Effects of Anti-Christian Interactions on Christian Anxiety, Physiological Processes, and Executive Functioning

Abstract

The growth of secular populations may impact the ways in which religious and secular groups interact. Previous research indicates that interactions between different social groups often result in intergroup anxiety, increased physiological arousal, and a deficit in executive functioning. Much of the established research addresses interracial relations, but the present study explores whether similar consequences are present in religious/secular interactions, particularly in Christian/secular interactions. It was hypothesized that as compared to Christian participants who experienced neutral interactions, those who experienced anti-Christian interactions would have higher anxiety levels, increased physiological response, and deficits in executive functioning. Participants interacted with a confederate who either facilitated an anti-Christian interaction or a neutral interaction in the lab. During the interactions, participants’ Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) was measured, and after the interactions, participants completed the State-Trait Anxiety measure and the Stroop Task. There were no statistically significant differences to confirm the proposed hypotheses, and the means actually trended opposite to the hypotheses. However, a significant interaction was found between the conditions and past experiences with discrimination on the GSR measure. Participants in the anti-Christian condition reporting higher frequencies of past discrimination showed greater decreases in physiological arousal than those reporting fewer instances of past discrimination. This effect was not similarly present among those in the neutral condition. The results indicate that Christianity may serve as a protective factor when experiencing typically stressful interactions, and previous experiences with religious discrimination may further lessen the consequences of these interactions.