Physiological Foundations for Religious Experiences in Devotional Worship Practices with Music Using Heart Rate and Respiration Rate Analyses.
Yoshija Walter, Andreas Altorfer
European Journal of Investigation in Health, Psychology and Education January 27, 2022 DOI: 10.3390/ejihpe12020011 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 60 |
| Population | Evangelical individuals |
| Keywords | Physiology Respiration rate Heart rate Music Religious experience Worship Breath frequency Psychobiology of religion |
| Key findings | Ratings of sensed presence of God during worship correlated with increases in heart rate and respiratory rate, indicating that the religious worship experience speeds up physiological responses. The authors accepted the activation hypothesis and rejected the pacification hypothesis. |
Abstract
The present study investigates the psychophysiological activation patterns of religious experiences in worship practices using Heart Rate (HR) and Respiratory Rate (RR) analyses. For this, 60 evangelical individuals participated in an experiment where they worshipped to six selected conditions and continuously indicated how strongly they sensed what they believed to be the presence of God. These ratings were correlated with the biometric data to indicate whether the experience has an activating effect on the believer's vegetative system (activation hypothesis) or a soothing effect thereupon (pacification hypothesis). Statistical analyses showed that the psychological disposition during the religious worship experience speeds up the physiological responses, which was indicated by increases in HR and RR. Hence, the activation hypothesis was accepted, and the pacification hypothesis was rejected.
Citations in the library
Cited by 3
- Autonomous neural network activation during religious worship experiences using heart rate variability measurements Religion Brain & Behavior October 10, 2023
- Electrodermal Activity Implicating a Sympathetic Nervous System Response under the Perception of Sensing a Divine Presence—A Psychophysiological Analysis Psych February 3, 2023
- Neural network involvement for religious experiences in worship measured by EEG microstate analysis. Social Neuroscience June 1, 2022
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