Religion and the judgement of obsessionality

Abstract

Ninety-six lay participiants read case vignettes of two OCD sufferers, one high on religious activity and one low on religious activity. Possible confounding factors were balanced. Obsessionality and psychological symptoms were seen as significantly more likely in the OCD sufferer with a high level of religious activity, compared to the OCD sufferer with a low level of religious activity, though sadness and tension were not. Limitations of the study are discussed, as are possible interpretations of the findings.