Neuropsychology of Religious
Experience
James A. Van Slyke
Andrew Newberg
• University of Pennsylvania
– Medical Doctor
– Neuropsychologist/Neuroscientist
• Investigates neural correlates of religious
experience
– “Neurotheology”
– Meditation, Prayer, Glossolalia
Cognitive Sciences and the Mind
• Neuropsychology of Religious Experiences
– Brain images of Tibetan Buddhists and Franciscan
Nuns
• Increased activity in frontal lobe and right parietal lobe
during meditation
• Brain is quite active in a specialized way during religious
experience
Brain changes in response to
meditation (Newberg et. al. 2009)
• Differences between long-term and shortterm mediators at rest
– Long-term mediators showed differences in brain
activity in several different areas (prefrontal
cortex, parietal cortex and others)
– Greater asymmetry in thalamus
• Causes?
– Meditation may change brain activity over time
– Certain brain architectures may lend itself to
meditative states
Meditation effects on Memory Loss
(Newberg et. al. 2010)
• Subjects – Mild forms of memory impairment
(Age = 52-77)
• 8 week meditation program
• Increased brain activity in prefrontal, superior
frontal, parietal areas
• Improvements in neuropsych testing
– Verbal fluency
– Logical memory
Ritual Effects on Anxiety
(Anastasi & Newberg 2008)
• Subjects - 30 students from Catholic College
– 12 students recited rosary
– 18 students watched religious video
• Students who recited rosary showed
significant decrease in anxiety
• Religious ritual practices may play important
role in psychological well-being
Speaking in Tongues and Brain activity
(Newberg et. al. 2006)
• Speaking in tongues (glossolalia)
demonstrates increases brain activity in
frontal lobes, parietal lobes, and left caudate