| Summary: | A substantial body of
evidence suggests that favoring reason over intuition (employing an analytic
cognitive style) is associated with reduced belief in God. In the current work,
we address outstanding issues in this literature with two studies examining the
relationship between analytic cognitive style (as measured by performance on
the Cognitive Reflection Test) and belief in God. First, prior research focused
on Judeo-Christian cultures, and it is uncertain whether the results generalize
to other religious systems or beliefs. Study 1 helps to address this question
by documenting a negative correlation between CRT performance and belief in
God, r = -.18, in a sample of 513 participants from India, a majority Hindu
country. Second, among 150 participants from the United Kingdom, Gervais et al.
(2018) reported the first and (to date) only evidence for a positive
relationship between CRT and belief in God. In Study 2, we assess the
robustness of this result by recruiting 547 participants from the United
Kingdom. Unlike Gervais et al., using the same items, we find a negative
correlation between CRT and belief in God (r = -.19). Our results add further
support to the argument that analytic thinking undermines belief in
God.
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