Instead of asking

[Silver]

Does bending the rules of credulity and evidence to permit one huge set of beliefs make you more likely to do the same thing in other cases?

Interestingly enough, I find that those who bend the rules of credulity in relation to religion, especially when they are doctors or scientists, still abide by the secular rules of their stated profession.

I believe the exception takes place in extreme circumstances.

Crazy religious woman who drowns her kids because she heard god tell her to do so. She obviously had psychological problems.

[Bob Kelso]

I've been studying lately the effect theistic thinking has on thinking in general.

Does bending the rules of credulity and evidence to permit one huge set of beliefs make you more likely to do the same thing in other cases?

The answer, according to my observations, is yes. I've seen many clear examples here on this board, even on subjects not related to religion. I think studies about this have been done on children and have come to this conclusion; I'm not sure if any have been done on adults.

I would think so. Like you said earlier in the thread they've already got one foot across the divide. When someone bends their worldview to fit their desired narrative it should be easy to do it in other areas.

[robvalue]

Does bending the rules of credulity and evidence to permit one huge set of beliefs make you more likely to do the same thing in other cases?

Interestingly enough, I find that those who bend the rules of credulity in relation to religion, especially when they are doctors or scientists, still abide by the secular rules of their stated profession.

I believe the exception takes place in extreme circumstances.

Crazy religious woman who drowns her kids because she heard god tell her to do so.  She obviously had psychological problems.

That is interesting. I haven't had enough experience with religious professionals to be able to make a judgement on that. Or at least I don't know who is religious and who isn't.

The problem with religious thinking is that it legitimizes the crazy woman. God told her to do such and such. When other theists are also obeying what "god tells them to do" on a regular basis, it's rather hypocritical of them to call out someone else as being obviously crazy because they don't like what god told that person to do.

[Thumpalumpacus]

I've been studying lately the effect theistic thinking has on thinking in general.

Does bending the rules of credulity and evidence to permit one huge set of beliefs make you more likely to do the same thing in other cases?

The answer, according to my observations, is yes. I've seen many clear examples here on this board, even on subjects not related to religion. I think studies about this have been done on children and have come to this conclusion; I'm not sure if any have been done on adults.

It seems a very logical conclusion. The more you blur the edges, the more stuff is going to get caught up in it. It could of course be a lack of critical think skills in the first place. But then that begs the question of whether indoctrination has stifled the critical thinking. Since it cannot run parallel to nurturing proper thinking in a child, I see this as highly likely.

I disagree, based solely on personal experience, mind you. I think in comparmentalization it's not that critical thinking skills are absent, but that they aren't applied to the fetish of choice. They maintain a bubble around their faith.

[robvalue]

Fair enough, thanks. I admit I have very limited data to go on.

[BrianSoddingBoru4]

Theists are gullible because people are gullible. I know atheists who play the lotto on the scientifically sound principle that 'Someone's gotta win', and people indifferent to religion who fall for the latest pseudo-scientific 'miracle cures' for everything from slight fatigue to jungle rot. Gullibility is a human problem, not an exclusively theistic one. If you haven't done so, I suggest reading 'Extraordinary Popular Delusions and the Madness of Crowds'. 175 years on, it's still an exemplary look at why people believe in the unrealistic.

Boru