246

Reciprocal Altruism and Social Exchange 251

Coalitional Psychology 258

11 The Cognitive Origins of Religious Belief 269

Evolved Mechanisms for Thinking about the Natural World 270

The Psychology of Complex Thinking: How the Mind Works 275

The Cognitive Building Blocks of Religious Belief 279

Why Religious Beliefs Succeed 285

Beyond Religion: Other Forms of Thought and Belief 291

12 Beyond Genes: Learning, Rationality, and Culture 300

Natural Selection, Genes, and Inclusive Fitness 303

From Genes to Memes 305

Science Revisited 325

13 Toward an Evolutionary Psychology of Religion 331

A Precis in (More or Less) Reverse 332

An Evolutionary Psychology of Religion for the Future 341.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 364-386) and index.

ISBN:

1593850883

OCLC:

55624256