Is the Human Mind Predisposed to Religious Thought?

For centuries, humans have naturally gravitated towards religious belief in a supernatural being. Even across cultures, the tenets of various religious beliefs reveal similarities and recurrent patterns. Why does this happen? Is there some human tendency that causes humans to be receptive to the idea of religion? In this film, Dr. Justin Barrett explores whether and to what degree human minds are blank slates when it comes to religious ideas. The human tendency towards religion offers fascinating insights as we seek to understand more about our minds and our perceptions of the world around us in the context of religious thought.

This video was produced by the AAAS Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion (DoSER) program as a part of its Science for Seminaries project. See more DoSER videos at

Thought?