Is there a correlation between high levels of religiosity and mental illness, pa

1. 85

   gmwilliamsposted 8 years ago

   Is there a correlation between high levels of religiosity and mental illness, particularly
   
   delusion, psychosis, and schizophrenia?  Give analytical answers please.
   
   

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2. 79

   abdussalaamposted 8 years ago

   Extreme levels of religiosity can lead to bigotry; but I am unaware of any psychological terms to describe those that are overzealous.

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3. 83

   Austinstarposted 8 years ago

   There are several studies that have been done that show MRI readings comparing religious/mental illness versus "average or normal" brains. The religious/mental ill people have observable differences in which parts of their brains "light up" when thinking about various subjects (as compared to "normal" subjects).
   Also, Dr. Michael Persinger has developed a "God Helmet" that stimulates religious "experiences" by stimulating certain parts of the brain - https://youtu.be/_O_aGlm9QjU
   I have also read other studies that conclusively show that "religious" personalities are quite different than non-religious personalities.
   And there are distinct correlations between intelligence tests and religiosity as well, with the religious IQ levels being quite a bit lower than non-religious IQ levels.
   There is so much research done in this field that I feel it is conclusive, but again, it's not just ONE thing that we can point to and say, "This proves that religious brains are totally different from non-religious ones", but the evidence is there if you search for it.

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      Misfit Chickposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      If even a fraction of that is true - it would certainly explain a lot.
      
      I know I have often wondered if there are different 'levels' of evolved people mixed in with more 'primal' ones - and we all try to force each other to fit in 'where we're at'.

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      Austinstarposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      I think you may have a valid point there. Ancient alien theories have neanderthals mating with advanced extraterrestrials producing smart apes, lol.

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      cathylynn99posted 8 years agoin reply to this

      there is little correlation between religiosity and mental illness, but here's a small one: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/2 … 97025.html

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      Austinstarposted 8 years agoin reply to this

      Sorry, but most religious people who "hear voices", "have hallucinations", and "talk to god" can probably be classified as schizophrenic.  http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25770205 (Nat'l Inst. of Health) reference.

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