The Left Hand of Daftness. Are Atheists Mutants?
A recent paper (Dutton, Madison, & Dunkel, 2017) argues that belief in a moral god has been selected for by evolution in civilized societies, and that deviations from this belief, such as atheism are likely to be caused adverse genetic mutations that have become prevalent in modern times due to relaxation of selective pressures. The authors argued that these “deviations” should be correlated with markers of mutational load, including poor health, left-handedness, autism, and fluctuating asymmetry. However, the evidence they provide does not support their claims.
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Scott McGreal has a research psychology background and has investigated quality of life in people with schizophrenia. He studies individual differences and writes mainly about personality, intelligence, the psychology of sex differences, and consciousness. He lives in Sydney, Australia.