This study is quite interesting. It seeks to determine the value of the phrase, "thoughts and prayers" following a tragedy. It attempted to place a value on the phrase economically, i.e. using the market.
"The Christians who participated in this study valued prayer from a stranger, on average, at more than $4. A prayer from a priest was worth about $7. The nonreligious participants would pay less than $2 for a priest to not pray for them, and over $3.50 to avoid a Christian stranger’s prayer.
“This article raises an interesting point — some people, maybe, just don’t want your thoughts or prayers,” said University of Colorado at Denver psychologist Kevin Masters, who was not a member of the research team. In 2006, Masters and his colleagues analyzed the body of research on the effects of prayer on someone’s behalf. No study was able to show that prayer has discernible health benefits on a distant recipient."
Study: https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2019/09/10/1908268116
Article: https://beta.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/09/16/some-people-would-pay-avoid-thoughts-prayers-after-disaster-study-finds/?wpisrc=nl_rainbow&wpmm=1
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