First published in 2010. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

The leading undergraduate psychology of religion text, this engaging book synthesizes cutting-edge theories and findings into an accessible account enlivened by personal reflections and contemporary examples. Raymond F. Paloutzian offers an authoritative overview of theoretical and empirical foundations; experiential, developmental, personality, and sociocultural dimensions of religion and spirituality; and clinical implications. Students are also given food for thought about bigger questions--how religion influences their own lives; what beliefs or values they hold most dear; and how to live in a multicultural, multireligious world. Each chapter opens with a brief topic outline and concludes with "Take-Home Messages" and suggestions for further reading. New to This Edition: *Reflects many years of scientific and theoretical advances. *Chapters on psychological theories, personality, and physical health. *New organizing concepts: religious meaning systems and the multilevel interdisciplinary paradigm. *Additional pedagogical features, including end-of-chapter "Take-Home Messages" and engaging topic boxes. *Descriptions of cutting-edge research methods. *Increased attention to multicultural issues.

First published in 2010. Routledge is an imprint of Taylor & Francis, an informa company.

Widely regarded as the definitive reference, this volume comprehensively examines the psychological processes associated with religion and spirituality. Leading scholars from multiple psychological subdisciplines present developmental, cognitive, social psychological, cultural, and clinical perspectives on this core aspect of human experience. The forms and functions of religious practices and rituals, conversion experiences, and spiritual struggles are explored. Other key topics include religion as a meaning system, religious influences on prosocial and antisocial behavior, and connections to health, coping, and psychotherapy. New to This Edition *Two chapters on cross-cultural issues. *Chapters on spiritual goals, emotional values, and mindfulness. *Reflects significant theoretical and empirical developments in the field. *Many new authors and extensively revised chapters. *Robust index amplifies the volume's usefulness as a reference tool.

Scholarly and comprehensive yet accessible, this state-of-the-science work is widely regarded as the definitive graduate-level psychology of religion text. The authors synthesize classic and contemporary empirical research on numerous different religious groups. Coverage includes religious thought, belief, and behavior across the lifespan; links between religion and biology; the forms and meaning of religious experience; the social psychology of religious organizations; and connections to morality, coping, mental health, and psychopathology. Every chapter features thought-provoking quotations and examples that bring key concepts to life. New to This Edition *Revised and updated with the latest theories, methods, and empirical findings.*Many new research examples.*Restructured with fewer chapters for better “fit” with a typical semester.*More attention to the differences between religion and spirituality*Covers emerging topics: genetics and neurobiology, positive psychology, atheism, and more.

Widely regarded as the definitive reference, this volume comprehensively examines the psychological processes associated with religion and spirituality. Leading scholars from multiple psychological subdisciplines present developmental, cognitive, social psychological, cultural, and clinical perspectives on this core aspect of human experience. The forms and functions of religious practices and rituals, conversion experiences, and spiritual struggles are explored. Other key topics include religion as a meaning system, religious influences on prosocial and antisocial behavior, and connections to health, coping, and psychotherapy. New to This Edition *Two chapters on cross-cultural issues. *Chapters on spiritual goals, emotional values, and mindfulness. *Reflects significant theoretical and empirical developments in the field. *Many new authors and extensively revised chapters. *Robust index amplifies the volume's usefulness as a reference tool. A Choice Outstanding Academic Title

Neither a book about the psychology of spirituality nor America’s ongoing turf wars between religion and science, Psychology, Religion, and the Nature of the Soul takes to task many of the presumed relationships between the two—from sharing common concerns to diametrically hostile opposites—to analyze the myriad functions religion and psychology play in our understanding of the human life and mind. Graham Richards takes the historical and philosophical long view in these rigorous and readable essays, which trace three long-running and potentially outmoded threads: that psychology and religion are irrelevant to each other, that they are complementary and should collaborate, and that one will eventually replace the other. He references a stunning variety of texts (from Freud and Allport to Karen Armstrong and Paul Tillich) reflecting the evolution of these ideas over the decades, to emphasize both the complexity of the issues and the enduring lack of easy answers. The eloquence of the writing and passionate objectivity of the argument will interest readers on all sides of the debate as the author examines: the religious origins of psychology, the original dichotomy: mythos versus logos, the authenticity of religious experience, Religion and personality, the problematic role of prayer and Religion in the history of psychotherapy. For those making a serious study of the history of psychology, Psychology, Religion, and the Nature of the Soul will inspire a fresh wave of critical discussion and inquiry.

The aims pursued in this book are quite modest. The text is not an introduction in the traditional sense to any psychological subdiscipline or field of application, nor does it present anything essentially new. Rather, it shows ‘work in progress’, as it attempts to contribute to an integration of two differently structured, but already existing fields within psychology. In order to explain this, it is probably best to say a few words about how the book came into being and about what it hopes to achieve. As a project, the volume owes very much to others. While lecturing in places ranging from South Africa to Canada and from California through European co- tries to Korea, colleagues have often urged me to come up with a volume on ‘c- tural psychology of religion’. For reasons that should become clear in the text, I feel uncomfortable with such a demand. To my understanding, there exists no single cultural psychology of religion. Rather, there are ever expanding numbers of div- gent types of psychologies, some of which are applied to understanding religious aspects of human lives or to researching specific religious phenomena, while others are not. Within this heterogeneous field that is, correctly or not, still designated as ‘psychology’, there are also many approaches that are sometimes referred to as ‘cultural psychology’ or as ‘culturally sensitive psychologies’. It would be wor- while applying many of these to research on religious phenomena, but at present not too many are in fact so applied.