The Psychology of Religious Adjustment

by Edmund Smith Conklin

1929

"I have written this book with the profound conviction that it is profitable to keep the field of psychology distinct from theology and the philosophy of religion. While I am not ignorant of theology and the philosophy of religion, I have studiously sought to keep such knowledge as I have of those subjects entirely in the background. The book is written as a study of certain forms of human behavior, and for me a study of behavior must include the conscious accompaniments. It should not, however, be looked upon as anything more than a study of behavior. There is in it no intentional brief for any form of religious faith nor for any form of anti-religious doctrine. There is no reason, of course, why the material here presented should not be utilized by theologians and philosophers of religion for its larger significances, if they find anything which seems of possible service to them. But my aim has been the more humble one of seeking merely to bring together facts and psychological interpretations of religious conduct, and to consider them in the light of contemporary psychological thought. I am confident that this procedure has greatly clarified my own thinking on these subjects. I hope it may do as much for others"--Preface. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved).