| Sumario: | This experiment tested several hypotheses based on the "availability hypothesis" (Spilka et al. 1985), which identifies conditions that impel people to make religious rather than secular attributions. A total of 202 subjects who differed in their adherence to the precepts of conservative Christianity were given a variety of vignettes. Subjects attributed the actions of the central figure in each vignette or the outcome of the vignette to religious causal agents (God, Satan) or secular causes (chance, disposition, or situational factors). In general, secular attributions were invoked much more often than religious attributions. However, subjects' invocation of religious attributions conformed, for the most part, to prediction: Attributions to God were more common when the actions or outcomes elicited approval; attributions to Satan were more probable when the actions or outcomes elicited disapproval; attributions to both God and Satan were more prevalent when the attributors were conservative Christians and when the action was linked to religious values. The implications of the experimental findings for the availability hypothesis are considered.
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