Thomson, J. Anderson

J. Anderson Thomson Jr. is an American psychiatrist and author who has contributed to the cognitive science of religion through his examination of religious belief from an evolutionary and neuropsychological perspective. A practicing psychiatrist at the University of Virginia's Student Health Center and a founder of the Richard Dawkins Foundation for Reason and Science, Thomson applies insights from evolutionary psychology, cognitive neuroscience, and anthropology to explain the origins and persistence of religious belief. His work "Why We Believe in God(s): A Concise Guide to the Science of Faith" (2011), co-authored with Clare Aukofer, synthesizes research on the psychological and neurological mechanisms underlying religious experience, arguing that belief in deities arises from ordinary cognitive processes rather than supernatural sources. Thomson's approach exemplifies the naturalistic study of religion, suggesting that understanding the evolved mental tools that generate religious beliefs can help explain their universality across cultures while maintaining a skeptical stance toward supernatural claims.