Religious Market Theory

Question 1

What 2 assumptions is the religious market theory based on?

Answer 1

1. People are naturally religious and religion meets humans needs
2. It is human nature to seek rewards and avoid costs

Question 2

Compensators

Answer 2

• When real rewards are scarce or unobtainable, religion compensates by promising supernatural ones
• The cycle of renewal:
  A cycle of religious decline, revival and renewal
• Religious competition:
  Competition leads to improvements in the quality of the religious ‘goods’ on offer

Question 3

America VS Europe

Answer 3

• Religion thrives in the USA because there has never been a religious monopoly there, as the Constitution guarantees religious freedom
• In Europe: most European countries have been dominated by an official state church which had a religious monopoly

Question 4

Supply-led religion

Answer 4

• Hadden and Shupe (1988): growth of ‘televangelism’ in America shows the level of religious participation is supply-led
• The japanese society: Shintoism was the state religion until 1945… Then after WW2, a new religious market was created

Question 5

Criticisms: (Double B)

Answer 5

1. Bruce: rejects the view that diversity and comptetion increase the demand for religion
2. Beckford: religious market theory is unsociological: it assumes people are naturally religious yet fails to explain why they make the choices they do