Belief in a just God (and a just society): A system justification perspective on religious ideology.

Abstract

Theoretical approaches that treat religiosity as an evolutionary byproduct of cognitive mechanisms to detect agency may help to explain the prevalence of superstitious thinking, but they say little about the social-motivational (or ideological) functions of religious beliefs or the specific contents of religious doctrines. To address these omissions, we develop the thesis that religion provides an ideological justification for the existing social order, so that prevailing institutions and arrangements are perceived as legitimate and just, and therefore worth obeying and preserving. We summarize empirical evidence revealing that (a) religiosity is associated with the same set of epistemic, existential, and relational needs that motivate system justification; (b) religiosity is associated with the endorsement of the belief in a just world, Protestant work ethic, fair market ideology, opposition to equality, right-wing authoritarianism, political conservatism, and other system-justifying belief systems; and (c) religious ideology appears to serve the palliative function of making people happier or more satisfied with the way things are. Although most major religious texts and movements contain progressive as well as conservative elements, belief in God is more often than not system-justifying in terms of its motivational antecedents, manifestations, and consequences.

Diversity in Unity: Perspectives from Psychology and Behavioral Sciences

“…About 87.76% of the cognitive style scores in this study had moderation effects towards system justification. This study could offer an alternative explanation for findings conceived by Jost et al (2014), Uhlmann et al (2009) and Shenhav et al (2012). First, it affirmed the findings of Jost et al (2014) that emphasised a relationship between system justification and belief in God and found that there was no observed relationship between cognitive style and belief in God.…”

“…This study could offer an alternative explanation for findings conceived by Jost et al (2014), Uhlmann et al (2009) and Shenhav et al (2012). First, it affirmed the findings of Jost et al (2014) that emphasised a relationship between system justification and belief in God and found that there was no observed relationship between cognitive style and belief in God. Second, the results contradicted the predisposition coined by Uhlmann et al (2009) that belief in God is based on the implicit nature of intuitive thinking.…”

“…There are many conditions and factors that influence the magnitude of the belief in God, one of which is system justification. Jost et al (2014) proved that system justification and belief in God relate in a way that the latter is justified as a religious ideology, which in turn shows that people with activated system justification will have a relatively high belief in God, and vice versa. This study also added an additional variable that assumed a role in the relationship dynamics of system justification and cognitive style because relating these variables without the context of religiosity was thought of as a liability.…”

“…This study employed an adapted version of the General System Justification (GSJ) Scale created by Kay and Jost (2003;Jost et al, 2014) to measure the extent to which citizens feel that their society is as fair and just as it should be, thus measuring SJ. An adapted version of the four-item GSJ Scale imbued with the context of religiosity, which is called the Religious System Justification (RSJ) Scale, was also employed to measure the extent to which believers felt that their religion was as fair and just as it should be, thus measuring SJ within the context of religiosity.…”

Does Religion Suppress Gender Differences in Values? A Cross-National Examination

“…Religion and conservative politics are closely linked (Norris and Inglehart 2011) and research in the social psychological study of religion suggests that religion promotes system-justifying beliefs that enforce exclusionary moral boundaries, highlight individual responsibility over systemic causes of inequality, and reinforce the status quo (Edgell 2012;Jost et al 2014;Longest, Hitlin, and Vaisey 2013;Rankin, Jost, and Wakslak 2009). In other words, religious schemas tend to be oriented toward traditional moral values and conservative partisanship.…”