Perceptions of Religious Hypocrisy: When Moral Claims Exceed Moral Action

In this study, we investigated perceptions of hypocrisy among Christian and non-Christian individuals. Specifically, participants (N = 121) were asked to evaluate people of different religious orientations in terms of perceptions of both claimed morality, actual behavior, and general hypocrisy. Acro...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Review of religious research
Authors: Matthews, Mark A. (Author) ; Mazzocco, Philip J. (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Springer [2017]
In: Review of religious research
Standardized Subjects / Keyword chains:B USA / Christianity / Hypocrisy / Perception
RelBib Classification:AD Sociology of religion; religious policy
CH Christianity and Society
KBQ North America
Online Access: Volltext (Verlag)
Volltext (doi)
Description
Summary:In this study, we investigated perceptions of hypocrisy among Christian and non-Christian individuals. Specifically, participants (N = 121) were asked to evaluate people of different religious orientations in terms of perceptions of both claimed morality, actual behavior, and general hypocrisy. Across all designations, perceptions of moral hypocrisy were determined to be greater to the extent that moral claims exceeded actual behavior. Among non-Christian participants, perceptions of hypocrisy were highest with respect to “devout” and “evangelical” Christian targets. In contrast, among Christian participants, the highest ratings of hypocrisy were reserved for “casual” Christians (i.e., Christians who do not incorporate their faith into their daily life). Our findings have both theoretical implications regarding the nature of religious hypocrisy perceptions, as well as real-world implications for understanding inter-faith perceptions and interactions.
ISSN:2211-4866
Contains:Enthalten in: Review of religious research
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1007/s13644-017-0307-4