Feist−Feist: Theories of
Personality, Seventh
EditionIV. Dispositional Theories 13. Allport: Psychology of
the Individual(^400) © The McGraw−Hill
Companies, 2009
The tasks were designed to be moderately stressful and likely to raise blood pressure
in people who are particularly prone to experiencing high blood pressure. Specifi-
cally, the tasks involved completing some math problems and a hypothetical en-
counter with an insurance company who is refusing to cover a potentially life-saving
medical procedure. The researchers found that, as predicted, those who held an intrin-
sic religious orientation did not experience the same increased blood pressure that
those who held an extrinsic orientation did. This research demonstrated that an intrin-
sic religious orientation serves as a buffer against stressors likely to be experienced in
everyday life. Those who have an intrinsic religious orientation likely encounter the
same stressors as everybody else, but their bodies react differently and in a healthier
manner. There is something about having a deep, intrinsic religious faith that helps
people deal with everyday stressors in a way that is not detrimental to physical health.
Researchers have also investigated the relationship between Allport’s religious
orientation and depression. Generally speaking, being involved in church is related
to better overall well-being. This could be for a variety of reasons, one of which may
be that being actively involved in any organization integrates individuals into a net-
work of people who can provide social support during times of distress. When ex-
periencing times of distress it is always helpful to have people you can turn to, and
members of one’s church can be one such group. But being involved in church for
the wrong reasons may affect the potential benefits that could otherwise be derived
from such a network of people. Timothy Smith and his colleagues (2003) reviewed
all the research on the topic of religion and depression in an attempt to conclusively
determine whether religion could serve as a buffer against depression. What they
found was interesting and generally supported Allport’s view that there is a good way
and a bad way to be religious. In a review of over 20 studies, intrinsic religious ori-
entation was negatively related to depression but extrinsic religious orientation was
positively related (Smith, McCullough, & Poll, 2003). What that means is the more
intrinsically oriented toward religion a person is, the less likely he or she will expe-
rience depressive symptoms. But the more extrinsically oriented a person is, the
more likely he or she will be depressed.
Religion can be good for one’s health, but in order to derive health benefits
from religion, it is important that people are being religious for the right reasons. It
is not enough to just go to church, temple, or synagogue once a week. A person must
be attending such services because he or she truly believes in the message of his or
her chosen religion and has internalized it as a way of living a good life. It is also
important to note that while Allport did consider religious commitment to be a mark
of a healthy, mature person, he considered religion to be helpful because it provides
a unifying philosophy of life. But religion is not the only means by which one can
have a unifying philosophy of life. Whether having a unifying philosophy of life that
is not based on an organized religion is beneficial for health in the same way intrin-
sic religious orientation is remains an area for future research.
How to Reduce Prejudice: Optimal Contact
Recall that Gordon Allport first became interested in the difference between intrin-
sic and extrinsic religious orientation because he noticed that many people who iden-
tified as being very religious were also quite prejudiced. Allport, however, was also
394 Part IV Dispositional Theories