Science & Health Benefits of Belief in God & Religion | Dr. David DeSteno

This distinction allows for an acknowledgment that science and faith can coexist; belief in God need not reject scientific inquiry, nor should science dismiss theological perspectives outright. He points to historical examples where religious institutions have supported scientific research, such as the Catholic Church's astronomical observatories and the Dalai Lama's funding of neuroscience studies, illustrating that faith and science have often mutually enriched one another. By reframing the debate away from proving or disproving God, DeSteno redirects focus toward understanding the measurable benefits that religious belief and practice bring to human life.

The Rationality of Religious Belief

The conversation then turns to the philosophical rationality of believing in God, where DeSteno introduces Pascal's Wager as a pragmatic framework. Pascal argued that even if the probability of God's existence is uncertain or small, believing in God yields the potential of infinite positive payoff—eternal life—making belief the more rational bet. DeSteno elaborates that while some may reject this due to uncertainty about which religion is "correct" or doubt the existence of an afterlife, many religious traditions provide immediate benefits in the present life that Pascal did not account for.

Longitudinal epidemiological data support that sustained religious engagement lowers mortality rates, reduces cardiovascular diseases, anxiety, and depression, while increasing subjective well-being and life meaning. These benefits extend Pascal's calculus by showing that belief and participation in religious practices make life measurably better here and now, not just hypothetically better in the afterlife. Hence, for many individuals, religion is rational beyond metaphysical speculation—it provides real-world psychological and physical advantages.

Prayer, Meditation, and Mental Health Benefits

Dr. DeSteno highlights specific practices central to religion such as prayer and meditation, underlining their profound physiological and psychological effects. He describes controlled studies demonstrating that participants who practiced meditation showed increased compassion and prosocial behavior, exemplified by a tripling in acts of helping strangers in staged experiments. This suggests that contemplative practices condition both the mind and body toward empathy and kindness.

Prayer, especially formulaic repetition like the rosary or Hindu sutras, influences breathing patterns to slow respiration and extend exhalations, which boosts vagal tone—a physiological state associated with relaxation and social engagement. Through these changes, prayer reduces stress hormones like cortisol and mitigates anxiety. The calming effects help practitioners sit with difficult emotions such as sadness or fear with less physiological distress. This interaction between mind, body, and ritual explains how prayer and meditation contribute to resilience and emotional regulation.

Rituals, Community, and Synchrony in Religion

Religious rituals often incorporate synchronized activities such as communal prayer, singing, or swaying in unison, which DeSteno identifies as powerful mind-body practices that reinforce social bonds at a neurological level. Experimental research from his lab finds that engaging in motor synchrony with others increases empathy, cooperation, and willingness to help, as synchronous movement signals connection and shared identity.

During mourning rituals, communal practices like the Jewish Shiva serve to navigate grief by fostering collective support and reducing self-focus, which can intensify sadness. Covering mirrors during Shiva, for instance, moderates emotional amplification by preventing reflection-based emotional deepening. This suggests that many religious customs act as sophisticated packages designed through cultural evolution to aid humans in coping with fundamental experiences like loss and community bonding, offering psychological and physiological benefits rooted in social neuroscience.

Good and Evil: Moral Psychology and Religion

Addressing the presentation of good and evil in religion, DeSteno explains that moral cognition largely operates beneath conscious awareness, making behavior more variable than people typically realize. Because individuals prefer to view themselves as good, when they act immorally, they tend to externalize blame to outside forces, which religions personify as evil. This moral dualism provides explanatory comfort by framing wrongdoing as influenced by external bad forces.

Research shows that people often cheat or behave dishonestly when unobserved, rationalizing their behavior post hoc to align with their self-image. Religions mitigate such behavior by reminding individuals of moral accountability, invoking God as an observer whose judgment carries consequences beyond human detection. Incorporating practices that cultivate gratitude further shifts internal emotional states to support honesty and generosity, underlining how religion modulates ethical behavior through a combination of cognitive, emotional, and social influences.

Spirituality as an Antidote to Loneliness

The podcast explores how belief in God functions as an antidote to loneliness, a pervasive psychological challenge especially in the modern digital age. Religious individuals often report reduced loneliness, a benefit arising both from engaging in supportive communities and from the felt sense of an enduring relationship with a divine presence. This connection mirrors the "3 a.m. friend" concept—the reliable companion one can depend on in moments of crisis.

The feeling of being accompanied by a caring deity alleviates existential isolation, fulfilling a fundamental human need for attachment and security. This sense of divine companionship mitigates fear of abandonment and social exclusion, strengthening emotional resilience. DeSteno points out that intense focus on conversation with God, as seen in evangelical practices emphasizing two-way communication with the divine, enhances this protective psychological effect.

Awe and the "Intelligent Design" Debate

When discussing the striking complexity of biological systems such as the eye, DeSteno acknowledges that scientific understanding of evolution robustly explains how such intricacies could develop over time through genetic variation and natural selection. Despite this, many invoke intelligent design out of awe or a profound sense of wonderment, which increases openness to supernatural explanations.

Awe functions as an emotional gateway, producing experiences that feel transcendent and lead people toward beliefs in forces or entities beyond normal perception. While science demystifies mechanisms, awe remains a vital human emotional experience that does not negate spirituality or religious faith. DeSteno encourages appreciation for both scientific insights and the enduring sense of awe that complexity inspires, emphasizing that understanding does not preclude marveling at nature's grandeur.

Death Anxiety and Afterlife Beliefs

The conversation addresses the core human fear of death and how religions grapple with this universal anxiety by proposing various forms of afterlife or transcendence. Studies demonstrate that individuals with firm beliefs in an afterlife experience significantly less death anxiety due to confidence in a positive post-mortem existence. Conversely, agnostics or those uncertain about death's finality often exhibit elevated anxiety stemming from existential uncertainty.

Religious traditions not only offer comforting narratives of immortality or reincarnation but also prescribe meditative and ritual practices aimed at normalizing death contemplation. Far from being morbid, these practices orient adherents toward valuing meaningful connections and prosocial behavior in life, fostering mental health benefits. Religion thus functions as both an existential framework and a practical guide to transforming fear of death into purposeful living.

Time Perception, Continuity, and Religious Practice

Dr. DeSteno and Andrew Huberman delve into how religions uniquely engage with human perception of time, fostering a temporal connectedness that reduces feelings of isolation and insignificance. Rituals performed annually or repeatedly across generations create a sense of continuity, linking individuals to ancestors and future generations. The use of traditional language, like praying in ancient tongues, situates practitioners within a vast historical and spiritual lineage.

This continuity alleviates overwhelm by expanding one's conscious "time window," enabling a detachment from the immediacy of present challenges. Participants thereby gain perspective on life's transient nature, allowing for humility and resilience. Time elasticity cultivated through religious observance fosters a broader existential belonging, reducing distress and enhancing well-being by embedding the self in a larger story.

The Role of Surrender

The podcast explores the psychological mechanisms underlying 12-step programs which emphasize surrendering to a higher power as essential for recovery from addiction. Far from encouraging passivity, surrender represents recognition of human limitations and the acceptance of help beyond the self. This partnership with a higher power diminishes stress by reducing the burden of excessive personal control and promotes motivation by enhancing accountability.

DeSteno notes that religious engagement similarly buffers against addictive behaviors by providing structures that promote hope, control, and community support. Belief that one is not alone in struggles fosters resilience and sustained effort toward change. The concept of surrender parallels broader religious themes of humility and trust, underscoring how spirituality can function as an adaptive strategy for managing complex psychological challenges.

New Religions and Cults

Every year, a surprising number of new religions and spiritual movements emerge—between 100 and 200 globally—though most fail to gain lasting traction. Successful religions tend to meet deep psychological or societal needs, offer coherent practices, and resonate culturally. In contrast, cults are often characterized by charismatic leaders demanding unquestioned loyalty, frequently leading to abusive or destructive outcomes.

DeSteno discusses how some contemporary gatherings, such as Burning Man, serve as liminal spaces where traditional identity is shed and profound spiritual experiences occur, revealing evolving forms of communal religiosity. The future of spirituality may thus include hybrid or novel religious expressions that integrate technology, cultural trends, and human psychological needs in new ways.