The Cognitive Science of Religion

Cover
Contents
List of Figures
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1 The Standard Model and the Problem of Causal Reductionism
	Cognitive Science of Religion
	Understanding Reductionism
	Defining Emergence
	Defining Top-down Constraints
	Eliminative Reduction
	Differentiating Science from Metaphysics
	Integrating a Theological Worldview
	Conclusion
2 Counterintuitive Religious
 Concepts and Emergent Cognition
	Counterintuitive Religious Concepts
	Defining Emergence
	Emergent Cognition
	Evidence of Emergence from Neuroscience
	Conclusion
3 Theological Incorrectness and the Causal Relevance of Religious Beliefs and Theological Reasoning
	Theologically Correct or Incorrect?
	Understanding Bottom-up and Top-down Processing
	Cognition and External Scaffolding
	Beliefs as Causes
	Philosophical Issues
	Computational Modeling and Top-down Processing
	Recurrent Neural Networks
	Conclusion
4 Evolutionary Psychology and the Emergence of the Symbolic Mind
	Evolutionary Psychology
	Imitation and Mirror Neurons
	Shared Intentions
	Co-Evolution of the Symbolic Mind
	Conclusion
5 Evolution, Cognition, and Religion: Toward a Multi-level Perspective on the Emergence of Religious Beliefs
	Counterintuitive Concepts
	Hyperactive Agency Detection
	Emotion and Religion
	God as Attachment Figure
	Religion and Group Processes
	Conclusion
Postscript
Bibliography
Index