RLB67 Cognitive Study of Religions

Faculty of Arts
Spring 2010
Extent and Intensity
1/1. 5 credit(s). Type of Completion: k (colloquium).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Aleš Chalupa, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Jakub Cigán, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. Silvie Kotherová, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Mgr. et Mgr. Radek Kundt, Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Dušan Lužný, Dr.
Department for the Study of Religions – Faculty of Arts
Contact Person: Lucie Čelková
Timetable
Mon 10:00–11:35 K23
Prerequisites (in Czech)
Kurz je určen studentům magisterského studia religionistiky. Vzhledem k nedostatku odborné literatury na dané téma v češtině je vyžadována znalost anglického jazyka.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.

The capacity limit for the course is 30 student(s).
Current registration and enrolment status: enrolled: 0/30, only registered: 0/30
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
This course provides a concise introduction into aims, methods and perspective of the newly established Cognitive Science of Religion. The lectures are structures into three thematically different parts. In the first part the history and fundamental premises of this approach will be shortly discussed (lectures no. 1-3). The second part will concentrate on the thorough examination of the ways in which our evolutionarily evolved mind and its cognitive abilities contribute to the origin, retention and transmission of religious ideas (lectures no. 4-7). The third part will be devoted to the introduction of the two most widely acclaimed practical applications of cognitively based theories to the study of religious ritual or, more generally, to the prediction of the diachronic evolution of religious systems (lectures no. 8-12).
At the end of the course students will:
- have a broader and more solid understanding of key aspects of Cognitive Science of Religion
- be familiar with the history and evolution of this approach to the study of religion during the 20th century and major trends at the beginning of 21st century
- be able to critically analyse the most important theories originated in Cognitive Science of Religion
- be able to practically apply cognitive approach to the study of chosen religious tradition or religious ritual
Syllabus
  • 0.Introduction to the course; 1. Introduction to Cognitive Sciences: Aims and Methods 2. Human Mind from the Cognitive and Evolutionary Perspective; 3. Religious Ideas: How Do They Originate?; 4. Religious Ideas: How Do They Spread?; 5. Religion: Evolutionary Adaptation, By-Product or Noise; 6. Why People Believe and How They Believe; 7. Theological Correctnes and Theological Incorrectness - Justin L. Barrett and David A. Sloane; 8. Harvey Whitehouse – Theory of Two Divergent Modes of Religiosity; 9. Cognitive Theory of Religious Ritual - Thomas E. Lawson and Robert N. McCauley 10. Cognitive Anthropology; 11. Culture from the Cognitive Perspective: What Is It?; 12. Final Discussion.
Literature
  • BOYER, Pascal. Religion Explained. London: William Heinnemann, 2001. info
  • BARRETT, Justin L. Why would anyone believe in God? Lanham: Altamira. ix, 141. ISBN 0759106673. 2004. info
  • TREMLIN, Todd. Minds and gods : the cognitive foundations of religion. Edited by Thomas E. Lawson. Oxford: Oxford University Press. xvii, 222. ISBN 0195305345. 2006. info
  • STERNBERG, Robert J. Kognitivní psychologie. Translated by František Koukolík. Vyd. 1. Praha: Portál. 636 s. ISBN 80-7178-376-5. 2002. info
  • BARRETT, Louise, R. I. M. DUNBAR and John LYCETT. Evoluční psychologie člověka. Vyd. 1. Praha: Portál. 551 s. ISBN 9788071789697. 2007. info
Teaching methods
Lectures (cca. 45 minutes) followed by class discussions about thematically related home reading.
Assessment methods
1) Submission of a semestral paper. Possible topics: a) practical application of the Ritual Frequency Theory or the Ritual Form Hypothesis to the study of a chosen religious tradition; b) practical application of the Theory of Two Divergent Modes of Religiosity (Harvey Whitehouse) to a chosen religious tradition; c) a different topic concerning Cognitive Science of Religion chosen after the tutorial with the teacher.
2) Successful completion of colloquium (defence of the semestral paper and oral examination of the factual knowledge of fundamental tenets of the Cognitive Science of Religion and its theories).
Language of instruction
Czech
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught only once.
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2003, Spring 2008.
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