New study finds that the diffusion of explicit beliefs in increasingly moralistic, punitive and knowledgeable gods may have played a crucial role in influencing the emergence of human ultrasociality and complex societies. According to the source article: "People may trust in, cooperate with and interact fairly within wider social circles, partly because they believe that knowing gods will punish them if they do not. Additionally, through increased frequency and consistency in belief and behaviour sets, commitments to the same gods coordinate people’s expectations about social interactions. Moreover, the social radius within which people are willing to engage in behaviours that benefit others at a cost to themselves may enlarge as gods’ powers to monitor and punish increase." Article is $32, but here you can take a peek for free (and delete it afterwards).
Thanks for the pointer. I'm agnostic and somewhat against monopolized religions, but it's good to see more positive effects coming from religions as well. So far I only knew psychological stability as positive side effect.
