Fallout of faith in Iran: How religious leaders’ hypocrisy undermines beliefs while parents’ devotion sustains it.

We investigated factors contributing to rising religious deidentification in Iran, a Muslim-majority country where disparities exist in the religious demographics provided by the governmental census and independent surveys. Using cultural evolution theory, we examined the impact of credibility enhancing and undermining displays (CREDs and CRUDs) at three levels: parents, community members, and religious leaders. Across two correlational and one experimental study (two preregistered), we measured associations between CREDs, CRUDs, and religious (de)identification. Study 3 experimentally manipulated religious leaders’ CRUDs. Studies 1 and 2 showed that parental CREDs and religious leaders’ CRUDs were positively and negatively associated with religious belief among religious individuals, respectively. Study 3 found that religious leaders’ CRUDs increase negative attitudes toward religion and decrease identification with the institution of religion, but did not immediately affect individualistic spirituality. Findings highlight the role of clergy in religious deidentification, with implications for the role of cultural evolution theory in Muslim-majority contexts.