There always seems to be a thin line between science and religion. New research suggests the conflict between the two opposing worldviews could have its origins in the structure of our brains.
Controversy between faith and scientific evidence is deeply rooted in beliefs surrounding evolution and creationism. The recent study examines how the parts of the brain responsible for empathy and analytical reasoning are linked to faith and spiritual thinking.
Specifically, scientists from Case Western Reserve University found critical thinking is suppressed in the brains of people who believe in a supernatural god or universal spirit. However, people thinking analytically about the physical world appear to do the opposite.
"When there's a question of faith, from the analytic point of view, it may seem absurd," explained Tony Jack, lead researcher and philosophy professor at Case Western Reserve. "But, from what we understand about the brain, the leap of faith to belief in the supernatural amounts to pushing aside the critical/analytical way of thinking to help us achieve greater social and emotional insight."
Previously, studies in cognitive psychology have shown that people who are religious or spiritual are not as smart as others.
"They actually might claim they are less intelligent," added Richard Boyatzis, a professor of organizational behavior at Case Western Reserve. "Our studies confirmed that statistical relationship, but at the same time showed that people with faith are more prosocial and empathic."
In earlier research, Jack and colleagues identified two networks of neurons that competed with each other to let individuals see the world either in religious or in scientific terms. This was accomplished using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) scans.
"Because of the tension between networks, pushing aside a naturalistic world view enables you to delve deeper into the social/emotional side," Jack said. "And that may be the key to why beliefs in the supernatural exist throughout the history of cultures. It appeals to an essentially nonmaterial way of understanding the world and our place in it."
The latest study, researchers conducted a series of eight experiments, aimed at comparing the belief in God with measures of analytic thinking and moral concern. This revealed that the more empathetic the person is, the more likely he or she is religious.
Researchers say this sheds new light on previous studies showing women tend to hold more religious or spiritual worldviews than men. Instead, the new study suggests that this gap may in part be due to the fact that women have a stronger tendency toward empathetic concern than men.
"Having empathy doesn't mean you necessarily have anti-scientific beliefs. Instead, our results suggest that if we only emphasize analytic reasoning and scientific beliefs, as the New Atheist movement suggests, then we are compromising our ability to cultivate a different type of thinking, namely social/moral insight," said Jared Friedman, a research assistant and recent graduate in philosophy and cognitive science.
In fact, the study also points out that some of the great scientists of our times were also very spiritual men.
"Far from always conflicting with science, under the right circumstances religious belief may positively promote scientific creativity and insight," Jack concluded. "Many of history's most famous scientists were spiritual or religious. Those noted individuals were intellectually sophisticated enough to see that there is no need for religion and science to come into conflict."
Their study was recently published in the journal PLOS ONE.
