Dr. Courtney Campbell
Hundere Chair of Religion and Culture
School of History, Philosophy, and Religion
Oregon State University
Dear Courtney,
On behalf of OSU’s School of Psychological Science, I am writing to offer my strong support for your proposed major in Religious Studies. Religion is a core aspect of human experience, culture, and behavior and, in my opinion, its study deserves not only representation but “pride of place” at any comprehensive research university. Many of the most pressing issues of our times cannot be adequately understood without knowledge of people’s religious beliefs. Such beliefs have been shown to affect outcomes as varied as work productivity, war and its conduct, both pro- and antisocial behavior, eating behavior and agriculture, and attitudes towards the environment. These sorts of topics are central to OSU’s mission as a land-grant university. Therefore, we owe it to our constituents to promote Religious Studies at our campus.
The centrality of religious belief and experience in human life has been recognized by psychologists since the very beginnings of Psychology as a field, as seen in the work of William James. The American Psychological Association has a division devoted to the psychology of religion. Collaborative relationships already exist between faculty and students of OSU’s School of Psychological Science and religious studies faculty. In fact, I have personally had three of my Masters advisees in the last three years use Religious Studies as their secondary area.
We have a strong interest in bolstering religious studies at OSU. In fact, plans for programmatic partnerships are already underway, but we need a strong Religious Studies program to make them bear fruit. A Religious Studies major would provide the core for such a program. It would offer new opportunities for our psychology undergraduate students, for our existing MAIS students, and for future psychology PhD students (should our graduate proposal be approved).
We wish you the best of luck with your proposal, and look forward to future collaborative efforts.
Sincerely,
John Edwards
Director
School of Psychological Science