1. Religious Beliefs & Self-Regulation
Deve’ Sanders
Final Project – EPY 4960

2. Definitions
Religion: “cognition, affect, and behavior that arise from awareness of, or perceived interaction with, super-natural entities that are presumed to play an important role in human affairs” (McCullough & Willoughby, 2009).
Religiousness/Religiosity: “frequency of prayer or attendance at religious services, or the importance people attribute to their religion” (Laurin, Kay, & Fitzsimons, 2012).
Self-regulation: “the diverse set of processes through which the self alters its own responses or inner states in a goal-directed manner” (Laird, Marks, & Marrero, 2011).
Self-control: “[the] capacity to override and inhibit socially unacceptable and undesirable impulses and to regulate one’s behaviors, thoughts, and emotions” (Laird, Marks, & Marrero, 2011).

3. Background Information
Demographic and census research has shown that the majority of people living throughout the world agree that God or some higher-spiritual power exist. With most individuals holding some form of the belief that an omnipotent, supernatural force is controlling, watching, and protecting the inhabitants of Earth, it is hard to deny the social power religion holds in today’s society. This cross-cultural comparison takes a look at the difference in the ability to self-regulate and control ones thoughts, behaviors, and emotions its correlation to either holding religious beliefs and participating in spiritual practices or choosing not to do so.

4. Source A: Religiosity, Self-Control, & Antisocial Behavior
In this 2011 study, researchers found that attending some form of a religious service on a regular basis effected the adolescent participant’s level of self control in a positive direction. By holding a higher sense of religiousness, an indirect relationship is made with promoting good self-control. These findings may also further link religiosity to avoiding undesirable behaviors in adolescent children.
(Laird, Marks, & Marrero, 2011).

5. Source B: Divergent Effects of Activating Thoughts of God on Self-Regulation
In this 2012 study, the results stated that reminders of God, or religious beliefs associated, could possibly impair self-regulation in area needed to actively pursue a goal, like a career. They also stated that their belief of a omnipotent and omniscient higher being aided in an individuals ability to resist temptations, affecting an aspect of self-regulation positively.
(Laurin, Kay, & Fitzsimons, 2012).

6. Source C: Religion, Self-Regulation, & Self-Control
In this 2009 study, researchers concluded: 1) religion is positively related to self-control as well as the traits of Agreeableness and Conscientiousness, 2) religion influences many aspects of attaining one’s goals with specific religions(Christianity & Buddhism) focusing on specific goals(low-arousal & high-arousal), 3) there are mixed findings on whether or not religion promotes self-monitoring, 4) religious rituals, such as meditation or prayer, generally promote self- regulation, 5) religions association with health, well- being, and social behavior can be explained by the fact that religion may promote self-control.
(McCullough & Willoughby, 2009).

7. Personal Summary
Through information and phenomena presented to us through resources ranging from collegiate Educational Psychology courses to online TEDTalks, the knowledge of the many milestones we face as we develop, and even how to overcome a few, is becoming more accessible to the masses. We all will go through crisis and dilemmas, some more severe then others, but it is the protective barriers that are created for us and that we create ourselves that may determine whether or not we survive and thrive. The ability to resist our animalistic instincts and perform metacognitive task is supposedly what makes us so uniquely human. Religion and the practice of religious rituals may be one form of social evolution needed to protect areas of cognition such as self-regulation. It is important to note that at times religiousness and the dependence on some unseen force to direct at all times may lead to more anxiety than needed, causing possible errors in judgment. In general, religious affiliation may act as a protective barrier, in both children and adults, in terms of self-regulation, and more specifically, self- control in comparison to having no religious participation at all. I think it would be interesting to see what current findings would be due to the changes in so many areas of society today.

8. Works Cited Religiosity, Self- Control, & Antisocial Behavior…
Divergent Effects … Thoughts of God on Self-Regulation
Religion, Self- Regulation, &
Self Control…
Laird, R. D., Marks, L. D., & Marrero, M. D. (2011). Religiosity, Self-Control, and Antisocial Behavior: Religiosity as a Promotive and Protective Factor. Journal Of Applied Developmental Psychology, 32(2),
Laurin, K., Kay, A. C., & Fitzsimons, G. M. (2012). Divergent effects of activating thoughts of God on self- regulation. Journal Of Personality And Social Psychology, 102(1), doi: /a
McCullough, M. E., & Willoughby, B. B. (2009). Religion, self- regulation, and self-control: Associations, explanations, and implications. Psychological Bulletin, 135(1), doi: /a