Who’s happier: Atheists or believers?
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Maybe atheists aren’t such a sullen lot after all. That gaping existential hole left in the absence of a creator, it seems, has not given rise to sustained bouts of depression. Instead, non-believers seem to be feeling pretty chipper, thank you very much. That’s the word from the Center for Inquiry, anyway, who have conducted a new survey (read it here) looking at the relative emotional consequences of belief in a higher power versus the lack thereof:
This new survey reports that confident nonbelievers are more emotionally healthy with respect to “fence sitters” or religious doubters, shows that “spirituals” report less satisfaction with their lives than those who identify with other self-labels, and suggests that the common assumption that greater religiosity relates to greater happiness and life satisfaction is not quite true.
In as much as atheism itself represents a belief system, it’s a bit odd to think of its adherents as happier than those who self-identify as “spiritual”. Why would this be? Here’s Luke W. Galen, the study’s primary author:
“One characteristic predictive of lower religiosity (or at least lower fundamentalism) was the personality trait ‘ Openness to experience,’ which involves a high need for cognition, intellectual engagement, and xenophilia (interest in new experiences).”
So, is atheism the new opiate of the masses? Maybe, maybe not. Past studies have shown just the opposite. Yet, Galen’s finding about non-believers being less afraid of new experiences seems to be the one constant. This makes me wonder whether the incredible speed at which the world is changing (technology, climate, media) may be influencing the overall happiness indicators, and tilting them in atheists’ favor. In other words, while religion may serve, to some extent, as an anchor—a way to root oneself in the midst of the chaos of existence—the increased speed of the chaotic nature of reality may be outpacing the grounding effects that religion is traditionally thought to offer.
What say you?
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“the increased speed of the chaotic nature of reality may be outpacing the grounding effects that religion is traditionally thought to offer.”
Outpacing or replacing? I think there is something else going on here, which accounts for an increasing secularism in our western societies. I think religion has basically served two purposes for humanity throughout our history, provide a sense of community and to answer question that due to limited technology man couldn’t answer. More and more technology can now fill these needs for mankind. I think the real question here is, has science and technology rendered god (and religion) obsolete and thus freed mankind from the guilt inflicted, “soul” robbing effects of religion.
B,
I agree with a lot of what you say here. The community aspect of religion has acted as a kind of protection. The need to establish order and make sense of the world is also a deeply rooted human trait. Still, science has been around for a while now, and hasn’t seemed to replace religion. There’s clearly something that religion gives people that is outside of simply answering questions the way science does. I guess that’s why I focussed my post on the concept of grounding. If religion today doesn’t answer cosmological questions as well as science does, then maybe it serves as a way to shield oneself from the dizzying pace of scientific revelation. And maybe there’s a tipping point, whereby too much change renders religion null and void.
“If religion today doesn’t answer cosmological questions as well as science does, then maybe it serves as a way to shield oneself from the dizzying pace of scientific revelation.”
Well change is very scary for many people, seems to me at the base of religion’s appeal is often fear.
In response to another comment. See in context »I agree with your premise here. I think atheists are happier because they needn’t expel all the energy and go though all the mental gymnastics to keep up the charade. But of course I would say that, I am one. I think as more people come to the conclusion that religion is a myth based on ancient superstitions “the anchor” can be rendered moot and pulled up. For me it was like being released from an intellectual prison. However, I don’t accept the notion the atheism represents another belief system. As an atheist I reject the idea that there is “a god”. Period.
My reliance on the scientific method, thoughtful secular study, humanism, etc. isn’t “another belief system” analogous to religion is it? It’s like the poll question “Do you ‘believe’ in the theory of evolution by natural selection”? Well, do you believe that 2 + 2 = 4? I think it’s a false analogy. Mysteries are mysteries, facts are facts, unanswered questions are unanswered questions. That is all.
I would doubt that atheists are really all that unhappy because they can also get a sense of belonging when they can interact with others who share their ideas, something thought to be the primary reason why religious people report being chipper.
We should also keep in mind the Sunday Face Effect, which is when the M.O. of a church goer is to say that he or she is happy and worry free thanks to the faith even if that’s not really the case. This could skew the surveys by a fair bit.
Even though I personally felt a lot better once I realized atheism was the most rational viewpoint, I’d be inclined to say that the subject is too broad to show any kind of useful correlation, positive or negative. It’s like asking who’s happier, Ford or Volkswagen owners?
I think that looking for correlations among the happy and unhappy atheists, and the happy and unhappy religious, would be more revealing. But overall, I think happiness is a trait of personality, and not necessarily influenced very much by lifestyle choices.
There’s also a really big factor that skews results far too much to calculate, at least in US culture: atheism is still a socially outcast standpoint. Adulterous protestants still rank more popular than ethical atheists with a high percentage of our population. This generally means atheists have to accept a particular level of social stigma – hell, we still talk about “coming out.” Give it a few years, when atheism doesn’t cause people to gasp and pull their children closer, then start studying the net emotional affect.
There is a difference in “religion” as well. There are religious lifestyles that lend themselves to happiness, and some that don’t. Living under the law, and being set free from the law.