Religion News Service
UNITED STATES, December 2011 (RNS by Kimberly Winston): A new study finds that atheists are among society’s most distrusted group. Psychologists at the University of British Columbia and the University of Oregon say that their study demonstrates that anti-atheist prejudice stems from moral distrust, not dislike, of nonbelievers.
“It’s pretty remarkable,” said Azim Shariff, an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Oregon and a co-author of the study, which appears in the current issue of Journal of Personality and Social Psychology.
The study is part of an attempt to understand what needs religion fulfills in people. Among the conclusions is a sense of trust in others. “People find atheists very suspect,” Shariff said. “They don’t fear God so we should distrust them; they do not have the same moral obligations of others. This is a common refrain against atheists. People fear them as a group.”
Shariff, who studies atheism and religion, said the findings provide a clue to combating anti-atheism prejudice. “If you manage to offer credible counteroffers of these stereotypes, this can do a lot to undermine people’s existing prejudice,” he said.