New study links brain network damage to increased religious fundamentalism

I’ve linked to the news release in the post above. In this comment, for those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:

A neural network for religious fundamentalism derived from patients with brain lesions

https://www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1073/pnas.2322399121

From the linked article:

A new study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences suggests that specific networks in the brain, when damaged, may influence the likelihood of developing religious fundamentalism. By analyzing patients with focal brain lesions, researchers found that damage to a particular network of brain regions—mainly in the right hemisphere—was associated with higher levels of fundamentalist beliefs. This finding provides new insight into the potential neural basis of religious fundamentalism, which has long been studied in psychology but less so in neuroscience.

Religious fundamentalism is a way of thinking and behaving characterized by a rigid adherence to religious doctrines that are seen as absolute and inerrant. It’s been linked to various cognitive traits such as authoritarianism, resistance to doubt, and a lower complexity of thought. While much of the research on religious fundamentalism has focused on social and environmental factors like family upbringing and cultural influence, there has been growing interest in the role of biology. Some studies have suggested that genetic factors or brain function may influence religiosity, but until now, very little research has looked at specific brain networks that could underlie fundamentalist thinking.

The researchers found that damage to certain areas of the brain, particularly in the right hemisphere, was associated with higher scores on the religious fundamentalism scale. Specifically, lesions affecting the right superior orbital frontal cortex, right middle frontal gyrus, right inferior parietal lobe, and the left cerebellum were linked to increased religious fundamentalism. In contrast, damage to regions such as the left paracentral lobule and the right cerebellum was associated with lower scores on the fundamentalism scale.

Interestingly, the researchers noted that the brain regions identified in this study are part of a broader network connected to cognitive functions like reasoning, belief formation, and moral decision-making. These areas are also associated with conditions like pathological confabulation—a disorder where individuals create false memories or beliefs without the intent to deceive. Confabulation is often linked to cognitive rigidity and difficulty in revising beliefs, characteristics that are also found in individuals with high levels of religious fundamentalism.

The researchers also found a spatial overlap between brain lesions associated with criminal behavior and this fundamentalism network, which aligns with previous research suggesting that extreme religious beliefs may be linked to hostility and aggression toward outgroups.

Maybe this is the result of all that leaded gasoline because it is certainly widespread.

It is a bit discouraging to see how the researchers seem to miss a potential universal cause for the fact that religious fundamentalism, criminal behaviour and confabulation all seem to be associated with lesions in the brain network, and was found in groups of people who suffered trauma to the head. That cause is child abuse, which is very prevalent, in particular among religious fanatics and other authoritarians. Children who were sufficiently beaten on the head during childhood are left with lesions, which cause them to become parents who beat their children. And so the chain continues. Some children become religious fanatics, others habitual liers or criminals, but none of them should raise children.

Does the network just go in a loop unable to see things from someone else’s point of view?

[removed]

Wow. This reads like the brain is no longer capable of entertaining new ideas. It literally becomes resistant to change.

Going so far it will rewrite old memories to align with the current state. This explains so much of the political state of Republicans and the political right.

Their brains have literally begun to degrade. Tragic.

Idk I’m always skeptical of these kinds of studies that analyze people with beliefs different from mine. Is there a reason I should trust that they’re accurate?

[removed]

“The first group consisted of 106 male Vietnam War veterans who had sustained traumatic brain injuries during combat. These men, now aged between 53 and 75, were part of a long-term study conducted at the National Institutes of Health.”
Vietnam ended in 1975, how are there combat vets who are 53 years old? Someone help me, am I missing something?

Saving this link for thanksgiving dinner with the fam

Based on my experience with Christian fundamentalists, this tracks. They all experienced some sort of accident, addiction, illness or trauma (in which I am including being raised in fear of god and/or the train up a child method), and they all hold tightly to their beliefs and are notably resistant to seeing anything someone else’s way.

Atheist gettin a real good chuckle this morning

Yeah but y’all also said narcissists wear more make up and psychos less the other day when it’s almost always comorbid.  

Read about the skateboarder Lennie Kirk. Too many traumatic head injuries.

Is this one of those chicken or the egg questions?

Not surprising. Distinct lack of critical thinking ability in those circles…..

…does this include psychedelics?

Are we calling that “damage”, or “building”, now?

Didn’t Terrence McKenna have a mushroom-shaped tumor in his brain?

I’ve always had a similar thought. Ever since I was young and started questioning religion I’ve always noticed that heavily religious people just always have a weird look, vibe, or demeanor to them. It’s like they are unhinged from reality a bit. I’ve never been able to explain. It but they have something that’s off to me when I see them.

So what if you realized you sustained brain damage in your earlier life, are people just cooked?

Is there any way to remediate this at least??
Neurogenesis?

would this also increase attraction to authoritarianism?

I wonder if this is a chicken or egg situation. Are they more likely to fall victim to it or is it like a switch turns on in their heads?