“Often, research findings reflect the scientist’s and the public’s expectations. Sometimes, they come close. Other times, research results simply astound everyone.

Case in point is the recent research of Professor Peter R. Giancola of the psychology department of the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences. He, and his former graduate student, Aaron Duke, have found an unexpected relation between spiritual beliefs, violence and alcohol consumption.

“Oversimplifying — in many cases the more religious someone is, the more aggressive they will become after drinking alcohol,” Giancola said.

The researcher defined religiosity as someone who “finds meaning in the sacred,” regardless of the doctrine they follow.

Pointing out that his findings are preliminary and require more study, Giancola said that he was originally trying to create a profile of risk factors to predict alcohol-related violence.” *

Cenk Uygur (http://www.twitter.com/cenkuygur) and Gina Grad (http://www.twitter.com/GinaGrad) discuss.

*Read more here from http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/08/140813182205.htm