Abstract
Past research has found a robust effect of prejudice against atheists in largely Christian-dominated (belief-oriented) samples. We propose that religious centrality of beliefs vs. practices influences attitudes toward atheists, such that religious groups emphasizing beliefs perceive non-believers more negatively than believers, while groups emphasizing practices perceive non-practicing individuals more negatively than practicing individuals. Studies 1–2, in surveys of 41 countries, found that Muslims and Protestants (belief-oriented) had more negative attitudes toward atheists than did Jews and Hindus (practice-oriented). Study 3 experimentally manipulated a target individual's beliefs and practices. Protestants had more negative attitudes toward a non-believer (vs. a believer), whereas Jews had more negative attitudes toward a non-practicing individual (vs. a practicing individual, particularly when they had a Jewish background). This research has implications for the psychology of religion, anti-atheist prejudice, and cross-cultural attitudes regarding where dissent in beliefs or practices may be tolerated or censured within religious groups.
Highlights
Numerous studies have demonstrated prevalent negative attitudes toward atheists (Swan and Heesacker, 2012; Gervais, 2013; Cook et al, 2015)
To address the possibility that the association between religious group and atheist attitudes was a result of differences in religious fundamentalism, we examined responses to one item asking participants whether truth is found in only one religion (1) or in many religions (0), one important aspect of fundamentalism (Altemeyer and Hunsberger, 1992)
The twoway interactions showed that Protestants placed more emphasis on beliefs than on practices, β = 0.14, t(28128) = 12.68, p < 0.001; as did Muslims, β = 0.24, t(28128) = 5.01, p < 0.001
Summary
Numerous studies have demonstrated prevalent negative attitudes toward atheists (Swan and Heesacker, 2012; Gervais, 2013; Cook et al, 2015). Research on atheist prejudice has almost universally been conducted in the US, a country with a Protestant majority (and threequarters Christian; Pew Research Center, 2008); while Christians have shown evidence of anti-atheist attitudes (Jackson and Hunsberger, 1999), it is an open question whether the link between religion and prejudice against atheists—and its underlying processes—would translate to non-Christian samples around the world. This is an important question because not all religious groups may share the American, Christian focus on beliefs
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