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A Way Out of the Crisis?

From Völkerpsychologie to Cultural Psychology of Religion

University of Amsterdam, Belzen{at}hum.uva.nl

This paper seeks solutions to what has recently been called psychology of religion’s ‘crisis’ by returning to the program of one of its founding fathers, Wilhelm Wundt. It reviews Wundt’s criticism of the psychology of religion of his day, explores his völkerpsychologisch approach to religion, discusses the reasons why it failed to make a lasting impact and offers a reappraisal. The paper argues that despite the problems inherent in Wundt’s aborted general psychology program, it nonetheless contains an approach that may serve as an impetus to present psychological research on religion. Contemporary developments in cultural psychology in particular offer necessary complements to current research in the psychology of religion.

Key Words: cultural psychology • methodology • religion • religiosity • Völkerpsychologie • Wundt (reassessment and transformation)

Theory & Psychology, Vol. 15, No. 6, 812-838 (2005)
DOI: 10.1177/0959354305059334


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