The Emotional Burden of Monotheism: Satan, Theodicy, and Relationship with God:

The thesis of this research was that belief in Satan helps Christian believers attenuate ambivalent feelings about God in the face of painful life events. Two questions were examined. First, are robust notions of Satan associated with more positive feelings toward God? Second, are robust notions of Satan associated with blaming God less for the pain and suffering inherent in human existence? In study 1 robust notions of Satan did predict more positive experiences with God. In study 2 robust notions of Satan were manifested by participants who were less likely to blame God for the pain and suffering in the world. These trends were consistent with the experimental predictions suggesting that belief in Satan may be functioning as an attributional category to reduce theodic blame toward God.