The role for simulations in theory construction for the social sciences
Case studies concerning Divergent Modes of Religiosity
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 5830152 |
|---|---|
| Authors | H Whitehouse (0000-0001-6935-6724, University of Oxford), Ken Kahn (0000-0002-8208-7423, University of Oxford), Michael Hochberg (0000-0002-6774-5213, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier), Joanna J Bryson (0000-0003-0021-0801, University of Bath) |
| Year | 2012 |
| Volume | 2 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 182-201 |
| Publication date | 2012-09-11 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religion Brain & Behavior (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2153-5981 • E-ISSN: 2153-599X |
| Publisher | Taylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/2153599x.2012.691033 |
| OpenAlex | W1964502556 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 21 |
| References cited | 53 |
Religion is, at the very least, a highly complex social phenomenon. The theories we use to understand religion - and sociocultural systems more generally - are often so complex that even experts in the field may not be able to see all their consequences. Social simulations can help us understand and communicate the consequences of a theory, provided we can describe the theory with sufficient precision and comprehensiveness in order to run it on a computer. In this article we demonstrate the benefits of simulating the predictions of a well-known theory in the Cognitive Science of Religion, the theory of Divergent Modes of Religiosity. Many of these predictions have already been tested against contemporary and longitudinal evidence, using the methods of both qualitative case study and large-scale survey, and some of the mechanisms responsible for the patterns observed have been investigated by means of controlled experiments. Nevertheless, in simulating the patterns of religious transmission and transformation predicted by the modes theory we discovered numerous aspects that were underspecified, generating new hypotheses for investigation in future empirical research. This back-and-forth between simulation and theory testing has the potential to accelerate progress in the scientific study of religion
Empirical research · Phenomenon · Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation · Religion and Society Interactions · Study and Philosophy of Religion
Divergent Modes of Religiosity and Armed Struggle
Religious Belief, Evolution of
Computational Science of Religion
The Ritual Animal
Applied Evolutionary Anthropology
Computation of identity and social volatility in the ritual animal
Why do great and little traditions coexist in the world’s doctrinal religions
Strengthening the supernatural punishment hypothesis through computer modeling
Modelling terror management theory
Models, simulations, abstractions, and insights
The cognitive science of religion
Ritual, community, and conflict
Attentional resource allocation and cultural modulation in a computational model of ritualized behavior
Forecasting Changes in Religiosity and Existential Security with an Agent-Based Model
Five things to know about modeling and simulation
The Role of Ritual in the Evolution of Social Complexity
Simulating Secularities
Paying the Piper
Religion, Violence, and Emotion
Long-lost Brothers
Aesthetic and Educational Aspects of Contact with Contemporary Religious Architecture
The little community
Commanding Right and Forbidding Wrong in Islamic Thought
Understanding Institutional Diversity
The Complexity of Cooperation: Agent-Based Models of Competition and Collaboration
Why ritualized behavior? Precaution Systems and action parsing in developmental, pathological and cultural rituals
Synchronized arousal between performers and related spectators in a fire-walking ritual
Agent-based modeling
Scars for war
Al Son de la Trompeta Final
The Theory Of Social And Economic Organization
Explaining culture
Rethinking World-Systems
Mathematical Models of Social Evolution
Function, Selection, and Innateness
Theorizing Religions Past
Pattern and Process in Cultural Evolution
Bringing Ritual to Mind
Signaling, solidarity, and the sacred
The emergence of human uniqueness
Religious reflexivity and transmissive frequency
Cognitive Evolution and Religion; Cognition and Religious Evolution
Cycling in the Complexity of Early Societies
Introduction
Semantic Connectivity
The Cognitive Science of Religion
Computing Religion
Ritual and Memory
"Modelling Contextualized Reasoning in Complex Societies with "Endorsements
Cooperation and Commune Longevity
Rebel Groups as Predatory Organizations
The cultural morphospace of ritual form
Experimental Research on Just-World Theory
The behavioral ecology of religion
Grounded theory research
Policy and the Dynamics of Political Competition
Arguments and Icons
Dramas, Fields, and Metaphors
Inside the Cult
Rites of Terror
Memorable Religions
Ritual Passage, Sacred Journey
Of Churches, Sects, and Cults
The religious brain
| Unique citing works | 21 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1,62 |
| Citation span | 2013 - 2025 (13) |
| Citation velocity | recent |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 21 |