Randomness, Attributions of Arousal, and Belief in God

A Decade of System Justification Theory: Accumulated Evidence of Conscious and Unconscious Bolstering of the Status Quo

Jost, J. T., Banaji, M. R., & Nosek, B. A. (2004) · Political Psychology · doi:10.1111/j.1467-9221.2004.00402.x · Cited by 2,883

The Belief in a Just World

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The Belief in a Just World: A Fundamental Delusion.

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The Meaning Maintenance Model: On the Coherence of Social Motivations

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Lacking control increases illusory pattern perception

Whitson, J. A., & Galinsky, A. D. (2008) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1159845 · Cited by 1,119

Religion as a Meaning‐Making Framework in Coping with Life Stress

Park, C. L. (2005) · Journal of Social Issues · doi:10.1111/j.1540-4560.2005.00428.x · Cited by 1,097

God and the government: Testing a compensatory control mechanism for the support of external systems

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Religion's evolutionary landscape: Counterintuition, commitment, compassion, communion

Atran, S., & Norenzayan, A. (2004) · Behavioral and Brain Sciences · doi:10.1017/s0140525x04000172 · Cited by 759

Dissonance and the pill: An attribution approach to studying the arousal properties of dissonance.

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Belief in supernatural agents in the face of death

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Perceived Control in the Social Context

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The Feeling of the Absurd: Towards an Integrative Theory of Sense-Making

Proulx, T. (2009) · Psychological Inquiry · doi:10.1080/10478400903333494 · Cited by 8

The Gods as Latent Causes: A Statistical Inference Theory of Religion

Rigoli, F., & Lennon, J. (2024) · International Journal for the Psychology of Religion · doi:10.1080/10508619.2024.2422173 · Cited by 6

The influence of disorderly environment on consumers’ reference for boundaries

Du, W., Fang, D., Ye, Y., & Qiu, S. (2019) · Journal of Contemporary Marketing Science · doi:10.1108/jcmars-08-2019-0031 · Cited by 7

Pupillometry and Hindsight Bias: Physiological Arousal Predicts Compensatory Behavior

Sleegers, W. W. A., Proulx, T., & van Beest, I. (2020) · Social Psychological and Personality Science · doi:10.1177/1948550620966153 · Cited by 7

Predictors of positive opinion about Bach Flower Remedies in adults from three Latin-American countries: An exploratory study

Martin, B., Fallas-Durán, M., Gaitskell, B., Vega-Rojas, D., & Martínez-Chaigneau, P. (2017) · Complementary Therapies in Clinical Practice · doi:10.1016/j.ctcp.2017.04.002 · Cited by 7

Helping in a Random World: Evidence that Prosocial Intentions and Behavior can Satiate Compensatory Control Needs

Banfield, J. C. (2011) · UWSpace (University of Waterloo) · Cited by 7

An Introduction to Evolutionary Perspectives on Religion

Liddle, J. R., & Shackelford, T. K. (2020) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199397747.013.1 · Cited by 6

Let’s take back control: Disentangling and integrating group-based and certainty-based social responses to threatened personal control

Fritsche, I., Lautenbacher, J. M., & Masson, T. (2025) · European Review of Social Psychology · doi:10.1080/10463283.2025.2509465 · Cited by 8

Regulating Psychological Threat

Rutjens, B. T., van der Pligt, J., & van Harreveld, F. (2012) · doi:10.1002/9781118347683.ch3 · Cited by 6

Multifunctional religious systems and perturbed dynamics of psychological wellbeing

Lang, M. (2018) · Religion Brain & Behavior · doi:10.1080/2153599x.2018.1532454 · Cited by 7

The Social Psychology of the Ergenekon Case: The Collapse of the Official Narrative in Turkey

Kaya, S. (2012) · Middle East Critique · doi:10.1080/19436149.2012.688583 · Cited by 5

Control Deprivation Decreases, Not Increases, Belief in a Controlling God for People with Independent Self-Construal

Alper, S., & Sümer, N. (2017) · Current Psychology · doi:10.1007/s12144-017-9710-9 · Cited by 5

Suspecting service overprovisions: how market signals help restore personal control and reduce decision deferrals

Chatterjee, S., Mishra, D. P., Lee, J. J., & Shibly, S. A. (2021) · Journal of Consumer Marketing · doi:10.1108/jcm-12-2020-4280 · Cited by 5

Explaining the existential: scientific and religious explanations play different functional rolesPreprint

Davoodi, T., & Lombrozo, T. (2020) · OSF Preprints (OSF Preprints) · doi:10.31219/osf.io/ws79n · Cited by 4

Consumer responses to infectious disease cues: an integrative framework and research agenda

Affonso, F. M. (2025) · European Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1108/ejm-01-2024-0070 · Cited by 4

Frugality and food waste avoidance: Does a prime work as much as the trait?

Iorfa, S. K., Stafford, L. D., Bowyer, C. J., & Jack, L. (2025) · Food Quality and Preference · doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2025.105656 · Cited by 5

Compensatory control in public emergencies

Tingting, R. A. O., Xiaowen, Z. H. U., Shenlong, Y. A. N. G., & Bai, J. (2022) · Advances in Psychological Science · doi:10.3724/sp.j.1042.2022.01119 · Cited by 4

Stereotyping, prejudice, and the role of anxiety for compensatory control

Schneider, L. J. (2022) · Social Psychological Bulletin · doi:10.32872/spb.7875 · Cited by 4

Genetic and Educational Correlates of Religious Belief

Das, A. (2020) · Adaptive Human Behavior and Physiology · doi:10.1007/s40750-020-00131-7 · Cited by 4

Compensatory Control and Belief in God: A Registered Replication Report Across Two CountriesPreprint

Hoogeveen, S., Wagenmakers, E., Kay, A. C., & van Elk, M. (2019) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/vqu2x · Cited by 4

Cognitive pathways to belief in karma and belief in GodPreprint

White, C., Willard, A. K., Baimel, A., & Norenzayan, A. (2020) · PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/39egn · Cited by 4

Associations between panic buying and choice overload during the public health crisis in China: Testing sequential mediation models

Zhao, H., & Xu, S. (2025) · Acta Psychologica · doi:10.1016/j.actpsy.2025.104800 · Cited by 4

Comparing Metaphor Theory and Embodiment in Research on Social Cognition

Landau, M. J. (2021) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-78471-3_20 · Cited by 3

Does Skepticism Lead to Tranquility? Exploring a Pyrrhonian Theme

Attie‐Picker, M. (2020) · doi:10.1093/oso/9780198852407.003.0005 · Cited by 3

Determinants and consequences of belief in Islamophobic conspiracy theories among youth in India

Sharma, S., Shahnawaz, M., & Zafar, M. (2025) · Asian Journal Of Social Psychology · doi:10.1111/ajsp.70053 · Cited by 2

The serious gaming randomness in dual-purposed systems: the effect of aleatory uncertainty from the perspective of information deprivation

Lee, P. T. Y., Chau, M., & Lui, R. W. C. (2025) · Internet Research · doi:10.1108/intr-07-2024-1100 · Cited by 2

The effect of religiosity on stress, anxiety, depression, and life satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic in Korea

Yoo, J. (2023) · Journal of Beliefs and Values · doi:10.1080/13617672.2023.2186645 · Cited by 4

Disentangling Religion and Morality: An Analysis of Religiosity in the United States

Liddle, J. R. (2015) · Evolutionary psychology · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-19671-8_11 · Cited by 2

An Explicit Request for Minitheories in the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality

McIntosh, D. N., & Newton, T. (2013) · International Journal for the Psychology of Religion · doi:10.1080/10508619.2013.795805 · Cited by 2

Explaining and Solving Practical Problems Supernaturally

Watson‐Jones, R. E., & Legare, C. H. (2022) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190693350.013.7 · Cited by 2

How prosocial behaviors are maintained in China: The relationship between communist authority and prosociality

Sheng, J., Luo, S., Jiang, B., Hu, Y., Lin, S., Wang, L., Ren, Y., Zhao, C., Liu, Z., & Chen, J. (2022) · Frontiers in Psychology · doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2022.938468 · Cited by 3

Scaring the bejesus into people: The effects of mortality salience on explicit and implicit religious belief

Jong, J. (2012) · Otago University Research Archive (University of Otago) · Cited by 2

From fundamental motives to religious dimensions: minding the gap

Laurin, K. (2014) · Religion Brain & Behavior · doi:10.1080/2153599x.2014.910257 · Cited by 1

Motivational Priorities Reflect Beliefs About God's Attributes

Nakkawita, E., & Heiphetz, L. (2023) · Social Cognition · doi:10.1521/soco.2023.41.3.239 · Cited by 1

Spirit is Contagious: How Blind-box Offerings Affect Tourist Responses in Spiritual Destinations

Chen, X., & Xue, X. (2025) · Journal of Hospitality & Tourism Research · doi:10.1177/10963480251391403 · Cited by 1

Imagining God

Johnson, K. A. (2026) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781009527842 · Cited by 1

Verführerische Muster und rauchende Affen

DiSalvo, D. (2014) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-642-41712-2_3 · Cited by 1

Dissonance and distress

Harmon‐Jones, E., & Harmon‐Jones, C. (2011) · Religion Brain & Behavior · doi:10.1080/2153599x.2011.647853 · Cited by 1

Challenges to an Evolutionary Perspective on Religion

Beit‐Hallahmi, B. (2016) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199397747.013.25 · Cited by 1

Variability and Belief in Karma: Perceived Life Variability Polarizes Perceptions of Behavior–Outcome Valence Consistency

Jiao, L., Guo, Z., Zhao, J., & Xu, Y. (2025) · Behavioral Sciences · doi:10.3390/bs15040400 · Cited by 2

Religiosity as a moderator of causal uncertainty’s mediational role in the parental–offspring dysphoria relationship.

Rounding, K. D., Jacobson, J. A., & Hart, K. E. (2015) · Psychology of Religion and Spirituality · doi:10.1037/a0039690 · Cited by 2

Do Religious Practices and Foraging Behavior Have a Common Motivational Basis?

Anselme, P. (2018) · Evolutionary Psychological Science · doi:10.1007/s40806-018-0182-4 · Cited by 1

Moral Reasoning

Tsoi, L., & Young, L. (2018) · Wiley eBooks · doi:10.1002/9781119170174.epcn312 · Cited by 1

God Control Among Doctoral Psychology Students: A Compressed Longitudinal Design

Heyne, L. K. (2011) · Digital Commons - George Fox University (George Fox University)

Decision making in a chaotic world: The impact of randomness on confirmatory information processing in personal and economic decision making

Niedernhuber, J. (2015) · University of Regensburg Publication Server (University of Regensburg) · doi:10.5283/epub.31663

AN INTERPRETIVE PHENOMENOLOGICAL ANALYSIS OF RELIGIOUS COPING AND RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD AMONG OLDER ADULTS WITH FUNCTIONAL IMPAIRMENTS

Harris, G. (2014) · W. S. Hoole Special Collections Library Manuscript Collections

Certainty Posing: The Motives and Morality of Exaggerating One's Degree of Certainty

Zant, V., & Bryant, A. P. (2015)

Reality and Perception: Power and Paranoia Within the Political Sphere

Smith, H. J., & McKee, S. E. (2015) · Social Justice Research · doi:10.1007/s11211-015-0238-6

Priming randomness increases the evaluation of ritual efficacy

Souza, A. L., & Legare, C. H. (2013) · eScholarship (California Digital Library)

The Evolutionary Ecology of Cooperation & Conflict: A case study of Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland

Silva, A. (2015) · UCL Discovery (University College London)

Running Head: BELONGINGNESS FROM GOD The Need to Belong Can Motivate Belief in God

Gebauer, J. E., Maio, G. R., & Morf, W. T. C. (2011)

THE INFLUENCE OF THE ACTUALIZATION OF THOUGHTS ABOUT GOD AND THE LEVEL OF RELIGIOSITY ON THE ATTITUDE TOWARD NON-CERTAINTY

Викторовна, У. Е., & Klymova, K. K. (2017) · Articult · doi:10.28995/2227-6165-2017-2-108-121

Religion as a Means of Perceived Security

Liddle, J. R. (2020) · Oxford University Press eBooks · doi:10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199397747.013.16

AtheistsPreprint

Schiavone, S. R., & Gervais, W. M. (2017) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/ryp6g

Suspicious Minds: The Link Between Stress and Perceptions of Agency

Meier, J. (2020) · Open Access Victoria University of Wellington | Te Herenga Waka (Figshare) · doi:10.26686/wgtn.17151278

Belief in Spiritual Beings Scale (BSBS): Development and Initial Validation

Gontijo, D. F., & Damásio, B. F. (2022) · Psicologia Ciência e Profissão · doi:10.1590/1982-3703003242372

God(s)’ Mind(s) across Culture and Context

McNamara, R. A. (2023) · Religions · doi:10.3390/rel14020222 · Cited by 1

Confrontation with God under the shadow of Coronavirus pandemic: an empirical examination of Iran’s experience

Bayat, M. R., & Mehregan, A. (2023) · Contemporary Islam · doi:10.1007/s11562-023-00544-7

Ideology, motivation, and consistency between beliefs and behaviors

Laurin, K., & Chua, K. Q. (2024) · Advances in experimental social psychology · doi:10.1016/bs.aesp.2024.10.001

Voluntary and involuntary motor behaviours in the varieties of religious experience

Ganos, C., Ferguson, M. A., Gray, K. J., Lees, A. J., Bhatia, K. P., & Haggard, P. (2025) · Brain Communications · doi:10.1093/braincomms/fcae471

Anxiety and Cynical Attitudes Towards the Law and the Authorities Among Poles and Swedes in the Time of Crisis: A Longitudinal Study Report

Adamska, K., Jurek, P., & Pedynkowska, J. (2025) · International Journal of Psychology · doi:10.1002/ijop.70035

AtheistsPreprint

Schiavone, S. R., & Gervais, W. M. (2017) · PsyArXiv (OSF Preprints) · doi:10.31234/osf.io/ryp6g_v1

Subjective religiosity and perceived control in later life

Das, A. (2025) · Social Science Research · doi:10.1016/j.ssresearch.2025.103223

Comparing Positive and Negative Awe Across Cultures in 360°-Video Experiences

Broers, H. A. T., Sarcinella, E. D., Chirico, A., Postma, M., & Louwerse, M. M. (2025) · Communications in computer and information science · doi:10.1007/978-3-032-05778-5_1

Literature Review

Boettcher, S. J. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-93058-4_1

Discussion

Boettcher, S. J. (2025) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-93058-4_5

Political Ideology Shapes Consumer Responses to Addictive Products

Ilicic, J., & Brennan, S. M. (2026) · Journal of Marketing · doi:10.1177/00222429261440794

Mind perception in two different cultural contexts : religious targets and food animals as examples

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Sometimes, it’s not Right to go Left: The perceived consequences of endorsing political ideologies

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Doing the Improbable: Making Sense of Randomness

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Recognizing Randomness

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In praise of randomness

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Religious Experiences and Attribution of Arousal

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Randomness, Statistics and Emergence

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