Hypothesis: the more educated you are the less likely you are to be religious - by Subjective Effect
Subjective Effect on 23/1/2012 at 22:17
Yeah, I know studies have been done on it but I wanted to bring it up because until fairly recently I hadn't personally noticed (or paid attention to?) this phenomenon.
Yes, a lot of this I'm getting from work, before you ask. I find people becoming more and more intolerant of religion (finding it silly that a patient is praying before surgery. etc) and it appears to be my colleagues who are more highly educated. In addition my less "qualified" colleagues (and by that I mean they have less degrees and whatnot coming out their ears) appear more likely to believe in a God, and also more likely to follow one of the big organised religions.
Those of my colleagues that are more educated and also believe in God appear to not follow a particular religion to a greater degree - they are more likely to believe in "something" but not really be sure, nor care, what. Similar to me in some respects I suppose.
Is it some sort of SD/Dawkins type of logic "realisation" that stops educated people from having faith?
I don't believe in Jesus but I don't know if it's just illogical to be a total atheist or just some sense of wonder at the universe I still hold that makes me think there is something out there.
demagogue on 23/1/2012 at 22:40
I'm almost sure the statistics back up your hypothesis. Back when I did political science we'd use SAS to crunch voting habits by demographics, and level of education was a basic category that was correlated with all sorts of things, so it's one of the first things you study when interpreting the data. They're less religious, higher income, more liberal (politically left), though also more independent & less dogmatic (more ready to jump party & vote independently), less "acculturated" (they lose their hometown accent & prejudices)...
I think two things are going on. One is self-selection & the causation is the other way around. People that are more free-thinking are more disposed towards getting more education I think, maybe because they don't see as much threat in it (as religious people might) and already think more pragmatically about life (education=primary route to success, as opposed to more faith). And then once in university programs, they'll be surrounded by more free-thinking people & it's reinforcing. The other thing is just an odds-game with sheer exposure. I think people question things in their upbringing when they're exposed to things directly challenging them, which is what university classes do, and the more education you have, the more of those kinds of classes you take, the more you're exposed, the more likelihood one of those lines of attack is going to stick with you, integrate that and more education means less tied to your past beliefs or at least questioning them more. Even if you don't completely toss them, you rethink them and don't take them as for granted. It's a numbers game and what I think you were noticing is a real social phenomenon that has a lot of important implications.
dethtoll on 24/1/2012 at 00:14
I wonder how education affects attitude, too. SubJeff said something about how his colleagues are 'intolerant' of religion, and that they think someone praying before surgery is silly. But I know a lot of atheists and otherwise irreligious people who simply don't care if someone believes in God, and if someone wanted to pray before some major event such as surgery, they don't have a problem with it. So what makes the difference between someone being a "do what you want, man" type atheist and a Strontium Dawkins ~*THANK SCIENCE FOR DEAD CHRISTIANS*~ atheist?
Independent Thief on 24/1/2012 at 01:30
Quote Posted by Subjective Effect
Hypothesis: the more educated you are the less likely you are to be religious
Nonsense, Francis Collins (founder of BioLogos) has a Phd, I have a 4 year degree and I have known numerous other people who are well educated and successful who have some sort of religious faith. "Only stupid people are religious" is just another stereotype.
Sombras on 24/1/2012 at 02:37
Quote Posted by Independent Thief
Nonsense, Francis Collins (founder of BioLogos) has a Phd, I have a 4 year degree and I have known numerous other people who are well educated and successful who have some sort of religious faith. "Only stupid people are religious" is just another stereotype.
Whelp, there ya go: Hypothesis mercilessly crushed on the basis of Francis Collins', Independent Thief's, and some other people's religiosity. Serves you right, Subjective Effect! :p
Phatose on 24/1/2012 at 03:47
Well, if we're dealing particularly with the medical field is it possible that higher levels of education tend to run into problems with highly religious section of the population more often? Perhaps they're called in more often in problem cases, where religious belief impair what would typically be a cut and dried treatment?
Possibly they're more likely to have gone abroad and encountered situations where religion has caused decidedly negative effects? Religious bans on contraception causing population problems, encounters with Sharia law, that kind of thing?
I'd expect a 'whatever man' atheist would only have to encounter situations like that a few times before it becomes less 'do what you want' and more 'You assholes are killing people'.
Kuuso on 24/1/2012 at 05:13
Sure it's true. Higher education tends to favour freedom and the importance of choosing your own way (coupled with a knack for scientific methods), which opens up the possibility of atheism (or other religions) to people coming from any sort of background. It doesn't necessarily mean that people become atheists or it's "an evolution" in thinking, but it's more about the fact that most people are born with a religion that goes unquestioned for some time. Education brings this in question whereas without it the other ways of constructing your spiritual life might not come into serious consideration.
Vasquez on 24/1/2012 at 06:46
The more you use your brain, the harder it becomes to stop using it.
Kolya on 24/1/2012 at 07:47
It would be more interesting to hear what causes intolerance. Because apparently education doesn't shield you from that.
