Religious market theory

Stark and Bainbridge (1985) advocate religious market theory. They criticise secularisation theory for its 'distorted view' of the past and future; there was no past 'golden age' of religion, nor is it likely that everyone will be an atheist in the future. Stark and Bainbridge base religious market theory on two key assumptions;

1. People are naturally religious and religion meets human needs

2. People make rational choices based on the costs and benefits of the available religious options.

• Religion is attractive because it provides us with supernatural compensators when real rewards are unobtainable…