Religious Of Psychology

11 Pages 2692 Words

The psychological study of religion in the USA illustrates tensions and opportunities that exist between psychology and religion. It also demonstrates the multifaceted views taken by psychologists as they address areas of living that have personal implications. In this article I summarize how American psychologists have dealt with religion in their profession, and characterize the psychology of religion as a field of inquiry.
Following the early period, American psychology’s push toward behaviorism resulted in the neglect of spiritual matters. The reductionism methods of behaviorism left little room for matters of faith, or for any other theoretical constructs that were not measured directly. Consequently, psychology left religion for other topics that were considered to be more scientific, and several decades of neglect ensued. Psychologists’ interest in religion resumed in the 1950s. Gordon Allport’s (1950) attempt to describe the role of religion in people’s experience began his indelible mark on the field, and to this day his Intrinsic - Extrinsic distinction in religious motivation remains the most influential approach in psychological studies of religion in the USA. In the years since then, several developments have combined to suggest, according to the traditional view of psychology of religion, that the field is experiencing a resurgence of interest. These include the establishment of professional journals giving an outlet to psychological research on religious topics, a division of the American Psychological Association dedicated to the psychological study of religion, and the apparently increasing availability of college classes focusing on psychology of religion.
This pattern of decline and growth, which I have summarized very briefly, has been challenged recently by the view that religion was never particularly welcomed by mainstream psychology. Instead, the psychology of religion appears to have been on the perip...