The Psychology of Religious Fundamentalism [Hardcover]

Ralph W. Hood Jr. PhD (Author), Peter C. Hill PhD (Author), W. Paul Williamson Phd (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 31, 2005 | ISBN-10: 1593851502 | ISBN-13: 978-1593851507 | Edition: 1

This book presents a new psychological framework for understanding religious fundamentalism, one that distinguishes fundamentalist traditions from other faith-based groups and helps explain the thinking and behavior of believers. Steering clear of stereotypes, the highly regarded authors offer respectful, historically informed examinations of several major fundamentalist groups. Focusing primarily on Protestant sects, including the Church of God (a Pentecostal denomination), the serpent handling sects of Appalachia, and the Amish, the book also discusses Islamic fundamentalism. Addressed are such key themes as the role of the sacred text within fundamentalism; how beliefs and practices that many find difficult to comprehend actually fit into coherent meaning systems; and how these meaning systems help meet individuals' needs for purpose, value, and self-worth.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"A highly readable and informative book that moves scholarship on fundamentalism forward. The authors present fundamentalist thought as a meaning system that is embedded within sociocultural, historical, and theological contexts. I highly recommend this creative and well-researched work to all students of fundamentalism seeking a better understanding of an often-misunderstood phenomenon."--Margaret M. Poloma, PhD, Department of Sociology (Emeritus), University of Akron; author of Main Street Mystics

"Hood, Hill, and Williamson have produced a remarkable book outlining a social psychological theory of fundamentalism, and applying this theory to historical and contemporary religious movements. Their work is much more sociologically informed and culturally grounded than prior psychological research focusing on Adorno’s authoritarian personality model. Indeed, their theory of fundamentalism is rooted in human needs for cognitive coherence, showing how fundamentalist religion provides accessible belief systems with comprehensive explanations for meaning and purpose....This is an important work, and it is easily the best work in the psychology of religion in a decade."/m-/Darren E. Sherkat, PhD, Department of Sociology, Southern Illinois University

"This book represents a major advance in our understanding of fundamentalism, a subject ever more urgent in our post-9/11 world. The authors examine fundamentalism through solid psychological theory, and illustrate this theoretical perspective by examining a variety of specific religious fundamentalisms. Essential reading for students of religion, psychology, and sociology."--Crystal L. Park, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of Connecticut

"This is a very important contribution to the psychology of religion literature and, more broadly, to religious scholarship. There have been very few treatments of Protestant fundamentalism that are more than merely a perpetuation of stereotypes. The authors provide a unique and vital perspective on the forms and functions of fundamentalism and its relevance in the world today. Any course on religion from a social science perspective should consider this text."--Robert A. Emmons, PhD, Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis

"This is superior-quality scholarship that beautifully accomplishes two difficult goals under the same cover. First, the volume presents psychological concepts that are ideal for understanding the personal, social-psychological, and behavioral aspects of religious fundamentalism. Second, it provides rich, instructive, and very interesting information about a range of fundamentalist Christian and Muslim groups. This material is revealing and will be new to most readers. The skillful application of the psychological concepts to the cases both increases one's sense of their depth and reach, and enriches one's understanding of the cases themselves. Highly recommended for courses in the psychology of religion or applied social psychology."--Raymond F. Paloutzian, PhD, Department of Psychology, Westmont College

About the Author

Ralph W. Hood, Jr., is a social psychologist with a long-standing interest in the psychology of religion. He is currently a professor of psychology at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Although not a fundamentalist, Dr. Hood believes that fundamentalism has been poorly portrayed in the psychology of religion by researchers and scholars who are so distant from the assumptions and worldview of fundamentalists that they offer explanations for a phenomenon they have not adequately or fairly described.

Peter C. Hill was raised an evangelical in a family strongly committed to the church. He is currently a professor of psychology at Biola University's Rosemead School of Psychology. Biola University played a significant role in the early days of the Protestant fundamentalist movement and today identifies itself as an "interdenominational and yet theologically conservative" institution. The Rosemead School of Psychology seeks to advance a psychologically and Christian theologically integrated understanding of human nature.

W. Paul Williamson was born the son of a Church of God (of Prophecy) minister. He followed in his father's footsteps and became an ordained minister in the denomination, serving 17 years of full-time ministry. During his doctoral studies, he felt the need to resign from the clergy and from his affiliation with the church to pursue a career in academic psychology. He is currently an assistant professor of psychology at Henderson State University in Arkadelphia, Arkansas. Dr. Williamson draws upon a wealth of experience in a Pentecostal tradition, both as a former member and as clergy, allowing him unique insights into its fundamentalist worldview.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 247 pages
• Publisher: The Guilford Press; 1 edition (March 31, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1593851502
• ISBN-13: 978-1593851507
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #329,229 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Book on Fundamentalism, April 19, 2011

By 

Heather Peterson (Twin Cities, MN USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Psychology of Religious Fundamentalism (Hardcover)

This is one of the best books on fundamentalism I've found--not dependent on simplistic explanations that reduce most practicing monotheists to sterotypes. The authors' principle of "intratextuality" versus "intertextuality" helps the reader to understand that the meaning processes of religious believers are complex and on a continuum. The first review critiques this book for not including primary research. However, this book is more a "towards" in theory, attempting to discuss comprehensively a social psychology model that is tied to historical context, thus requiring extensive secondary research. Secondly, two of the authors themselves come from fundamentalist backgrounds, so they did indeed talk with "their neighbors."

37 of 72 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Psychology is a social SCIENCE, November 20, 2005

By 

calmly - See all my reviews

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This review is from: The Psychology of Religious Fundamentalism (Hardcover)

Two major notions dominate this book:
1) meaning systems
2) the principle of intratextuality

The idea of meaning systems seems to add practically nothing to the lay understanding of "meaning", as when I might say "This gives meaning to my life". If I were to ask myself just how it gave meaning to my life, I might note some behavior or behaviors of mine that indicated the meaning. Lay people like you and I can do this: psychologists add little if anything by elaborating on such understandings via the notion of "meaning systems". If someone comes to your door holding a Bible and wanting to share with you their feelings of being saved, you can assume without resort to psychologists that your visitor feels they have found something meaningful.

The principle of intratextuality is a fancy term. The authors "assume that fundamentialists are correct when they argue that a reader must go into the text and allow the text to speak for itself". They take this remarkable assumption very seriously, adding that "no discussion of fundamentalism can proceed meaningfully if it refuses to enter into the text and be obedient to the imperatives of the text". Covering Christian and Islamic fundamentalism, it seems amazing that the authors were able to be "obedient to the imperatives" of both the Bible and the Koran. Did some of the authors refuse to obey the imperatives of one text while the other authors refused to obey the imperatives of the other. Or did they find a way to obey both simultaneously. Or did they obey one, then renounce it so they could obey the other? Do they assume any imperatives of science that they remained obedient to during this process?

What you won't find in this book are interviews with fundamentalists or survey results gathered from fundamentalists. What you'll find here are speculation (some of it identified as "model-building") and assertion. The authors deliberately do not try to explain how a person becomes a fundamentalist: they assume that one has and then "describe" the effects. They don't offer any methodology for this describing, although description can be quite selective and, hence, biased. They don't describe problems fundamentalists have maintaining their faith. They don't describe people who leave fundamentalism; they don't describe people who go to Fundamentalists Anonymous. With some much emphasis given to the sacred text as "speaking", the role of leaders, the impacts of conformity or collusion, and consideration of possible manipulation go unaddressed. At times, it is not clear from the voice of this book whether the authors are speaking or whether they are describing what they think fundamentalists would say, as on page 36: "The text does not contradict itself". Perhaps this is the voice of a fundamentalist but, the authors having opened the book with an "About the Authors" that associates them with fundamentalist backgrounds and sympathies, it's hard to tell. For one of the authors, Ralph Hood, it states in this opening "About the Authors" section that he believes fundamentalist religion has been poorly portrayed in the psychology of religion ... " and the book's concluding paragraph states "Our purpose in this book has not been to defend fundamentalism as much as to critique the efforts of some scholars outside fundamentalism who are quick to assume nothing good can come of it". So is this book research or polemic? Is it held that if one picks any book as sacred and follows its dictates, that some good will come of it? Or does this just apply to the Bible and the Quran? If so, why? Perhaps the advice is to wait and see if some good comes of it and then sanction that book. Must just some good come of it or must it be on balance good. Who judges and how that when one picks up snakes enough good comes of it? If the authors can determine whether some good comes of fundamentalism, presumably they can determine whether more good comes of Christian fundamentalism or Islamic fundamentalism.

If we want to understand fundamentalists, perhaps we should just speak more with our fundamentalist neighbors, co-workers, and friends. And be skeptical of experts.