Cognitive characteristics of the Qiang religious culture and its influencing factors in Southwest China

Abstract

Qiang religious culture is the result of its adaptation to the natural environment and socio–economic development. The Upper Reaches of Min River has been the main inhabiting district of the Qiang ethnic group in China. Based on the construction of the resource system for Qiang religious culture, this study quantitatively illustrated the cognitive characteristics of this culture in the basin and the main factors influencing its regional differentiation using statistical methods, Moran’s I method, Getis-Ord Gi* method, and the Geo-detector model. The results suggested that the respondents’ cognitive degree (RCD) in relation to the religious culture in the study area was 0.258 ± 0.031, and the cognitive degrees for religious buildings, supplies, literature, and beliefs were as follows: religious literature (0.332) > religious supplies (0.287 ± 0.076) > religious buildings (0.222 ± 0.037) > religious beliefs (0.193 ± 0.023). This result was mainly related to the dissemination methods of religious cultural elements, the status of their preservation, and changes in the production and lifestyle of the people. Furthermore, the respondents’ cognition presented significant regional differentiation characteristics. Two natural factors, namely, humidity and elevation, were the major ones that influenced cognitive regional differentiation with influences values of 0.293 and 0.280, respectively. Elevation and average night light index exhibited significant correlations with cognition (p < 0.05). Meanwhile, the influence was enhanced when various factors interacted with one another. This study contributes to the quantitative research on the sustainable development of the Qiang religious culture and national culture inheritance.