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Emails & domains

Verified email domains

Websites & social links

Personal website
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Other IDs

Scopus Author ID: 56684054300
Loop profile: 289778
ResearcherID: G-3667-2016

Keywords

ritual, religion, anxiety, cooperation, synchrony, motor coordination, evolution, signaling

Countries

Czech Republic

Biography

I am a religious scholar by training, psychologist by methodology, anthropologist by interests, and eclectic scientist at heart. My work lies at the intersection between the humanities and the cognitive and behavioral sciences, combining laboratory experiments with field studies to explore the effects of ritual on the individual and group level. I use physiological measurements, motion capture, surveys, and linear and nonlinear analyses to understand the evolution and function of the basic human social act.

Activities

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Employment (5)

Masaryk University: Brno, CZ

2025-01-01 to present | Associate Professor (Department for the Study of Religion)
Employment
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Masaryk University, Faculty of Arts: Brno, CZ

2018-01-01 to present | Assistant Professor (Department for the Study of Religions, LEVYNA Laboratory for the Experimental Research of Religion)
Employment
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Harvard University: Cambridge, MA, US

2016-11-01 to 2018-06-30 | Post-doctoral researcher (Human Evolutionary Biology)
Employment
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

University of Connecticut: Storrs, CT, US

2014-08-27 to 2016-09-01 | Graduate researcher (Anthropology)
Employment
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Masaryk University, Faculty of Arts: Brno, CZ

2011-11-01 to 2014-08-26 | Doctoral researhcer (Department for the Study of Religions, LEVYNA Laboratory for the Experimental Research of Religion)
Employment
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Education and qualifications (1)

Masarykova Univerzita: Brno, CZ

2011-02-28 to 2016-12-05 | Ph.D. (Department for the Study of Religions)
Education
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Professional activities (4)

Technology Agency of the Czech Republic: Prague, CZ

2020 to present | Panel member
Service
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Masaryk University: Brno, CZ

2019 | Rector's Award for Outstanding Research Results Achieved by Young Scientists under 35
Distinction
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

International Association for the Psychology of Religion: Gdansk, PL

2019 | Early Career Award for junior researchers
Distinction
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

International Association for the Cognitive Science of Religion : Vancouver, CA

2016 | Best student abstract award
Distinction
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Funding (6)

Computing Religious Devotion: How Reinforcing Supernatural Beliefs Affects Normative Models in the Mind (CREDO)

2024 to 2028 | Grant
Czech Science Foundation (Prague, Prague, CZ)
URL: https://www.levyna.cz/en/research/credo-project
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Signaler psychology: Investigating computations underlying human cooperative communication

2023 to 2025 | Grant
Czech Science Foundation (Prague, Prague, CZ)
URL: https://www.levyna.cz/en/research/signaler-psycholgy
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Existential security, secular institutions, and group norms: Explaining the rise of non-theism

2023 to 2024 | Grant
John Templeton Foundation (West Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, US)
URL: https://www.levyna.cz/en/research/mechanisms-of-secularizaiton
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

SACRIFICE - Scarring Rituals, Fierce Intergroup Conflict, and Extreme Rituals

2020 to present | Grant
Ministerstvo Školství, Mládeže a Tělovýchovy (Prague, CZ)
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Ritual behavior as a means to anxiety alleviation

2018 to 2019 | Award
Neuron Nadační Fond Na Podporu Vědy (Prague, CZ)
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

The Evolution of Ritual Behavior as a Communication Technology

2018 to 2019 | Grant
Grantová Agentura České Republiky (Prague, CZ)
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang

Works (45)

Communicating cooperative intentions drove the selection of collective ritual in hominins

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2024 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2023.2197986
EID:

2-s2.0-85165568949

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Kundt, R.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Emotional contagion in a collective ritual

American Journal of Human Biology
2024 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1002/ajhb.24111
EID:

2-s2.0-85195166964

Part of ISSN: 15206300 10420533
Contributors: Xygalatas, D.; Lang, M.; Maňo, P.; Krátký, J.; Fischer, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Formalized rituals may have preceded the emergence of religions

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2024 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2023.2168737
EID:

2-s2.0-85150745741

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Mechanisms of Secularization: Testing Between the Rationalization and Existential Insecurity Theories

Collabra: Psychology
2024 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1525/collabra.126508
EID:

2-s2.0-85213052815

Part of ISSN: 24747394
Contributors: Lang, M.; Chvaja, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

The evolution of human ritual behavior as a cooperative signaling platform

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2024 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2023.2197977
EID:

2-s2.0-85165680387

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Lang, M.; Kundt, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

The role of costly commitment signals in assorting cooperators during intergroup conflict

Evolution and Human Behavior
2024 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2024.01.003
EID:

2-s2.0-85184241269

Part of ISSN: 10905138
Contributors: Lang, M.; Chvaja, R.; Purzycki, B.G.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Challenges in modeling local manifestations of a global template

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2023 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2023.2234445
EID:

2-s2.0-85173033460

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Gods are watching and so what? Moralistic supernatural punishment across 15 cultures

Evolutionary Human Sciences
2023 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1017/ehs.2023.15
EID:

2-s2.0-85160825663

Part of ISSN: 2513843X
Contributors: Bendixen, T.; Lightner, A.D.; Apicella, C.; Atkinson, Q.; Bolyanatz, A.; Cohen, E.; Handley, C.; Henrich, J.; Klocová, E.K.; Lesorogol, C. et al.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Positive Association Between Ritual Performance and Perceived Objectivity of Moral Norms

International Journal for the Psychology of Religion
2023 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/10508619.2022.2121454
EID:

2-s2.0-85139426598

Part of ISSN: 15327582 10508619
Contributors: Chvaja, R.; Horský, J.; Lang, M.; Kundt, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Religious costly signal induces more trustworthiness than secular costly signal: A study of pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela

European Journal of Social Psychology
2023 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1002/ejsp.2975
EID:

2-s2.0-85166422908

Part of ISSN: 10990992 00462772
Contributors: Chvaja, R.; Chinchilla, J.; Goméz, Á.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Advertising cooperative phenotype through costly signals facilitates collective action

Royal Society Open Science
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1098/rsos.202202
EID:

2-s2.0-85130951361

Part of ISSN: 20545703
Contributors: Lang, M.; Chvaja, R.; Purzycki, B.G.; Vaclavik, D.; Stanik, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Cigarettes for the dead: effects of sorcery beliefs on parochial prosociality in Mauritius

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2006286
EID:

2-s2.0-85126186174

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Kundtová Klocová, E.; Lang, M.; Maňo, P.; Kundt, R.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Effects of predictable behavioral patterns on anxiety dynamics

Scientific Reports
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-23885-4
EID:

2-s2.0-85141629465

Part of ISSN: 20452322
Contributors: Lang, M.; Krátký, J.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Guiding the evolution of the evolutionary sciences of religion: a discussion 

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2021552
EID:

2-s2.0-85128273375

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Purzycki, B.G.; Lang, M.; Henrich, J.; Norenzayan, A.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

HAZARD PRECAUTION: Examining the Possible Adaptive Value of Ritualized Behavior

The Routledge Handbook of Evolutionary Approaches to Religion
2022 | Book chapter
Part of DOI: 10.4324/b23047-14
EID:

2-s2.0-85143479525

Part of ISBN: 9781000638387 9781138331679
Contributors: Lang, M.; Chvaja, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Material insecurity predicts greater commitment to moralistic and less commitment to local deities: a cross-cultural investigation

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2006287
EID:

2-s2.0-85128338432

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Baimel, A.; Apicella, C.; Atkinson, Q.; Bolyanatz, A.; Cohen, E.; Handley, C.; Henrich, J.; Kundtová Klocová, E.; Lang, M.; Lesogorol, C. et al.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Perceptions of moralizing agents and cooperative behavior in Northeastern Brazil

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2006285
EID:

2-s2.0-85128338746

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Soler, M.; Purzycki, B.G.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

The Evolution of Religion and Morality project: reflections and looking ahead

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2021546
EID:

2-s2.0-85128336002

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Purzycki, B.G.; Lang, M.; Henrich, J.; Norenzayan, A.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

The moralization bias of gods’ minds: a cross-cultural test

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2006291
EID:

2-s2.0-85125073354

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Purzycki, B.G.; Willard, A.K.; Klocová, E.K.; Apicella, C.; Atkinson, Q.; Bolyanatz, A.; Cohen, E.; Handley, C.; Henrich, J.; Lang, M. et al.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

The religiosity gender gap in 14 diverse societies

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2022 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2021.2006292
EID:

2-s2.0-85128364691

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Vardy, T.; Moya, C.; Placek, C.D.; Apicella, C.L.; Bolyanatz, A.; Cohen, E.; Handley, C.; Kundtová Klocová, E.; Lesorogol, C.; Mathew, S. et al.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

A comparison of self-report, systematic observation and third-party judgments of church attendance in a rural Fijian Village

PLoS ONE
2021 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0257160
EID:

2-s2.0-85116582688

Part of ISSN: 19326203
Contributors: Shaver, J.H.; White, T.A.J.; Vakaoti, P.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Religious Experiences Are Interpreted through Priors from Cultural Frameworks Supported by Imaginative Capacity Rather Than Special Cognition

Journal for the Cognitive Science of Religion
2021 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1558/jcsr.19803
EID:

2-s2.0-85136231755

Part of ISSN: 20497563 20497555
Contributors: van Mulukom, V.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Social inequality and signaling in a costly ritual

Evolution and Human Behavior
2021 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1016/j.evolhumbehav.2021.05.006
EID:

2-s2.0-85112815645

Part of ISSN: 10905138
Contributors: Xygalatas, D.; Maňo, P.; Bahna, V.; Klocová, E.K.; Kundt, R.; Lang, M.; Shaver, J.H.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Outgroup threat and the emergence of cohesive groups: A cross-cultural examination

Group Processes & Intergroup Relations
2021-07-21 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1177/13684302211016961
Part of ISSN: 1368-4302
Part of ISSN: 1461-7188
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Treatment of missing data determined conclusions regarding moralizing gods

Nature
2021-07-08 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-03655-4
Part of ISSN: 0028-0836
Part of ISSN: 1476-4687
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Multifunctional religious systems and perturbed dynamics of psychological wellbeing

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2020 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2018.1532454
EID:

2-s2.0-85056170599

Part of ISSN: 21535981 2153599X
Contributors: Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

The Effects of Synchrony on Group Moral Hypocrisy

Frontiers in Psychology
2020-12-17 | Journal article
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.544589
Part of ISSN: 1664-1078
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

The role of ritual behaviour in anxiety reduction: an investigation of Marathi religious practices in Mauritius

Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
2020-08-17 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2019.0431
Part of ISSN: 0962-8436
Part of ISSN: 1471-2970
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Replicating and extending the effects of auditory religious cues on dishonest behavior

PLOS ONE
2020-08-13 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0237007
Part of ISSN: 1932-6203
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Identity fusion, outgroup relations, and sacrifice: A cross-cultural test

Cognition
2019 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1016/j.cognition.2019.01.015
EID:

2-s2.0-85060766343
Contributors: Purzycki, B.G.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

IS RITUAL BEHAVIOR A RESPONSE TO ANXIETY?

The Cognitive Science of Religion: A Methodological Introduction to Key Empirical Studies
2019 | Book chapter
EID:

2-s2.0-85077200093

Part of ISBN: 9781350033719 9781350033696
Contributors: Lang, M.; Krátký, J.; Shaver, J.; Jerotijević, D.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Moralizing gods, impartiality and religious parochialism across 15 societies

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences
2019 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2019.0202
EID:

2-s2.0-85062638222
Contributors: Lang, M.; Purzycki, B.G.; Apicella, C.L.; Atkinson, Q.D.; Bolyanatz, A.; Cohen, E.; Handley, C.; Klocova, E.K.; Lesorogol, C.; Mathew, S. et al.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

The evolutionary paths to collective rituals: An interdisciplinary perspective on the origins and functions of the basic social act

Archive for the Psychology of Religion
2019 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1177/0084672419894682
EID:

2-s2.0-85077188914

Part of ISSN: 15736121 00846724
Contributors: Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Effects of Extreme Ritual Practices on Psychophysiological Well-Being

Current Anthropology
2019-10 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1086/705665
Part of ISSN: 0011-3204
Part of ISSN: 1537-5382
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 3)‎

Evolutionary, Cognitive, and Contextual Approaches to the Study of Religious Systems

Method & Theory in the Study of Religion
2019-08-08 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1163/15700682-12341466
Part of ISSN: 0943-3058
Part of ISSN: 1570-0682
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Big Gods in small places: the Random Allocation Game in Mauritius

Religion, Brain and Behavior
2018 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2016.1267033
EID:

2-s2.0-85015847385
Contributors: Xygalatas, D.; Kotherová, S.; Maňo, P.; Kundt, R.; Cigán, J.; Klocová, E.K.; Lang, M.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Costs do not Explain Trust among Secular Groups

Journal of Cognition and Culture
2018 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1163/15685373-12340025
EID:

2-s2.0-85046261221
Contributors: Shaver, J.H.; Divietro, S.; Lang, M.; Sosis, R.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

The Boundaries of Trust: Cross-Religious and Cross-Ethnic Field Experiments in Mauritius

Evolutionary Psychology
2018 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1177/1474704918817644
EID:

2-s2.0-85058774413
Contributors: Shaver, J.H.; Lang, M.; Krátký, J.; Klocová, E.K.; Kundt, R.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Religious Veiling as a Mate-Guarding Strategy: Effects of Environmental Pressures on Cultural Practices

Evolutionary Psychological Science
2017 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1007/s40806-016-0079-z
EID:

2-s2.0-85103406130

Part of ISSN: 21989885
Contributors: Pazhoohi, F.; Lang, M.; Xygalatas, D.; Grammer, K.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Sync to link: Endorphin-mediated synchrony effects on cooperation

Biological Psychology
2017 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2017.06.001
EID:

2-s2.0-85020376234
Contributors: Lang, M.; Bahna, V.; Shaver, J.H.; Reddish, P.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Lost in the Rhythm: Effects of Rhythm on Subsequent Interpersonal Coordination

Cognitive Science
2016 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1111/cogs.12302
EID:

2-s2.0-84944399288
Contributors: Lang, M.; Shaw, D.J.; Reddish, P.; Wallot, S.; Mitkidis, P.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Music as a Sacred Cue? Effects of Religious Music on Moral Behavior

Frontiers in Psychology
2016-06-07 | Journal article
DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00814
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Can predictive coding explain past experiences?

Religion, Brain, & Behavior
2016-06-05 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/2153599X.2016.1150332
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Anxiety and ritualization: Can attention discriminate compulsion from routine?

Communicative & Integrative Biology
2016-05-03 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1080/19420889.2016.1174799
Contributors: Jan Krátký; Martin Lang; John H. Shaver; Danijela Jerotijević; Dimitris Xygalatas
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Crossref Metadata Search
grade
Preferred source (of 2)‎

Effects of Anxiety on Spontaneous Ritualized Behavior

Current Biology
2015 | Journal article
DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2015.05.049
EID:

2-s2.0-84937524408
Contributors: Lang, M.; Krátký, J.; Shaver, J.H.; Jerotijević, D.; Xygalatas, D.
Source: Self-asserted source
Martin Lang via Scopus - Elsevier

Peer review (5 reviews for 4 publications/grants)

Review activity for Cognitive research. (1)
Review activity for Evolution and human behavior. (1)
Review activity for PloS one. (1)
Review activity for Royal Society open science. (2)
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