Abstract
Recent contributions to JPT by Ritzema (1979) and Ritzema and Young (1983) convincingly suggest that attribution theory may provide a useful framework for conceptualizing and exploring some important facets of religious belief, and may foreshadow an increasing interest among theologically oriented psychologists. The present reaction urges a discerning stance with respect to how much and how little the attributional approach has to offer researchers interested in the integration of psychology and theology. The Ritzema and Ritzema-Young studies utilized hypothetical situations as stimulus material. The pros and cons — mostly cons — of this widely used and well accepted approach to attribution research are discussed. The Ritzema and Ritzema-Young articles are considered very helpful because, in addition to demonstrating the potential value of attribution psychology for understanding religious belief and conduct, the findings were sufficiently clear and provocative to encourage further exploration by more rigorous means.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.