TY - JOUR
T1 - God and the Government
T2 - Testing a Compensatory Control Mechanism for the Support of External Systems
AU - Kay, Aaron C.
AU - Gaucher, Danielle
AU - Napier, Jamie L.
AU - Callan, Mitchell J.
AU - Laurin, Kristin
PY - 2008/7
Y1 - 2008/7
N2 - The authors propose that the high levels of support often observed for governmental and religious systems can be explained, in part, as a means of coping with the threat posed by chronically or situationally fluctuating levels of perceived personal control. Three experiments demonstrated a causal relation between lowered perceptions of personal control and the defense of external systems, including increased beliefs in the existence of a controlling God (Studies 1 and 2) and defense of the overarching socio-political system (Study 4). A 4th experiment (Study 5) showed the converse to be true: A challenge to the usefulness of external systems of control led to increased illusory perceptions of personal control. In addition, a cross-national data set demonstrated that lower levels of personal control are associated with higher support for governmental control (across 67 nations; Study 3). Each study identified theoretically consistent moderators and mediators of these effects. The implications of these results for understanding why a high percentage of the population believes in the existence of God, and why people so often endorse and justify their socio-political systems, are discussed.
AB - The authors propose that the high levels of support often observed for governmental and religious systems can be explained, in part, as a means of coping with the threat posed by chronically or situationally fluctuating levels of perceived personal control. Three experiments demonstrated a causal relation between lowered perceptions of personal control and the defense of external systems, including increased beliefs in the existence of a controlling God (Studies 1 and 2) and defense of the overarching socio-political system (Study 4). A 4th experiment (Study 5) showed the converse to be true: A challenge to the usefulness of external systems of control led to increased illusory perceptions of personal control. In addition, a cross-national data set demonstrated that lower levels of personal control are associated with higher support for governmental control (across 67 nations; Study 3). Each study identified theoretically consistent moderators and mediators of these effects. The implications of these results for understanding why a high percentage of the population believes in the existence of God, and why people so often endorse and justify their socio-political systems, are discussed.
KW - control
KW - God
KW - governmental support
KW - religion
KW - system justification
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=47249124570&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://doi.org/10.1037/0022-3514.95.1.18
U2 - 10.1037/0022-3514.95.1.18
DO - 10.1037/0022-3514.95.1.18
M3 - Article
C2 - 18605849
AN - SCOPUS:47249124570
SN - 0022-3514
VL - 95
SP - 18
EP - 35
JO - Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
JF - Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
IS - 1
ER -