What Can Cults Teach Us About Religious Psychology?

In Episode 048 of the #kilnroadtrip, created and produced by The Swell Pod, hosts Spencer McKeown and Josh Taylor interview Yuval Laor, an Author working on an upcoming book titled Fervor: What Cults Teach Us About the Evolution of Religion.  We delve into the evolution of religious psychology and the human capacity for fervor and sudden conversion. He shares his background and interest in cults, drawing from his experiences growing up in an atheist family in Israel. Laor also explores the psychological state of fervor, its relation to uncertainty, and how cults exploit this to attract and retain members.

Yuval Laor received his PhD in culture studies from Tel Aviv University, where he was supervised by leading evolutionary biologist Eva Jablonka. His dissertation explored the evolution of religious psychology, with an emphasis on evolutionary accounts of the human capacity for fervor and sudden conversion, and his subsequent, highly original work has focused on the nature of fervor. Yuval has published articles in the Journals of Religion Brain and Behavior and History and Theory. He is currently working on a book entitled Fervor: What cults can teach us about the evolution of religion.

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Location: Kiln. Boulder

The Kiln Road Trip: Uncovering Deep Truths with 100 Pleasantly Rebellious Humans. 10 days. 5 States. 3,580 Miles.100 Interviews! Daily episodes starting on March 5, Monday to Friday, for the next 100 days, followed by a short documentary and a book about the journey.

Thank you to the partners and sponsors who made the kiln.roadtrip possible: KILN, MOTERRA, TORUS

And thank you to the crew who helped us document and share the journey: DENISSE LEON, TY COTTLE, NATHAN CLARK, FINDLAY MCKEOWN

Bullets:

• Interview with Yuval Laor at Kiln Boulder in Colorado
• Yuval's research on turning his PhD dissertation into a book titled "Fervor: What Cults Teach Us About Religion and How to Navigate"
• Focus on the evolution of religious psychology and sudden conversion
• Interest in cults and extreme religiosity, influenced by Scientology and evolutionary theories
• Personal background and upbringing in an atheist family in Israel
• Psychology of fervor and its relation to uncertainty
• Cults inducing strong experiences and symptoms of hypomania
• Deep and insightful exploration of Yuval Laor's research on fervor, cults, and extreme religiosity

Timestamps:

The journey begins (00:00:03) Introduction to the Kiln Road Trip and its purpose of interviewing 100 rebellious individuals to challenge the status quo.

Meet Yuval Laor (00:00:54) Introduction to Yuval Laor, his background, and his work on the evolution of religious psychology and fervor.

Exploring fervor and love (00:02:15) Yuval Laor discusses the concept of fervor and its relation to evolutionary psychology, comparing it to the emotion of love.

Yuval's journey and research (00:07:14) Yuval shares his personal journey, background, and the influences that led him to study cults and extreme religiosity.

Understanding extreme religious experiences (00:15:40) Yuval explains the connection between extreme religious experiences, cults, and the evolution of love into fervor.

The impact of cults and fervor (00:19:12) Yuval delves into the psychology of fervor, its effects on individuals, and how cults can manipulate and influence people.

Kiln as a workspace (00:26:29) The speaker discusses using the kiln as a dedicated workspace for writing the book and the benefits of paying for the space.

Writing and publishing the book (00:27:36) The speaker's timeline for completing a draft and seeking a literary agent or publisher for the book.

Advice for creating something new (00:28:15) The speaker's advice based on their experience and the importance of curiosity and challenging assumptions in academic life.

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