Religion,Affect and Cognition in Listener Contributions to NPR’s Talk of the Nation

Abstract

Broadcast media often provide forums for public expression, which may be useful for understanding public thought and emotion during times of public crisis. This exploratory study had two purposes. First, we examined broadcast content for support of Marx’s notion that religion serves to reduce suffering during a time of public crisis. Given the important roles of affect and cognition in religious experience, the second goal was to examine how the public’s affective and cognitive expressions in broadcasts differ in times of crisis. Public contributions to National Public Radio’s (NPR) Talk of the Nation were examined for statements relating to religion, affect and cognition using linguistic inquiry and word count (LIWC) software. This longitudinal analysis included three, week-long periods in the years before, during and after 9/11. No differences were observed for expressions of religion among the three time periods. However, differences in negative affect and cognitive processing were observed.

Keywords

Religion affect and cognition 9/11 NPR

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