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Projecting WEIRD features on ancient religions

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  07 March 2016

Pascal Boyer  and
Nicolas Baumard
Pascal Boyer
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130; pboyer@wustl.eduhttp://pages.wustl.edu/pboyer
Nicolas Baumard
Affiliation:
Department d'Etudes Cognitives, Ecole Normale Supérieure, 29 rue d'Ulm, 75006 Paris, France. nbaumard@gmail.comhttps://sites.google.com/site/nicolasbaumard/
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Abstract

The proposed narrative relies on an anachronistic projection of current religions onto prehistorical and historical cultures that were not concerned with prosocial morality or with public statement of belief. Prosocial morality appeared in wealthier post-Axial environments. Public demonstrations of belief are possible and advantageous when religious diversity starts interacting with coalitional recruitment dynamics in large-scale societies, a typical feature of modern, so-called WEIRD societies.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 39 , 2016 , e6
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Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2016 

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