Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality [Hardcover]

Raymond F. Paloutzian PhD (Editor), Crystal L. Park PhD (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 24, 2005 | ISBN-10: 1572309229 | ISBN-13: 978-1572309227 | Edition: 1

From foremost authorities in the field, this comprehensive volume synthesizes the breadth of current knowledge on the psychological processes underlying spirituality, religious behavior, and religious experience. Presented are cutting-edge theories, conceptual frameworks, methodologies, and empirical findings emerging from all psychological subdisciplines. Coverage includes the neural and cognitive bases of religiousness; social, personality, and developmental issues; religion as a meaning system; and implications for behavior, mental health, and clinical practice. Seamlessly edited, the Handbook provides a definitive portrait of the current state of the science, fosters the development of integrative theory, and identifies vital directions for future research.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Kudos to Paloutzian and Park for assembling this state-of-the-art review of the burgeoning psychological science of religion. From every angle, leading investigators explore religion's roots and fruits. For students and scholars of psychology-religion studies, the Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality is an important publishing event."--David G. Myers, PhD, Department of Psychology, Hope College

"Paloutzian and Park have produced a marvelous volume that is long overdue. This handbook is a monumental achievement, bringing together the most prominent scholars to survey the development of research and its promise in specialized areas of the field. This work reflects the remarkable breadth and depth of the growing discipline of the psychology of religion, and is a 'must' for social scientists, clinicians, teachers, and students with serious interest in religion."--W. Paul Williamson, PhD, Department of Psychology, Henderson State University

"This handbook sends a clear message that religion has come of age as a fertile ground for exciting psychological theory and research. It is noteworthy that so many diverse psychological disciplines--including cognitive, developmental, personality, social, neuropsychological, health, and existential psychology--have something meaningful to say about religion and spirituality. This book will be a 'go-to' resource for anyone involved in research in this area, including graduate students, established researchers who may be new to the study of religion and spirituality, and those already involved in work on religion and spirituality who wish to broaden their perspective."--Susan Folkman, PhD, Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, University of California, San Francisco

"Panoramic in scope, this volume provides a unique and unparalleled survey of a fast-developing field. While much of the recently published work in this area has been clinical in focus, the Handbook connects broadly with psychological science, addressing developmental issues, evolutionary psychology, neuropsychology, cognitive science, social psychology, and personality psychology, as well as various applied topics. It thus serves as an advanced primer for virtually the whole spectrum of contemporary scientific research on this ubiquitous domain of human functioning. This is clearly the text for graduate-level surveys in the psychology of religion and will prove an important teaching resource for other courses in social psychology, personality psychology, and multicultural psychology. Likely to set the standard for future efforts in this area."--William L. Hathaway, PhD, Department of Psychology, Regent University

About the Author

Raymond F. Paloutzian, PhD, is Professor of Experimental and Social Psychology at Westmont College in Santa Barbara, California. Previously, he taught at the University of Idaho and was a visiting professor at Stanford University and a guest professor at Katholieke Universiteit, Leuven, Belgium. A Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA), the American Psychological Society, and the Western Psychological Association, Dr. Paloutzian is a past president of APA Division 36 (Psychology of Religion). He is the author of [i]Invitation to the Psychology of Religion, Second Edition[/i], and the editor of [i]The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion[/i].

Crystal L. Park, PhD, is Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Connecticut. Her research focuses on the roles of religious beliefs and religious coping in response to stressful life events, the phenomenon of stress-related growth, and people's attempts to find meaning in negative life events. She is associate editor of [i]Psychology and Health[/i] and is on the editorial boards of the [i]Journal of Clinical and Consulting Psychology[/i] and [i]The International Journal for the Psychology of Religion[/i]. A past president of APA Division 36, Dr. Park is also Principal Investigator on research projects funded by the Lance Armstrong Foundation (examining positive life changes in cancer survivors) and the Fetzer Foundation (examining changes in spirituality and well-being in patients with terminal heart failure).

Product Details

• Hardcover: 590 pages
• Publisher: The Guilford Press; 1 edition (August 24, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572309229
• ISBN-13: 978-1572309227
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 7.3 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #179,777 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Essential reading to separate fiction from fact, September 22, 2006

By 

Mark Waldman "Adj. Faculty, Exec MBA Program,... (Coaching, Research, Training: Malibu/Los Angeles California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality (Hardcover)

The research in this book essential for understanding the complexity of religious beliefs and practices. For years, I have objected to the ways that many fine authors have portrayed religious activity in America; if writers like Dawkins, Harris, and others had accessed this book, they might find that not only are most religious practices benign, but they would also discover that America is far more secular than many people suspect. For example, in the child development chapters, I discovered that teens are far more skeptical of their parent's religion than I would have thought. I was also intrigued to discover that some young children, even when raised in anti-religious families, still maintained their belief in God. There are even some independent youngsters who will stand by their belief in the reality of the Easter Bunny, even when presented with evidence to the contrary!

The chapters on fundamentalism are particularly important because the researchers detail how authoritarian ideologies govern small communities of people. This raises the question: is religion the culprit when violence erupts, or authoritarianism (a socio-political ideology that lies at the root of genocidal acts of hatred)?

If you want to speak knowledgeably about the religious landscape of America, this is the book you must own. Don't trust public-opinion polls; they only show you 10% of the picture.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Finest Review of Research of These Subjects in 20 Years, September 2, 2006

By 

William C. Bailey "avid reader" (Fayetteville, AR USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality (Hardcover)

Paloutzian and Park have gathered an excellent group of scholars to make contributions to this book. The articles in the field review the research conducted in this field from before Starbuck (1899) and James (1902) to 2004. Each article not only reviews the literature but makes major contributions to the issue it discusses such as Paloutzian's article on conversion and Alemeyer and Hunsberger on fundamentalism and authoritarian.

Many of the articles have practical applications for both secular and religious counselors. Oman and Thoresen article on spiritual and health strongly suggests that these two issues are deeply related. I strongly recommend any one conduction research on the psychology needs to own this important work.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Worst Book Ever, February 13, 2012

By 

briana - See all my reviews

This review is from: Handbook of the Psychology of Religion and Spirituality (Hardcover)

I had to purchase this book for one of my psychology and religion classes and I honestly have never read a book so terrible before. Honestly. I don't know why my professor had to assign us such a terrible, boring, and hard to read book. It's like reading one giant school paper with how many quotes there are. The credit that is given in the book is distracting and I can't even read a sentence. For example; "...animisism and anthropomorphism (Antran, 2002; Atran & Normenzayan, in pressl Guthrie, 1993)."

Seriously. The entire book is like that. I don't even understand half of what this book is telling me. It is a slow death. If you take a class where this book is assigned, drop the class. I am warning you. THIS BOOK IS SO BAD.