Bringing Ritual to Mind: Psychological Foundations of Cultural FormsBringing Ritual to Mind explores the cognitive and psychological foundations of religious ritual systems. Participants must recall their rituals well enough to ensure a sense of continuity across performances, and those rituals must motivate them to transmit and re-perform them. Most religious rituals the world over exploit either high performance frequency or extraordinary emotional stimulation (but not both) to enhance their recollection (the availability of literacy has little impact on this). But why do some rituals exploit the first of these variables while others exploit the second? McCauley and Lawson advance the ritual form hypothesis, arguing that participants' cognitive representations of ritual form explain why. Reviewing evidence from cognitive, developmental and social psychology and from cultural anthropology and the history of religions, they utilize dynamical systems tools to explain the recurrent evolutionary trajectories religions exhibit. |
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Contents
Cognitive constraints on religious ritual form a theory of participants competence with religious ritual systems | 1 |
Ritual and memory frequency and flashbulbs | 38 |
Two hypotheses concerning religious ritual and emotional stimulation | 89 |
Assessing the two hypotheses | 124 |
General profiles of religious ritual systems the emerging cognitive science of religion | 179 |
Common terms and phrases
actions acts ancestors argue arrangements associated attractor Baktaman Baninge Barth chapter cognitive comparative competence conceptual concerning connections consequences considerations course CPS-agents criterion cultural direct discussion effects emotional even-numbered evidence example experience explain fact figure flashbulb gods human important increase initiations innovations involve Kivung knowledge least less levels of sensory materials matters means memory mind modes motivation noted occur odd-numbered once participants particular patterns performance frequencies period possess possible practices predictions principles problems processes psychological question recall relevant religion religious ritual religious ritual systems religious systems repeated representations require responsible resulting ring ceremony rites ritual form hypothesis ritual frequency hypothesis ritual systems role sense sensory pageantry social sort special agent rituals special instrument rituals special patient splinter group stimulation structural subjects suggests Temple theory things tion transmission turn types University variables various Whitehouse Whitehouse's
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Bibliographic information
| Title | Bringing Ritual to Mind: Psychological Foundations of Cultural Forms Bringing Ritual to Mind: Psychological Foundations of Cultural Forms, Robert N. McCauley |
| Authors | Robert N. McCauley, E. Thomas Lawson |
| Edition | illustrated, reprint |
| Publisher | Cambridge University Press, 2002 |
| ISBN | 0521016290, 9780521016292 |
| Length | 236 pages |
| Subjects | › › Psychology / Cognitive Psychology & Cognition Religion / General Social Science / Anthropology / Cultural & Social Social Science / Anthropology / General |
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