Conditioning Part II

For this post I would like to create a general overview of ‘religious behaviors’.  These are broad reaching and can incorporate many differing patterns of definable events.  The short list includes; worship, prayer, attendance to church activities, reading of religious texts, expression of religious perspectives, singing religious songs, raising ones hands to the ceiling and swaying to music or choir music.  The list can go on.  These are actions that can be seen, measured, and established by inter-observer reliability to establish religious behaviors.   If there is any disagreement with this definition I would gladly accept it later.

I would also like to define the, for the purposes of explanation, the use of the ABC behavioral chain within the Operant Conditioning Framework to best establish the function of the behavior.  A – Antecedent: the event preceding the behavior (not the cause of the behavior but the event signaling that a reinforcer is available if the participant chooses to engage in the target behavior).  B – Behavior: the action or event that takes place after the presentation of the Antecedent.  Target behavior in this case being religious behaviors described above.  C – Consequence: The event following the behavior.  This can be one of three things a Reinforcer: Item, action, or removal of item or action to increase the likelihood that the preceding behavior will take place again.   A Punisher: Item, action, or removal of item or action to decrease the likelihood that the preceding behavior will take place again.  Extinction/Recovery: Failure to provide any type of signal that the behavior was successful or unsuccessful in obtaining the desired or undesired outcome.

Looking at the ABC model of religious behaviors the Antecedent is typically either related to the day of the week, established holiday, trigger of other person who is guiding or leading the congregation etc. These antecedents are not naturally occurring events, and are not established in our genome.  Extrapolation of this is the event of prayer – a new born or even a toddler does not know innately how to pray or even what to pray.  These are instructed by parent’s teachers and others that the human trusts enough to emulate or follow directives.  What does a newborn human know how to innately do? – Suckle, cry, grasp, explore, swallow, breath, touch and bring items to mouth/face.    Given a typical Antecedent to religious behavior I would challenge any religious petitioner to provide an established Antecedent to religious behaviors and measure the response of a 6 month old.  It is highly unlikely to produce religious behaviors without substantial conditioning.

A child is almost always ‘persuaded’ or in this case reinforced initially to participate in religious behaviors.   It begins with the most rudimentary level of reinforcement at the bottom rungs of Maslow’s Hierarchy.  The learner is presented with food, shelter, warmth, safety, security, and belonging for participation in religious behaviors. 

The child also receives feedback in the form of punishment for failure to participate in religious behaviors.  In the case of when asked if a god exists and the response is “no”.  The social group will ostracize publicly, shame, or resort to physical violence to suppress or limit that response from occurring in the future.  This can also be applied to the adult.

Given that a parishioner does not participate in a group activity the leader or other participants may verbally question the reasons for not participating.  This is more often done in a manner that appears as a matter of concern for the spiritual well-being of the participant.  In actuality it is confrontation of unexpected outcome.   As an adult or a child lacking the understanding of the confrontation dynamic it feels uncomfortable and likely punishing for failing to participate in the religious behavior.  This particular conduct is equitable to bullying.   The goal of the person confronting the non-participant is to increase the participation.  Confrontational behavior is supported and often reinforced by the leaders and other parishioners as it has been reinforced in them by their peers/supervisors.  This is also provided by the delivery of reinforcer events associated with the participation.  A short list; positive verbal praise, coffee and/or treats after Sunday service, shaking of one’s hand, hugs, exclamation of how much they enjoyed spending time with the participant, and invitations to participate in ‘exclusive’ events.

I opted to go through this much detail to describe these events to characterize religious behavior is NOT a foundation to human development.  The teaching of these behaviors starts at a young age and is developed and fostered over time starting with the use of primary reinforcers the goal of the reinforcement being intrinsic in nature.  

In the simplest of terms, persons wishing to have their children become one of the ‘faithful’ build in from a very early age a full system of indoctrination with both strong reinforcers and punishers to entrench the belief structures.  To maintain this over time the introduction of heaven and hell are offered as the ultimate reinforcer or ultimate punisher.

Having been raised as an atheist and not experiencing this dynamic.  It was very alien to have conversations with the faithful.  They used language I was unfamiliar with, however they were very well versed with both reinforcement and punishment.