Alternative Spirituality among Global Scientists

Di, Di; Khalsa, Simranjit; Thomson, Robert A.; Ecklund, Elaine Howard

doi:10.1080/00380253.2020.1724057

Cited by 4 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…Further, some scientists may cultivate an alternative form of spirituality, seeking a sense of sacredness outside conventional faith traditions (Di et al 2020). Outside academic science, individuals identifying as spiritual but not religious may integrate cultural resources from various faith traditions and social institutions, creating an individualistic and arguably more authentic sense of sacredness (Bender 2010).…”

Section: Religion Spirituality and Scientific Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evoking, Grounding, and Defining: How Contemporary Scientists Connect Religion, Spirituality, and Aesthetics

Ritz,

Di,

Vaidyanathan

2024

Religions

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Social scientific research challenges stereotypes of scientists as irreligious, on the one hand, and lacking aesthetic sensitivity, on the other. Yet, while some research suggests connections between these domains, the question remains as to whether and how scientists themselves connect their religion or spirituality with their aesthetic experiences in science. Drawing on interviews with 71 biologists and physicists in India, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States, we find three distinct logics by which scientists connect these experiences, which we call “evoking”, “grounding”, and “defining”. We also find some scientists assume a modernist logic on which religion or spirituality and science are seen as separate to explain why they do not experience their religion or spirituality and aesthetic experiences as connected. Our findings enhance our understanding of how personal beliefs can shape and be shaped by professional experiences and suggest opportunities for dialogue between scientists and communities of faith centering aesthetic experience.

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Section: Religion Spirituality and Scientific Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evoking, Grounding, and Defining: How Contemporary Scientists Connect Religion, Spirituality, and Aesthetics

Ritz,

Di,

Vaidyanathan

2024

Religions

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…2019; Sorrell and Ecklund 2019), and others identify as SBNR to ease tensions between religion and science (Di et al. 2021). In India, where the line between science and religion blurs, scientists often combine participation in religious rituals with a scientific, logical, and rational approach, unlike people who are not scientists (Thomas 2021).…”

Section: Religion and Spirituality In Academic Sciencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…And studies have found that religious scientists often navigate and reconcile their beliefs with the secular institutional norms of academic science (Di and Ecklund 2017;Scheitle and Dabbs 2021). For example, scientists in several countries report not incorporating their faith into their scientific work Sorrell and Ecklund 2019), and others identify as SBNR to ease tensions between religion and science (Di et al 2021). In India, where the line between science and religion blurs, scientists often combine participation in religious rituals with a scientific, logical, and rational approach, unlike people who are not scientists (Thomas 2021).…”

Section: Religion and Spirituality In Academic Sciencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…For instance, scientists in most countries are less religious than the general population (Ecklund et al 2016). Being constrained by the scientific workplace's secular norms, religious scientists often selectively incorporate their faith into the workplace by restricting conversations about their faith (Di and Ecklund 2017), claiming to be spiritual rather than religious (Ecklund and Long 2011;Di et al 2021), or tempering the centrality of religious rituals in their lives (Thomas 2021). Furthermore, the evidence suggests that social and cultural dynamics associated with religion in academic science often differ from those in society as a whole (Yancey 2011;Scheitle and Ecklund 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Religion, Spirituality, and Mental Health Among Scientists During the Pandemic: A Four‐country Study

Di¹,

Cranney²,

Vaidyanathan³

et al. 2023

Zygon

Self Cite

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A vast body of research shows largely positive associations between religiosity/spirituality (R/S) and positive well‐being outcomes. Such research has examined religious communities and general populations, but little is known about the relationship between R/S and well‐being among scientists, who typically tend to be less religious than the general public. Drawing on nationally representative survey data on physicists and biologists in India, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States (N = 3442), this study examines whether the relationship between R/S and mental health holds for scientists, particularly during the COVID‐19 pandemic. We find that net of statistical controls, higher levels of religious and spiritual commitment are associated with significantly higher levels of well‐being and lower levels of psychological distress. Overall, the results indicate that a positive relationship between R/S and mental health holds even for scientists. The study's findings have implications for future analysis of the relationship between R/S and the well‐being of people working in other professions.

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“…In settings with historically powerful Christian majorities, national civil religious traditions, or strong secularism (e.g., the United States, United Kingdom, and France), spirituality provides an alternative identity category that adherents can use to define themselves in opposition to dominant religious and secular cultural models (Di et al 2021;Steensland et al 2022). In places where the religious and the secular are not as clearly demarcated historically (e.g., China, parts of Africa, or the African diaspora), spiritual conceptions may be less defined and more diffuse (Adogame 2022;Sun 2022).…”

Section: Spirituality As a Boundary Objectmentioning

confidence: 99%

Selfish or Substituting Spirituality? Clarifying the Relationship between Spiritual Practice and Political Engagement

Kucinskas

Stewart

2022

Am Sociol Rev

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Churches have long been sites of local charity work as well as national political movements. What happens when people engage in more individualistic forms of spirituality, like mindfulness meditation or yoga, rather than participate in religious communities? Might the rise of individualized forms of spirituality lead to a decline in political engagement? Or, among people averse to religion, might spiritual practice operate as a substitute, and potentially contribute to political engagement? Drawing on burgeoning theory of religion and spirituality as socially-situated boundary objects, we use data from the 2020 National Religion and Spirituality Survey to examine the relationship between self-reported spiritual and religious practices and political engagement. First, we investigate whether study participants distinguish spiritual and religious practice as distinct concepts through factor analysis. Next, we use those results to examine the association between these practices and reports of political behavior. We find a consistent, positive relationship between spiritual practice and political engagement of comparable magnitude to that of religious practices. Notably, during an era of heightened political polarization around religious engagement, political progressives, respondents of color, and members of the LGBT community are more likely to report spiritual rather than religious practices. This points us to a theory of spiritual practice as a substitute for religious engagement among groups alienated from religious institutions, with the former capable of fostering similar proclivities for political action as the latter. Our results suggest critiques of a “selfish” spirituality have been overblown.

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Alternative Spirituality among Global Scientists

Cited by 4 publications

References 40 publications

Evoking, Grounding, and Defining: How Contemporary Scientists Connect Religion, Spirituality, and Aesthetics

Evoking, Grounding, and Defining: How Contemporary Scientists Connect Religion, Spirituality, and Aesthetics

Religion, Spirituality, and Mental Health Among Scientists During the Pandemic: A Four‐country Study

Selfish or Substituting Spirituality? Clarifying the Relationship between Spiritual Practice and Political Engagement

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