Disbelief arises through four distinct psychological and cultural paths

Evidence

Religious beliefs and rituals arose as an evolutionary by-product of ordinary cognitive functions that preceded religion. These cognitive functions gave rise to religious intuitions—for example, that minds and bodies are separate entities and that the former can exist without the latter. These intuitions support widely held religious beliefs and related practices, such as gods, spirits, and souls of various types and characteristics. Once that happened, the stage was set for rapid cultural evolution—nongenetic, socially transmitted changes in beliefs and behaviors—that eventually led to large societies with Big Gods. — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 44 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

There are other, related residual theistic intuitions that can be found among nonbelievers. Jesse Bering (2011) for example, argues that many, if not all, nonbelievers would claim that their own life has a purpose, even if they would explicitly agree that human beings are the product of purposeless natural processes. Similarly, the intuition that important life events are fated is more prevalent among believers, but can be found among nonbelievers as well (Norenzayan and Lee, 2010). — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 885 (#exemplifies, via linked claim)

Four modes of thought are borrowed from a model put forth by C. G. Jung in his book Memories, Dreams and Reflections. — Pauline Oliveros, Deep Listening, 253 (#qualifies, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Distinct pathways to atheism reinforce one another in real populations; Ordinary cognition, not special modules, produces religious beliefs — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 44; Oliveros’s four modes of thought derive from Jung’s model — Pauline Oliveros, Deep Listening, 253 (+1 more)

Related

• Residual theistic intuitions persist even among explicit nonbelievers (similarity 0.86)
• Atheism has multiple independent causal pathways, not one (similarity 0.85)
• Ordinary cognition, not special modules, produces religious beliefs (similarity 0.85)
• Disbelief does not always require effortful rejection of intuitive theism. (similarity 0.83)
• Belief and disbelief arise through the same four cognitive pathways. (similarity 0.82)
• Religious belief stems from both intuitive cognition and cultural transmission mechanisms. (similarity 0.81)
• Religious belief is a by-product of cognitive predispositions, not an evolved adaptation (similarity 0.81)
• Distinct pathways to atheism reinforce one another in real populations (similarity 0.80)
• Religious belief rests on ordinary cognition that predates motivational influence. (similarity 0.80)
• Disbelief requires deliberate effort against natural cognitive dispositions. (similarity 0.79)
• Religious disbelief is linked to a stable analytic cognitive style. (similarity 0.78)

Broader Connections

• Ordinary cognition, not special modules, produces religious beliefs #exemplifies (0.75) — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 44
• Distinct pathways to atheism reinforce one another in real populations #expands (0.72)
• Oliveros’s four modes of thought derive from Jung’s model #qualifies (0.72) — Pauline Oliveros, Deep Listening, 253
• Residual theistic intuitions persist even among explicit nonbelievers #exemplifies (0.72) — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 885