Parameter space used in sensitivity analyses.

The relationship between religion, society, and individual behaviour has been a subject of extensive inquiry, drawing upon a rich collection of historical and contemporary perspectives. The scientific study of religion at the social level has often found its roots in the foundational work of Durkheim (Durkheim, 1912), who posited that religion serves as a catalyst for social order and the promotion of prosocial behaviour. At the same time, Malinowski’s observations regarding the connection between ritual and anxiety have led to a number of lines of inquiry that have come to extend to other aspects of religion. Yet, taken together, these two approaches create friction by simultaneously linking religion to low and high levels of environmental threats and anxiety. This becomes particularly relevant in discussions of secularisation in general and existential security in particular. This study embarks on a theoretical exploration of these approaches, connecting them through an agent-based computer simulation. By linking together some of the intricate mechanisms that underlie the dynamics of religion, prosociality, and anxiety, we aim to shed light on the conditions that give rise to highly religious societies and the subsequent decline in religiosity, with a view to the significance of central institutions that ensure cooperation without recourse to religion in this complex narrative.

宗教、社会与个体行为之间的关联，向来是学界广泛探讨的核心议题，相关研究吸纳了大量历史与当代的多元研究视角。社会层面的宗教科学研究，其学术渊源通常可追溯至涂尔干（Durkheim）1912年的奠基性著作，他提出宗教是推动社会秩序形成与亲社会行为（prosocial behaviour）培育的核心催化剂。与此同时，马林诺夫斯基（Malinowski）关于仪式与焦虑关联的实证观察，催生了多条延伸至宗教其他研究维度的学术脉络。然而综合来看，这两种研究路径却产生了内在张力：二者同时将宗教与程度各异的环境威胁及焦虑水平绑定。这一张力在总体性的世俗化（secularisation）讨论，尤其是存在性安全感（existential security）相关的议题中显得尤为关键。本研究针对上述两种研究路径展开理论探讨，并借助基于AI智能体（AI Agent）的计算机模拟实现二者的关联。本研究通过梳理支撑宗教、亲社会性（prosociality）与焦虑动态演变的部分复杂内在机制，旨在阐明促成高度宗教化社会形成，以及后续宗教虔诚度衰减的各项条件，并借此探讨在这一复杂研究脉络中，无需依托宗教即可保障群体合作的核心制度的重要意义。