The use of theory for the study of religion is not limited to the fields of linguistics and literature.
In fact, increasing numbers of academic disciplines are studying religions as
part of the human search for understanding. Thus a scholar in the field of art may see and
interpret religions as forms of art. Specialists in psychology may interpret religions
primarily as expressions of individual human needs. Sociologists may see religions as
ways of shaping groups and of promoting and maintaining group conformity. The
viewpoints of these and other disciplines can also be adopted by scholars of religion as
keys to understanding the complexities of religions.