Belief in Evolution Promotes Tolerance

Belief in evolution makes us more tolerant of those who seem different from ourselves. Find out how a new study confirms this and encourages teaching evolution in the classroom.

I remember reading the play Inherit the Wind back in high school. It’s a fictionalized version of what took place at the so-called “Scopes Monkey Trial” in 1925.

John Scopes was a high school teacher in Dayton, Tennessee. The State of Tennessee charged him with the crime of teaching evolution in a state-funded school.

The case became a media circus as modernists squared off against fundamentalists. Two of the most famous lawyers in American history agreed to represent either side in the case.

Intolerance From Those Who Lacked a Belief in Evolution

What struck me about the play was the intolerance expressed by those who lacked a belief in evolution. They called their opponents “sinners” and “infidels,” while the evolutionists seemed much more reasonable and open minded toward those with whom they disagreed.

The Journal of Personality and Social Psychology published a study last week that confirms my impressions. Researchers…