Study indicates secularization of moral discourse increases kindness
08 Nov '15 09:194 editshttp://phys.org/news/2015-11-religion-kids.html
“... Religious parents are more likely to describe their children as empathetic and concerned about justice than are non-religious parents. But, new evidence reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on November 5 suggests that the opposite is in fact true.
In the study, children growing up in households that weren't religious were significantly more likely to share than were children growing up in religious homes. The findings support the notion that the secularization of moral discourse may serve to increase rather than decrease human kindness, the researchers say.
"Some past research had demonstrated that religious people aren't more likely to do good than their nonreligious counterparts," said Jean Decety of the University of Chicago. "Our study goes beyond that by showing that religious people are less generous, and not only adults but children too."
...”
This may come as a surprise to some but not at all to me. I have heard some theists claim the high moral ground merely for their belief that there exists a god but I personally see absolutely no reason why a superstitious belief in the existence of a supernatural deity would help make people kind. You don't need to believe that there exists a supernatural deity to comprehend the difference between right and wrong nor to be kind.
“... Religious parents are more likely to describe their children as empathetic and concerned about justice than are non-religious parents. But, new evidence reported in the Cell Press journal Current Biology on November 5 suggests that the opposite is in fact true.
In the study, children growing up in households that weren't religious were significantly more likely to share than were children growing up in religious homes. The findings support the notion that the secularization of moral discourse may serve to increase rather than decrease human kindness, the researchers say.
"Some past research had demonstrated that religious people aren't more likely to do good than their nonreligious counterparts," said Jean Decety of the University of Chicago. "Our study goes beyond that by showing that religious people are less generous, and not only adults but children too."
...”
This may come as a surprise to some but not at all to me. I have heard some theists claim the high moral ground merely for their belief that there exists a god but I personally see absolutely no reason why a superstitious belief in the existence of a supernatural deity would help make people kind. You don't need to believe that there exists a supernatural deity to comprehend the difference between right and wrong nor to be kind.
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