This book is of particular interest to people studying Psychology, RE,
Sociology and Biology.
Professor Bruce Hood
has written a very accessible book trying to address the issue about why people
have religious beliefs, written from a scientific point of view. He doesn’t
just mean organised religions – most of the book focusses on superstitions that
are common to so many adults. He argues that we are hard wired towards such
beliefs and that we learn to be more rational and scientific as we grow up. But
don’t go thinking that he is going to defend religion – he points out that
people like me will be reading the book hoping that our religious beliefs will
be justified scientifically. He is trying to understand why people believe and
whether there is a biological advantage to such beliefs.
