Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

We are not alone: The meaning motive, religiosity, and belief in extraterrestrial intelligence

  • Original Paper
  • Published:
Motivation and Emotion Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We tested the proposals that paranormal beliefs about extraterrestrial intelligence (ETI) are motivated, in part, by the need for meaning and that this existential motive helps explain the inverse relationship between religiosity and ETI beliefs. In Study 1, we experimentally establish that the motive to find meaning in life increases ETI beliefs. In Study 2, we replicate previous research demonstrating that low religiosity is associated with greater ETI beliefs. In Studies 3–4 we tested and found support for a model linking low religiosity to low presence of meaning, high search for meaning, and greater ETI beliefs. In all, our findings offer a motivational account of why people endorse paranormal beliefs about intelligent alien beings observing and influencing the lives of humans.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • America’s changing religious landscape (2015, May 12). Retrieved from http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/.

  • Atran, S. (2002). In gods we trust: The evolutionary landscape of religion. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Banerjee, K., & Bloom, P. (2013). Would Tarzan believe in God? Conditions for the emergence of religious belief. Trend in Cognitive Sciences, 17, 7–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrett, J. L. (2000). Exploring the natural foundations of religion. Trends in Cognitive Science, 4, 29–34.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Batson, C., & Stocks, E. L. (2004). Religion: Its core psychological functions. In J. Greenberg, S. L. Koole & T. Pyszczynski (Eds.), Handbook of experimental existential psychology (pp. 141–155). New York: Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Baumeister, R. F. (1991). Meanings of life. New York: The Guilford Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bloom, P. (2007). Religion is natural. Developmental Science, 10, 147–151.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bluemke, M., & Friese, M. (2008). Reliability and validity of the single-target (ST-IAT): Assessing automatic affect towards multiple attitude objects. European Journal of Social Psychology, 38, 977–997.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Boyer, P. (2001). Religion explained: The evolutionary origins of religious thought. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Boyle, P. A., Barnes, L. L., Buchman, A. S., & Bennett, D. A. (2009). Purpose in life is associated with mortality among community-dwelling older persons. Psychosomatic Medicine, 71, 574–579.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Clancy, S. A. (2005). Abducted: How people come to believe they were kidnapped by aliens. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Davis, W. E., Juhl, J., & Routledge, C. (2011). Death and design: The terror management function of teleological beliefs. Motivation and Emotion, 35, 98–104.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Diener, E., Emmons, R., Larsen, J., & Griffin, S. (1985). The Satisfaction with Life Scale. Journal of Personality Assessment, 49, 71–75.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Emmons, R. A. (2005). Striving for the sacred: Personal goals, life meaning, and religion. Journal of Social Issues, 61, 731–745.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Farias, M., Newheiser, A. K., Kahane, G., & de Toledo, Z. (2013). Scientific faith: Belief in science increases in the face of stress and existential anxiety. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 49, 1210–1213.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Gallup, G. H., & Newport, F. (1991). Belief in paranormal phenomena among adult Americans. Skeptical Inquirer, 15, 137–146.

    Google Scholar 

  • Goode, E. (2000). Paranormal beliefs: A sociological introduction. Prospect heights, Long Grove: Waveland Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hayes, A. F. (2013). Introduction to mediation, moderation, and conditional process analysis. A regression-based approach. New York: Guilford.

    Google Scholar 

  • Heflick, N. A., & Goldenberg, J. L. (2012). No atheists in foxholes: Arguments for (but not against) afterlife belief buffers mortality salience effects for atheists. British Journal of Social Psychology, 51, 385–392.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Heintzelman, S. J., & King, L. A. (2014). Life is pretty meaningful. American Psychologist, 69, 561–574.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Heywood, B. T. & Bering, J. M. (2013). “Meant to be”: How religious beliefs and cultural religiosity affect the implicit bias to think teleologically. Religion, Brain, and Behavior, 4, 183–201.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hicks, J., & Routledge, C. (Eds.). (2013). The experience of meaning in life: Classical perspectives, emerging themes, and controversies. New York: Springer Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hicks, J. A., & King, L. A. (2008). Religious commitment and positive mood as information about meaning in life. Journal of Research in Personality, 42, 43–57.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hill, P. L., & Turiano, N. A. (2014). Purpose in life as a predictor of mortality across adulthood. Psychological Science, 25, 1482–1486.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • House, J. S. (1994). Americans’ changing lives:Waves I and II, 1986 and 1989 [computer file]. ICPSR version. Ann Arbor: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Janoff-Bulman, R. (1992). Shattered assumptions: Toward a new psychology of trauma. New York: Free Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jong, J., Halberstadt, J., & Bluemke, M. (2012). Foxhole atheism, revisited: The effects of mortality salience on explicit and implicit religious belief. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 48, 983–989.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jung, C. (1959). Flying saucers: A modern myth of things seen in the skies. London: Routledge and Paul.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kelemen, D., Rottman, J., & Seston, R. (2013). Professional physical scientists display tenacious teleological tendencies: Purpose-based reasoning as a cognitive default. Journal of Experimental Psychology; General, 142, 1074–1083.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • King, L. A., Burton, C. M., Hicks, J. A., & Drigotas, S. M. (2007). Ghosts, UFOs, and magic: Positive affect and the experiential system. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 92, 905–919.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • King, L. A., & Napa, C. K. (1998). What makes a good life? Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 156–165.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Klinger, E. (1998). .The search for meaning in evolutionary perspective and its clinical implications. In P. T. P. Wong & P. S. Fray (Eds.), The human quest for meaning: A handbook of psychological research and clinical application (pp. 27–50). Mahwah: Lawrence Earlbaum Associates.

    Google Scholar 

  • Koenig, H. G., & Büssing, A. (2010). The duke university religion index (DUREL): A five-item measure for use in epidemological studies. Religions, 1, 78–85.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krause, N. (2009). Meaning in life and mortality. Journal of Gerontology: Psychological Sciences and Social Sciences, 64B, 517–527.

  • Lambert, N. M., Stillman, T. F., Hicks, J. A., Kamble, S., Baumeister, R. F., & Fincham, F. D. (2013). To belong is to matter: Sense of belonging enhances meaning in life. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 39, 1418–1427.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lindeman, M., Heywood, B., Riekki, T., & Makkonen, T. (2014). Atheists become emotionally aroused when daring God to do bad things. The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion, 24, 124–132.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Low, G., & Molzahn, A. E. (2007). Predictors of quality of life in old age: A cross-validation study. Research in Nursing, 30, 141–150.

    Google Scholar 

  • Norenzayan, A., & Hansen, I. G. (2006). Belief in supernatural agents in the face of death. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 32, 174–187.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Park, C. L. (2010). Making sense of the meaning literature: An integrative review of meaning making and its effects on adjustment to stressful life events. Psychological Bulletin, 136, 257–301.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Park, J. L. (2001). Our existential predicament: Loneliness, depression, anxiety and death. Minneapolis: Existential Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Park, N., Park, M., & Peterson, C. (2010). When is the search for meaning related to life satisfaction? Applied Psychology: Health and Well-Being, 2, 1–13.

    Google Scholar 

  • Patry, A., & Pelletier, L. (2001). Extraterrestrial beliefs and experiences: An application of the theory of reasoned action. The Journal of Social Psychology, 141, 199–217.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Rice, T. W. (2003). Believe it or not: Religious and other paranormal beliefs in the United States. Journal for The Scientific Study of Religion, 42, 95–106.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rohrbaugh, J., & Jessor, R. (1975). Religiosity in youth: A personal control against deviant behavior? Journal of Personality, 43, 136–155.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Routledge, C., Abeyta, A. A., & Roylance (in press). An existential function of evil: The effects of religiosity and compromised meaning on beliefs in magical evil forces. Motivation and Emotion, 40, 681–688

  • Routledge, C., Arndt, J., Wildschut, T., Sedikides, C., Hart, C. M., Juhl, J., & Schlotz, W. (2011). The past makes the present meaningful: Nostalgia as an existential resource. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 101, 638–652.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Routledge, C., Roylance, C., & Abeyta, A. A..(in press) Miraculous meaning: Threatened meaning increases beliefs in miracles. Journal of Religion and Health. doi:10.1007/s10943-015-0124-4

  • Shermer, M. (2011). The believing brain. New York. St. Martin’s Griffin.

    Google Scholar 

  • Speigel, L. (2013). Forty eight percent of Americans believe UFOs could be ET visitations. huffingtonpost.com. Retrieved April 4, 2014 from http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/11/48-percent-of-americans-believe-in-ufos_n_3900669.html.

  • Steger, M. F., & Frazier, P. (2005). Meaning in life: One link in the chain from religiousness to well-being. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 52, 574–582.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steger, M. F., Frazier, P., Oishi, S., & Kaler, M. (2006). The Meaning in Life Questionnaire: Assessing the presence of and search for meaning in life. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 53, 80–93.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Steger, M. F., Kashdan, T. B., Sullivan, B. A., & Lorentz, D. (2008). Understanding the search for meaning in life: Personality, cognitive style, and the dynamic between seeking and experiencing meaning. Journal of Personality, 76, 199–228.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Steger, M. F., Mann, J. R., Michels, P., & Cooper, T. C. (2009). Meaning in life, anxiety, depression, and general health among smoking cessation patients. Journal of Psychosomatic Research, 67, 353–358.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Swami, V., Chamorro-Premuzic, T., & Shafi, M. (2010). Psychology in outerspace: Personality, individual difference, and demographic predictors of beliefs about extraterrestrial life. European Psychologist, 15, 220–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Swami, V., Furnham, A., Haubner, T., Stieger, S., & Voracek, M. (2009). The truth is out there: The structure of beliefs about extraterrestrial life among Austrian and British respondents. The Journal of Social Psychology, 149, 29–43.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Trzebiatowska, M., & Bruce, M. (2012). Why are women more religious than men? Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Book  Google Scholar 

  • Updegraff, J. A., Silver, R. C., & Holman, E. A. (2008). Searching for and finding meaning in collective trauma: Results from a longitudinal stufy of the 9/11 terrorists attacks. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 95, 709–722.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Vail, K. E., Rothschild, Z. K., Weise, D., Solomon, S., Pyszczynski, T., & Greenberg, J. (2010). A terror management analysis of the psychological functions of religion. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 14, 84–94.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Willard, A. K., & Norenzayan, A. (2013). Cognitive biases explain religious belief, paranormal belief, and belief in life’s purpose. Cognition, 129, 379–391.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Winseman, A., L. (2002, December 3). Religion and Gender: A Congregation Divided. Gallup.com. Retrieved April 6, 2014 from http://www.gallup.com/poll/7336/religion-gender-congregation-divided.aspx.

Download references

Funding

The research reported was partially funded by a grant to the first author from the John Templeton Foundation (#47996).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, USA

    Clay Routledge, Andrew A. Abeyta & Christina Roylance

Authors
  1. Clay Routledge
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Andrew A. Abeyta
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Christina Roylance
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Clay Routledge.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

Authors have no conflict of interest.

Informed consent

In addition, informed consent was obtained from all participants in the reported studies and all participants were fully debriefed after they participated in the study.

Research involving human and animal participants

All procedures performed in the reported studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional research committee and with the American Psychological Association Ethics Code.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Routledge, C., Abeyta, A.A. & Roylance, C. We are not alone: The meaning motive, religiosity, and belief in extraterrestrial intelligence. Motiv Emot 41, 135–146 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-017-9605-y

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11031-017-9605-y

Keywords

Search

Navigation