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The roles of religion, spirituality, and genetics in paranormal beliefs: recent studies indicate that people who are spiritual but do not participate in organized religion may have the strongest belief in psychic abilities. Also, emerging research indicates that genetic factors may have a role in spiritual and paranormal beliefs
Skeptical Inquirer, March-April, 2004 by James E. Kennedy
Research with twins indicates that genetic personality factors include characteristics that are associated with reports of psychic experiences. Absorption, an "openness to experience emotional and cognitive alterations" (Roche and McConkey 1990), is associated with reports of psychic experiences and also has a substantial genetic component (Tellegen et al. 1988). Absorption and related traits associated with psychic experiences indicate an ability and willingness to suspend logical thought and externally directed perceptions in favor of internal experience. These traits also appear in reflect a more open exchange of information between conscious and unconscious processes. Given what is now known about the operation of the brain and neorotransmitrers, it seems plausible that genetic differences could influence these mental characteristics.
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Twin research also indicates a genetic component lot interest in spirituality (Kirk et al. 1999) and religion (Bouchard et al. 1999; Waller et al. 1990). Unfortunately the relationship between the genetic components for spirituality and absorption have not yet been investigated.
These findings suggest that interest in spirituality and the paranormal may be very deep-seated. Some of the most intriguing research relates to gender differences.
Genetic Gender Differences
Women tend to be more spiritual and religious than men. This pattern has been found consistently across cultures, across religions, mad throughout history (Stark 2002). Rodney Stark, who has long investigated religion and the paranormal, recently concluded that the gender differences in religiousness are best explained by biological differences. He pointed out the universal finding that males more frequently engage in high-risk behaviors and commit more violent crimes than females, and noted that research with twins and adoptees indicates a genetic component for violent behavior axed that other research indicates that high levels of testosterone are associated with impulsive, violent behavior. He argued that the evidence for gender differences in religious faith is almost as universal as for violent behavior and has not been successfully explained by social factors.
Women also tend to believe in psychic phenomena more than men (reviewed in Irwin 1993, also see Orenstein 2002). In the Canadian survey, 72 percent of the extreme skeptics were males and 64 percent of the extreme believers were females.
The tendency for men to be more skeptical may reflect a genetic tendency to be more inclined toward rational, practical thinking and competition whereas women tend to be more interested in people, relationships, and connections. In a study in twenty-five countries, Williams and Best (1986) found that the traits commonly associated with males across cultures include aggressiveness, rationality, enterprise, inventiveness, and resourcefulness. Geary (1998) summarized extensive research showing that from infancy onward, males tend to have more interest in inanimate objects and females more interest in people. In relationships, men have a greater emphasis on competition, power, and dominance, whereas women have relatively more emphasis on altruistic, reciprocal relationships and stable communities (Campbell 2002; Geary 1998).
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