Witnessing a ritual boosts generosity as much as participating does

Evidence

One interesting result was that both participation in and witnessing this intense ritual equally increased anonymous donations to the temple, and heightened identification with Mauritian culture. The fact that witnessing was as potent as participating suggests a CRED-like effect. — Norenzayan, Ara, Big gods - how religion transformed…, 345

Categorization

• QUESTION: If mere witnessing drives generosity, what does compelled public witnessing (the fumi-e) do to the Japanese population’s solidarity or the priests’ authority?