Larry Witham on the Economics of Religion

tonygill — Mon, 10 Jan 2011 09:00:39 +0000

Author and former journalist Larry Witham joins Tony to talk about his recent book Marketplace of the Gods: How Economics Explains Religion. Just as the title says, Larry Witham investigates a new and growing field within the social scientific study of religion that is often refered to as the “religious economies” perspective. Dating back to insights from Adam Smith, more recent scholars such as Rodney Stark, Roger Finke and Laurence Iannaccone have begun using insights from microeconomic (or “rational choice”) theory to explain a wide variety of religious behavior and institutional organization. Larry details the history of this field and how he came to be interested in it. We then discuss some of the basic premises of this approach and how economic theories of religion explain behavior at the household, group and market level. Contrary to popular images, we talk about how this approach is not necessarily “all about money,” but rather it deals with how religious actors (worshippers or clergy) try to achieve their goals in a world of scarcity and have to make difficult decisions that maximize the best possible outcomes. We turn to the various critiques of this approach and note that it may have complimentarities with other theories of religion. This is an excellent podcast to listen to in conjuction with a number of the previous episodes featuring economists (see below). Finally, as a special treat, Larry gives us a peek at his next book project about attending art school. Recorded: December 27, 2010.

Eli Berman on Religious Terrorism

tonygill — Mon, 13 Sep 2010 08:00:09 +0000

Prof. Eli Berman, professor of economics at UC-San Diego and Research Director of International Security Studies at the University of California’s Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation, discusses his new book Radical, Religious, and Violent: The New Economics of Terrorism (MIT Press). Contrary to popular notions that suicide bombers are pyschologically-distressed or economically-disadvantagted individuals, Prof. Berman discusses how radical religious groups are rational in their selection of tactics. Using Laurence Iannaccone’s theory of strict religious clubs, Berman argues that radical religious groups excel at providing social services to their members, while simultaneously filtering out “free riders.” Here we discuss the case of ultra-Orthodox Jews in Israel as well as the Amish. We then discuss how successful insurgency operations require that groups limit membership defection, since a defector could easily compromise the secrecy of an entire organization. Adherence to strict religious requirements (e.g., intensive religious training, dietary restrictions, distinct clothing) provides behavioral signals about the loyalty of an individual to a group, making radical religious sects an ideal recruiting ground for rebels. We do not discuss the particular grievances of various terrorist organizations; rather the discussion focuses on the organizational aspects of terrorism and insurgency. Recorded: August 3, 2010.

Research On Religion » clubs

Larry Witham on the Economics of Religion

Eli Berman on Religious Terrorism