IT IS said that God created man in his own image, but the reverse also seems to be the case.

People subconsciously project their own views on controversial issues onto God, so much so that when their views change slightly, they think the deity's views have also shifted, new research suggests.

The study, by an American and Australian team, was aimed at finding out how believers determine the will of God on important topics, and used a variety of techniques including surveys, psychological manipulation and brain imaging.

Researchers led by Nicholas Epley, a professor of behavioural science at the University of Chicago, said believers often rely on what they think God wants them to do as a ''moral compass''. But this is a poor analogy, they found.

''The central feature of a compass is that it points north no matter what direction a person is facing,'' they wrote.