Atheism, theism, and the self: the perceived impact of metaphysical beliefs on personality traits
Atheists are one of the least accepted minority groups in the Unites States, yet they remain an understudied population. The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate differences between atheists and theists regarding the perceived impact of metaphysical beliefs (belief or nonbelief in th...
| Authors: | ; ; |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Carfax Publ.
2021
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| In: |
Journal of contemporary religion
Year: 2021, Volume: 36, Issue: 3, Pages: 545-560 |
| Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains: | B
Atheism
/ Theism
/ Faith content
/ Personality factor
/ Self-estimation
|
| RelBib Classification: | AB Philosophy of religion; criticism of religion; atheism AD Sociology of religion; religious policy AE Psychology of religion NBC Doctrine of God NCB Personal ethics |
| Further subjects: | B
Religious Beliefs
B Religion B THEISTS B Atheists B person description |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | Atheists are one of the least accepted minority groups in the Unites States, yet they remain an understudied population. The purpose of this exploratory study was to investigate differences between atheists and theists regarding the perceived impact of metaphysical beliefs (belief or nonbelief in the existence of God) on their personality traits. Participants consisted of undergraduate students enrolled in a psychology course (N = 551, ages 18–29, 71.8% female) at a large public university in the southern US. Compared to theists, atheists viewed their metaphysical beliefs as contributing less to their positive traits and as making them less traditional/conservative and more non-traditional/liberal. Atheists indicated that having the opposite metaphysical beliefs would make them less non-traditional/liberal and more traditional/conservative; however, there was no difference in the perception of the possible impact of holding the opposite beliefs on positive traits. These results suggest that individuals’ metaphysical beliefs may relate to the way they understand themselves. Implications for working with atheists in clinical settings are discussed. |
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| ISSN: | 1469-9419 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of contemporary religion
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/13537903.2021.1981578 |