What Makes For Credible Religious Testimony? Exploring Belief And Skepticism About Others' Religious Experiences

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorWhite, Cindel
dc.contributor.authorFarias Martelli, Graziela
dc.date.accessioned2025-04-10T10:59:18Z
dc.date.available2025-04-10T10:59:18Z
dc.date.copyright2025-02-11
dc.date.issued2025-04-10
dc.date.updated2025-04-10T10:59:17Z
dc.degree.disciplinePsychology (Functional Area: Social and Personality)
dc.degree.levelMaster's
dc.degree.nameMA - Master of Arts
dc.description.abstractThis thesis examines the role of testimony in the formation and transmission of religious beliefs, focusing on the factors that influence its perceived credibility. Testimony is vital for sharing and reinforcing beliefs about experiences that cannot be directly tested, as is often the case with religious beliefs. These beliefs are frequently rooted in personal, unusual, or supernatural experiences, making testimony essential for their dissemination. Across four studies, I analyzed narrative features, storyteller characteristics, and listener predispositions to uncover what makes religious testimony compelling. Sensory reactions, perceived similarity to personal experiences, and the level of supernatural belief of perceivers emerged as key predictors of credibility. Honest storytellers and those with greater religious knowledge were viewed as more credible, particularly by highly religious listeners. These findings emphasize the role of core preexisting beliefs and source trustworthiness in shaping how religious testimony is evaluated and transmitted, extending psychological theories of belief formation.
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10315/42886
dc.languageen
dc.rightsAuthor owns copyright, except where explicitly noted. Please contact the author directly with licensing requests.
dc.subject.keywordsSocial psychology
dc.subject.keywordsCognitive psychology
dc.subject.keywordsPsychology of religion and spirituality
dc.subject.keywordsBeliefs
dc.subject.keywordsCredibility
dc.subject.keywordsTestimony
dc.subject.keywordsSupernatural stories
dc.subject.keywordsReligious testimony
dc.subject.keywordsReligious stories
dc.subject.keywordsSupernatural belief
dc.subject.keywordsHonesty
dc.subject.keywordsReligious experiences
dc.subject.keywordsSupernatural experiences
dc.titleWhat Makes For Credible Religious Testimony? Exploring Belief And Skepticism About Others' Religious Experiences
dc.typeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Farias_Martelli_Graziela_2025_MA.pdf
Size:
642.08 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Download
License bundle
Now showing 1 - 2 of 2
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
license.txt
Size:
1.87 KB
Format:
Plain Text
Description:
Download
No Thumbnail Available
Name:
YorkU_ETDlicense.txt
Size:
3.39 KB
Format:
Plain Text
Description:
Download

Collections

Psychology (Functional Area: Social and Personality)

All items in the YorkSpace institutional repository are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved except where explicitly noted.