Bringing Ritual to Mind: Psychological Foundations of Cultural Forms - Hardcover

McCauley, Robert N.; Lawson, E. Thomas

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0521815592 ISBN 13: 9780521815598

Publisher: Cambridge University Press, 2002

Synopsis

This study explores the psychological foundations of religious ritual systems. In practice, participants recall rituals to ensure a sense of continuity across performances, and those rituals motivate them to transmit and re-perform them. Most religious rituals exploit either high performance frequency or extraordinary emotional stimulation to enhance their recollection. Robert N. McCauley and E. Thomas Lawson assert that participants' cognitive representations of ritual form explain much about the systems. Reviewing a wide range of evidence, they explain religions' evolution.

About this title

About the Authors

ROBERT N. MCCAULEY is Professor of Philosophy and Director of the Emory College Center for Teaching and Curriculum, Emory University.

E. THOMAS LAWSON is Professor of Comparative Religion at Western Michigan University and executive editor of the Journal of Cognition and Culture.

Edition details

• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Publication date: 2002
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0521815592
• ISBN 13: 9780521815598
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 250