A long-standing argument for the existence of God arises from a human cognitive tendency for teleo-functional thinking associated with our theory of mind (see Chapter 6). This is known as the “teleological argument” or “argument from design.” Before discussing this line of reasoning, however, I wish to discuss the cognitive foundations of this type of thinking. Teleological or teleo-functional thinking refers to inferences that things exist for a purpose rather than merely being the result of physical or natural processes (Bering 2013: 46– 47, 55). Attributing purpose to things implies a purposeful creator or designer. We think in this way as easily about a showerhead that pours water on our heads as with rain that falls from the sky. Teleo-functional thinking involves the attribution of reason and purpose to aspects of the natural world and the universe.

The Cognitive Foundations of Arguments from Design

Developmental psychologists have shown that teleo-functional thinking also exists among children, which is why humans, in general, are innate creationists and why most individuals cannot easily grasp evolutionary theory. As the evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins (1996: xviii) has lamented, “It is almost as if the human brain were specifically designed to misunderstand Darwinism and find it hard to believe.