Atheistic Societies Are Happy Societies

Repeat after me: correlation does not imply causation.

I’m a Dane; we’re right up there. But I don’t think there’s any cause relationship here. Instead, it’s more likely attributable to a deeper and more fundamental and more complex set of factors.

Correlation does not imply causation. But when you check the math, the inverse is equally true. The more important religion becomes in lives of a population, the more crime and dissatisfaction they experience.

http://moses.creighton.edu/JRS/2005/2005-11.html

Josef, In most cases I would agree that correlation does not imply causation. However, in this case, I would have to say that it does imply causation. I live in Alabama in the US. The bible belt. Religion dominates everything here. I would say it could be cultural differences, but that points to religion as well. That IS the cultural difference. It is following the religion over here that makes things so bad. All the countries that don’t let christianity run their lives live better lives. The ones that let religion run their lives live worse lives.

Hi Daniel,

Always remember the important rule: There are lies, there are damn lies, and there’s statistics.

You are most likely looking at two factors that have a high correlation. Let me let you in on a few others:

The chance of reaching age 60 vs. abortions http://www.nationmaster.com/plot/hea_pro_of_not_rea_60/hea_abo_percap/flag

Broadband subscribers per capita and phone subscribers http://www.nationmaster.com/plot/int_bro_acc_percap/med_pho_sub/flag

Look at that last one – The number of phone subscribers didn’t cause broadband availability – there’s a factor that happened to affect both.

– Arik

The more you know the less you have to take on faith. The correlation is between knowledge and superstition. The more knowledge, the less superstitious. The less knowledge, the more superstition. Those 10 countries listed probably also have the highest literacy rates, or the highest rates of citizens with college degrees, or both.

Ignorance is Bliss !

Yeah, correlation does not imply causation. This is true.

But is there no cause here? If one has a religion, you are constantly being reminded how bad you are for thinking what you can’t help thinking and doing what you can’t help doing. If anything good happens in your life, it isn’t because of the work you put into making it happen, it’s because a god wanted it to happen. If anything bad happens in your life, it’s because a god is upset with you.

Honestly, it makes total sense to me.

This just reinforces how much i hate religitards. If you don’t mind, I’ll be taking this URL (and crediting you, of course) when I blog about this, probably tomorrow.

You can see my blog here: myspace.com/sexg0d that’s a zero, not a capital o

Alan FTW, I couldn’t have said it better myself. Let me just add: religion causes war. Pull your heads out of your asses and think for yourself instead of believing in superstitious nonsense passed down for almost 2000 years but written no sooner than 80 years after ‘jesus’ died, while heavily under the influence of drugs (hashish, psychedelic mushrooms).

Not to mention increased suicide rates. Perhaps atheism itself is a side effect of depression, such as loss of faith, wilting interest in the world, etcetera.

I’d rather say that religion is the by-product of an authoritarian society and comes about as a result of the inhibition of independent thought. Or some shit like that. I was going somewhere with this, but honestly.. It’s like 5 AM and what the fuck am I doing up this late? I need to get my life together, seriously. Can’t sit here all night drinking.. All my booze is gone now. I’d have to walk to that all-night place. And I’ve applied for a job there, wouldn’t look to good coming in there a fucking thursday morning buying beer. Damn it, I just need to go to bed so that I can wake up all fresh in the morning and start worrying about my life.

dude, 1st off it’s correlation does not PROVE causation (that’s basic right there) 2nd it does IMPLY that just look at the middle east, and how much it sucks over there, because they are controlled by religion oh dare I mention, our own USA, how during the Bush presidency (a right wing religious nut and moron) this country has spiraled downward, and as he has passed signed bill, put in judges, and other things for religious reasons (or to limit our civil liberties) so yeah, deal with it you crazies

High levels of religion are there because of unhappiness: where there is poverty, there will be religion, because it helps. When people are suffering, they turn to a God or Gods because that gives them hope and meaning. It is, as Marx said, the “heart in a heartless world”.

I’m an atheist, and it would be nice to prove that religion makes people unhappy- and sometimes it does- but we can’t. It does help people sometimes, and we can not deny the validity of that. We need to make the world a better place to live in and then religion should be unnecessary.

I’m pleased to see mostly serious comments here. Religion is a symptom in and of itself. the problem is mechanical. Or looked at another way, bio-electric. Religion was a natural outgrowth of tribalism, which is a survival advantage.

Point: The need to serve is built in to us. The rest is social inertia. The problem is technological, systemic, and economic (materialistically). The instant we have affordable, available self augmentation, these problems will vanish. The day people can make them selves what they want to be or claim to be, is the day we become truly human.

Attacking religion as a behavior is absurd, one does not choose one’s emotions nor do they control their birth location and parents. Focus on the root of the problem. (Hint: Maslow’s hierarchy.)

Decentralize the powers of human technology. Develop a backpack that would allow an individual to live happily anywhere on the planet’s surface that can copy itself, and the problem will solve itself.

I’m pleased to see mostly serious comments here. Religion is a symptom in and of itself. the problem is mechanical. Or looked at another way, bio-electric. Religion was a natural outgrowth of tribalism, which is a survival advantage.

Point: The need to serve is built in to us. The rest is social inertia. The problem is technological, systemic, and economic (materialistically). The instant we have affordable, available self augmentation, these problems will vanish. The day people can make them selves what they want to be or claim to be, is the day we become truly human.

Attacking religion as a behavior is absurd, one does not choose one’s emotions nor do they control their birth location and parents. Focus on the root of the problem. (Hint: Maslow’s hierarchy.)

Decentralize the powers of human technology. Develop a backpack that would allow an individual to live happily anywhere on the planet’s surface that can copy itself, and the problem will solve itself.

Norway is one of the most Protestant Christian dominated countries in the world.

you guys forgot about Atheistic Societies @ Happy Societies of ex Soviet-Union , China , Cuba all very Atheistic and soo Happy … dumb @ stupid

I believe that the article said organic atheism. China and Cuba are, atheist by state institution. Not organic. Also, if you will note, the ex soviet nations on the list of most atheistic are fairly economically and socially sound. I think this relationship is statistically significant, although I haven’t looked at the actual statistics, I am just familiar with the economic and social climate of most of those countries. However, I don’t think that this implies causation, although I’m sure they are related. Perhaps the inverse is true. Perhaps socially safe climates are good cultures for atheism. Perhaps it is because most of these countries are fairly liberal, and tend to service the poor rather than the wealthy, people are less dependent on religious organizations for safety. I think it’s only significant to say that the better off societies are more atheistic societies. Which has a lot of implications, no doubt, but it’s a little subjective.

apparently this study has never spent much time in south korea. they are about as atheistic as green beans are colored red.

This is over simplify why the cultures attain such characteristics. Japan has a high young adult suicide rate, because of the stress of obtaining an education. Many times kids fail and their lives are so ruined that they kill themselves.

Brandon, I agree completely with your hierarchy of needs comment. However, religion does not go away as soon as basic needs are met. America is one of the wealthiest nations (or was, anyway), albeit with huge economic disparity, yet many of the most vociferous and dangerous religious people are wealthy, having everything they need, materially, at their disposal. Religion is viral in nature. Once implanted, it is difficult to get rid of. Only critical thinking skills can rid one of religion and religious thought patterns.

There are also many very 'educated' people, in terms of having attained high levels of formal education and obtained advanced degrees, who nevertheless have not acquired critical thinking skills. This is especially the case where, as in the U.S., private religious universities exist that serve to indoctrinate more than to educate, but I've known people at public universities, especially in the technical and scientific fields, who were very adept at compartmentalizing thought. Their scientific knowledge and religious ideas are kept in separate compartments, somehow preventing scientific ideas from affecting religious ones, even though many are entirely at odds with one another. I once asked a trained Catholic priest, who happened to teach a course on the Gospels in the Religious Studies department, how he could know all that he did about the way scripture was put together–multiple authors removed in time from the events being described, often contradicting one another; councils hashing out what should be included and excluded from the bible, hammering out points of doctrine, editing, deleting, or embellishing under the direction or influence of powerful political leaders who could put you to death for points of view deviating from that of the King, etc.–and still believe. His answer was simply that he uses scientific and empirical knowledge to inform his practical day-to-day life and keeps that separate from, that is, does not let it interfere with, his faith.

Koreans are actually extremely christian.

Well done site. I'm very much pleased to visit the site.

Educated and independent people are 1) less likely to be religious, and 2) less likely to be taken advantage of by their government