Most studies on the religion–science connection have been conducted in a Judeo-Christian context where other-worldly rewards are often emphasized. This research note examines how scientific orientation and scientific knowledge interact with people's this-worldly oriented superstition by presenting a case study of school adolescents in urban China, an institutional environment where religions are on average more superstitious relative to Christianity. Empirical results suggest that both scientific orientation and scientific knowledge have a significantly negative effect on superstition, and their effects are independent from each other. The implications with regard to the state regulation of religions in China and to the potential epistemological conflict for spirituality seekers in other nations are discussed.
BahrHoward MAging and religious disaffiliationSocial Forces197049159–7110.1093/sf/49.1.59
2.
BakerJoseph OPublic perceptions of incompatibility between “science and religion”Public Understanding of Science2012213340–35310.1177/0963662511434908
3.
BarkerEileenThe making of a moonie: Choice or brainwashing?1984OxfordBasil Blackwell
4.
BreenRichardKarlsonKristian BMorganStephen LCounterfactual causal analysis and nonlinear probability modelsHandbook of causal analysis for social research2013New YorkSpringer167–18810.1007/978-94-007-6094-3_10
5.
BruunOleFengshui in China2003HonoluluUniversity of Hawaii Press
6.
DawkinsRichardThe god delusion2006New YorkBantam
7.
DawsonLorne IThe cultural significance of new religious movements and globalization: A theoretical prolegomenonJournal for the Scientific Study of Religion1998374580–59510.2307/1388142
8.
Durkheim, Emile. [1912] 1995. The elementary forms of religious life. Thousand Oak, CA: Sage Publications.
9.
EcklundElaine HowardParkJerry ZConflict between religion and science among academic scientists?Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion2009482276–29210.1111/j.1468-5906.2009.01447.x
10.
EdgellPennyReligion and family in a changing society2005PrincetonPrinceton University Press
11.
EvansJohn HThe growing social and MORAL conflict between conservative protestantism and scienceJournal for the Scientific Study of Religion2013522368–38510.1111/jssr.12022
12.
EvansJohn HEvansMichael SReligion and science: Beyond the epistemological conflict narrativeAnnual Review of Sociology200834187–10510.1146/annurev.soc.34.040507.134702
13.
FeuchtwangStephanBenavidesGustavoDalyMartin WThe problem of ‘superstition’ in the People's Republic of ChinaReligion and political power1989AlbanyState University of New York Press43–68
14.
GoossaertVincentPalmerDavid AThe religious question in modern China2011ChicagoUniversity of Chicago Press10.7208/chicago/9780226304182.001.0001
15.
GouldStephen JayLeonardo's mountain of clams and the diet of worms1998New YorkHarmony Books10.4159/harvard.9780674063365
16.
GrimBrian JFinkeRogerThe price of freedom denied: Religious persecution and conflict in the 21st century2011NYCambridge University Press
17.
HallDavid DLived religion in America: Toward a history of practice1997Princeton, NJPrinceton University Press
18.
HarrisSamThe end of faith: Religion, terror and the future of reason2004NYNorton and Co
HuAnningYangFenggangTrajectories of folk religion in deregulated Taiwan: An age-period-cohort analysisChinese Sociological Review201446380–10010.2753/CSA2162-0555460304
21.
LeamasterReidHuAnningPopular Buddhists: The relationship between popular religious involvement and Buddhist identity in contemporary ChinaSociology of Religion2014752234–25910.1093/socrel/srt057
22.
McGuireMeredith BLived religion. Faith and practice in everyday life2008New YorkOxford University Press10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195172621.001.0001
23.
MeltonGordon JToward a definition of new religionNova Religio2004873–8710.1525/nr.2004.8.1.73
24.
MillerAlanStarkRodneyGender and religiousness: Can socialization explanations be saved?American Journal of Sociology200210761399–142310.1086/342557
25.
MooneyChrisThe republican war on science2005New YorkBasic Books
26.
NedostupRebecca RSuperstitious regimes: Religion and the politics of Chinese modernity2010CambridgeHarvard University Press
27.
OvermyerDanielFrom ‘feudal superstition’ to ‘popular beliefs’: New directions in Mainland Chinese studies of Chinese folk religionCahiers d'Extrême-Asie200112103–12610.3406/asie.2001.1166
28.
QuHaiyuanNew religions in TaiwanTwenty First Century200273103–113
29.
RubinDonald BMultiple imputation for nonresponse in surveys1987NYWiley10.1002/9780470316696
30.
RussellBertrandReligion and science1997NYOxford University Press
31.
ScheitleChristopher PUS college students’ perception of religion and science: Conflict, collaboration, or independence? A research noteJournal for the Scientific Study of Religion2011501175–18610.1111/j.1468-5906.2010.01558.x
32.
StarkRodneyBainbridgeWilliam SThe future of religion: Secularization, revival and cult formation1985BerkeleyUniversity of California Press
33.
WeberMaxGerthHans HMillsWright CThe social psychology of the world religionsFrom Max Weber: Essays in sociology1946New York CityOxford University Press267–301
34.
YangFenggangHuAnningMapping Chinese folk religion in Mainland China and TaiwanJournal for the Scientific Study of Religion2012513505–52110.1111/j.1468-5906.2012.01660.x
35.
YangFenggangReligion in China: Survival and revival under communist rule2012New York CityOxford University Press
