Episode 41: The Psychology of Atheism and Religion, with Dr. Will Gervais

In this episode, we’re joined by Dr. Will Gervais, Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Brunel University. We learn a bit about evolutionary psychology before finding out what it tells us about why people become atheists and the difference between the reported and observed power of rational thinking. Will also explains how his survey methodology revealed a number of “closeted atheists” that traditional polls may have missed. Stick around to the end to hear whether he thinks a “true atheist” can follow religious dietary restrictions, or hold prejudices against other atheists.In the bonus content, available exclusively to supporters on Patreon, we ask Will for his most controversial take on atheism and religion, and dive deeper into the relationship between political outlooks and atheism.For more on Will: http://willgervais.com/Follow Will on Twitter: https://twitter.com/wgervaisCheck out Nathan’s recent article, “How Three Media Revolutions Transformed the History of Atheism”: https://freethinker.co.uk/2022/04/how-three-media-revolutions-transformed-the-history-of-atheism/Follow Nathan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/NathGAlexanderNathan’s website: https://www.nathangalexander.com/If you find the podcast valuable and want to support it, check out our Patreon page, where you will also find bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/beyond_atheism We are grateful for every contribution.