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Are supernatural concepts a cognitive epiphenomenon
Descriptive
TitleInfo
Title
Are supernatural concepts a cognitive epiphenomenon
Name
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Sommer
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Joseph J.
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Joseph J. Sommer
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author
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Hemmer
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Pernille
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Pernille Hemmer
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Advisory Committee
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chair
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Musolino
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Julien
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Julien Musolino
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Advisory Committee
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co-chair
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Kleinschmidt
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Dave
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Dave Kleinschmidt
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Advisory Committee
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internal member
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Rutgers University
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School of Graduate Studies
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theses
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ETD graduate
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2021
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2021-01
Language
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English
Abstract
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I offer a systematic evaluation of the literature on the memorability of supernatural concepts (e.g., gods, ghosts, souls), itself part of a growing body of work in the newly-emerging cognitive science of religion (Barrett, 2000). Specifically, I focus on Boyer’s (1994, 2000, 2001) pioneering Minimally Counterintuitive (MCI) hypothesis according to which supernatural concepts tap a cognitively privileged memory-enhancing mechanism linked to violations of default intuitive inferences. My assessment reveals that the literature on the MCI hypothesis is mired in empirical contradictions and methodological shortcomings which makes it difficult to assess the validity of competing theoretical models, including the MCI hypothesis itself. In light of this fractured picture, I propose a novel and independently motivated account of the memorability of supernatural concepts. This new account is flexible enough to make sense of the heterogenous set of empirical findings in the literature and precise enough to make clear empirical predictions that differ from those of other accounts, including the MCI hypothesis. I conclude with a set of theoretical and methodological prescriptions designed to guide future research on the memorability of supernatural concepts.
Subject
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Topic
Minimally counterintuitive concepts
Subject
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Topic
Psychology
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Rutgers University Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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ETD_11045
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Extent
1 online resource (iii, 57 pages) : illustrations
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M.S.
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Includes bibliographical references
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School of Graduate Studies Electronic Theses and Dissertations
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rucore10001600001
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Identifier
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doi:10.7282/t3-n9mz-0v16
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Rights
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The author owns the copyright to this work.
RightsHolder
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Name
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Sommer
GivenName
Joseph
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Permission or license
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2020-07-15 17:03:20
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Joseph Sommer
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Affiliation
Rutgers University. School of Graduate Studies
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Author Agreement License
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I hereby grant to the Rutgers University Libraries and to my school the non-exclusive right to archive, reproduce and distribute my thesis or dissertation, in whole or in part, and/or my abstract, in whole or in part, in and from an electronic format, subject to the release date subsequently stipulated in this submittal form and approved by my school. I represent and stipulate that the thesis or dissertation and its abstract are my original work, that they do not infringe or violate any rights of others, and that I make these grants as the sole owner of the rights to my thesis or dissertation and its abstract. I represent that I have obtained written permissions, when necessary, from the owner(s) of each third party copyrighted matter to be included in my thesis or dissertation and will supply copies of such upon request by my school. I acknowledge that RU ETD and my school will not distribute my thesis or dissertation or its abstract if, in their reasonable judgment, they believe all such rights have not been secured. I acknowledge that I retain ownership rights to the copyright of my work. I also retain the right to use all or part of this thesis or dissertation in future works, such as articles or books.
Copyright
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Copyright protected
Availability
Status
Open
Reason
Permission or license
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2021-01-22T23:03:43
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2021-01-22T23:03:43
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