The preference for smaller-sooner rewards over larger-delayed ones (temporal discounting, TD) has been suggested to be influenced by religiosity, through its role in enhancing self-control. Here we investigate this issue in Muslims, Catholics, and two control groups of Italian and Iranian atheists, by measuring implicit religiosity (implicit association test, IAT) and the cognitive dynamics underlying TD (using mouse tracking). Results showed that Muslims are the most farsighted, while Catholics are the most shortsighted and both atheists’ groups fall in between these two extremes; additionally, these results are also shaped by implicit religiosity (IAT). Mouse tracking analyses reveal that Muslims show higher cognitive conflict compared to the other groups, which arises only in later stages of processing. This indicates that farsighted behavior in Muslims requires the recruitment of self-control in order to regulate intertemporal decision-making. Our findings suggest that the highly demanding religious precepts enforced in (most) Islamic communities may help strengthen self-control abilities.

Cognitive Dynamics of Religiosity and Intertemporal Choice Behavior / Calluso, Cinzia; Amin Zandi, Mohammad; Devetag, Maria Giovanna. - In: JOURNAL OF CROSS-CULTURAL PSYCHOLOGY. - ISSN 0022-0221. - 51:9(2020), pp. 719-739. [10.1177/0022022120947478]

Cognitive Dynamics of Religiosity and Intertemporal Choice Behavior

Cinzia Calluso
Writing – Original Draft Preparation
;
Maria Giovanna Devetag
Supervision
2020

Abstract

The preference for smaller-sooner rewards over larger-delayed ones (temporal discounting, TD) has been suggested to be influenced by religiosity, through its role in enhancing self-control. Here we investigate this issue in Muslims, Catholics, and two control groups of Italian and Iranian atheists, by measuring implicit religiosity (implicit association test, IAT) and the cognitive dynamics underlying TD (using mouse tracking). Results showed that Muslims are the most farsighted, while Catholics are the most shortsighted and both atheists’ groups fall in between these two extremes; additionally, these results are also shaped by implicit religiosity (IAT). Mouse tracking analyses reveal that Muslims show higher cognitive conflict compared to the other groups, which arises only in later stages of processing. This indicates that farsighted behavior in Muslims requires the recruitment of self-control in order to regulate intertemporal decision-making. Our findings suggest that the highly demanding religious precepts enforced in (most) Islamic communities may help strengthen self-control abilities.
2020
discounting behavior, mouse kinematics, implicit association test, religiosity, spirituality, time preferences
Cognitive Dynamics of Religiosity and Intertemporal Choice Behavior / Calluso, Cinzia; Amin Zandi, Mohammad; Devetag, Maria Giovanna. - In: JOURNAL OF CROSS-CULTURAL PSYCHOLOGY. - ISSN 0022-0221. - 51:9(2020), pp. 719-739. [10.1177/0022022120947478]
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11385/196327
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