Synonyms
Definition
While religious diversity may be becoming increasingly more tolerated in developed countries, atheists are often still thought of as immoral and untrustworthy due to their lack of belief in a higher power. Complex historical, psychological, and sociological factors facilitate the moral distrust of atheists and atheism.
Introduction
Religious/spiritual belief systems and morality have been intertwined throughout the history of the human enterprise. However, there is a significant and growing minority of people who do not adhere to religious belief systems, including atheists. The most basic definition of atheism is a disbelief in god(s). This identity does not preclude atheists from involvement in religious-based morality (e.g., there are nontheistic religious groups, such as the Satanic Temple). However, in many cases, the purview of the atheistic identity can be extended to include a lack of belief in any religious system, a...
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
References
Andersson, G. (2016). Atheism and how it is percieved: Manipulation of, bias against, and ways to reduce the bias. Nordic Psychology, 68(3), 194–203. https://doi.org/10.1080/19012276.2015.1125304
Bloom, P. (2005). Descartes’ baby: How the science of child development explains what makes us human. Basic Books.
Edgell, P., Gerteis, J., & Hartmann, D. (2006). Atheists as “other”: Moral boundaries and cultural membership in American society. American Sociological Review, 71(2), 211–234. https://doi.org/10.1177/000312240607100203
Fetterolf, J., & Austin, S. (2023, April 20). Many people in U.S., other advanced economies say it’s not necessary to believe in God to be moral. Pew Research. https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2023/04/20/many-people-in-u-s-other-advanced-economies-say-its-not-necessary-to-believe-in-god-to-be-moral/
Gervais, W. M. (2013). In godlessness we distrust: Using social psychology to solve the puzzle of anti-atheist prejudice. Social and Personality Psychology Compass, 7(6), 366–377. https://doi.org/10.1111/spc3.12035
Gervais, W. M., Shariff, A. F., & Norenzayan, A. (2011). Do you believe in atheists? Distrust is central to anti-atheist prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 101(6), 1189–1206. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025882
Hyman, G. (2010). A short history of atheism. I. B. Tauris & Co.
Johnson, D., & Bering, J. (2006). Hand of God, mind of man: Punishment and cognition in the evolution of cooperation. Evolutionary Psychology, 4(1), 147470490600400. https://doi.org/10.1177/147470490600400119
Jones, J. M. (2022, June 17). Belief in god in U.S. dips to 81%, a new low. Gallup. https://news.gallup.com/poll/393737/belief-god-dips-new-low.aspx
McKay, R., & Whitehouse, H. (2015). Religion and morality. Psychological Bulletin, 141(2), 447–473. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038455
Pew Research Center. (2015, May 12). America’s changing religious landscape. Pew Research Center’s Religious Landscape Study. https://www.pewresearch.org/religion/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/
Robertson, J. M. (1915). A short history of freethought: Ancient and modern (Vol. 1, 3rd ed.). Rationalist Press Association, Limited.
Tajfel, H., & Turner, J. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. In J. A. Williams & S. Worchel (Eds.), The social psychology of intergroup relations (pp. 33–47). Wadsworth.
Whitmarsh, T. (2016). Battling the Gods: Atheism in the ancient world. Vintage.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Section Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2024 Springer Nature Switzerland AG
About this entry
Cite this entry
Dabbs, C.R., Hutchins, C.H. (2024). Moral Distrust of Atheism. In: Shackelford, T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Religious Psychology and Behavior. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38971-9_711-1
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-38971-9_711-1
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-031-38971-9
Online ISBN: 978-3-031-38971-9
eBook Packages: Living Reference Behavioral Science and PsychologyReference Module Humanities and Social SciencesReference Module Business, Economics and Social Sciences