In general, many theists come into an personal belief of the existence of a person referred to as 'God' due to a mental state of identifying a person they are conscious of, which is not identified with themselves.
This is related to asking people why they believe ANY other person exists ... i.e. the problem other minds. Solipsism is a related concept. Definition of a person, self or other also. ( Segue to philosophy of mind channel for the broader questions. )
In cases such as the above, a student who is not interested in the study of solipsism, cannot be persuaded that the closest-non-self person in their conscious existence does not exist.
So the difference between a theist of this sort, and a naive atheist, is symmetrical. Prior to any analysis, one simply saw god as present, and the other simply did not.
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