Name Justin Barrett | ||
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Education Calvin College, Cornell University Books Born Believers: The Scie, Why Would Anyone Believe in, Cognitive Science - Religion | ||
Opening plenary address justin l barrett may 11 2015
Justin L. Barrett (born 1971) is a cognitive scientist and Director of the Thrive Center for Human Development, Thrive Professor of Developmental Science, and Professor of Psychology at Fuller Graduate School of Psychology. He previously held a post as senior researcher of the Centre for Anthropology and Mind and The Institute for Cognitive and Evolutionary Anthropology at Oxford University and is one of the forefront researchers known for his work in the cognitive science of religion.
Contents
- Opening plenary address justin l barrett may 11 2015
- Career
- Views on evolution of religious belief
- Why would anyone believe in God
- Books
- Selected articles
- References
Career
Barrett earned a B.A. in psychology from Calvin College and a Ph.D in experimental psychology (cognitive and developmental focus) from Cornell University. He served on the psychology faculties of Calvin College and the University of Michigan (Ann Arbor), and as a research fellow of the Institute for Social Research.
Dr. Barrett is a founding editor of the Journal of Cognition & Culture and is author of numerous articles and chapters concerning the cognitive science of religion.
Views on evolution of religious belief
Barrett is described in the New York Times as a "prominent member of the byproduct camp" and "an observant Christian who believes in “an all-knowing, all-powerful, perfectly good God who brought the universe into being,” [and] “that the purpose for people is to love God and love each other.” He considers that “Christian theology teaches that people were crafted by God to be in a loving relationship with him and other people, Why wouldn’t God, then, design us in such a way as to find belief in divinity quite natural?” Having a scientific explanation for mental phenomena does not mean we should stop believing in them. “Suppose science produces a convincing account for why I think my wife loves me — should I then stop believing that she does?”
Why would anyone believe in God
In his book Why would anyone believe in God he suggests that "belief in God is an almost inevitable consequence of the kind of minds we have. Most of what we believe comes from mental tools working below our conscious awareness. And what we believe consciously is in large part driven by these unconscious beliefs." and "that beliefs in gods match up well with these automatic assumptions; beliefs in an all-knowing, all-powerful God match up even better."