Superstition

Superstition is the belief that earthly events and human affairs can be shaped by unseen, unknown, and/or supernatural influences. The concepts of good luck and bad luck play a major role in superstition, with believers claiming that specific activities bring about predictable positive or negative effects. Omens and harbingers of good and bad fortune are also prominent within superstitious belief systems, with some devotees carrying out elaborate techniques and folk practices in an attempt to foretell and/or shape the future.

An Overview of Superstitious Beliefs

According to the Roman Catholic Church, superstitious beliefs can be divided into four categories: inappropriate worship of God, belief in and worship of false gods (idolatry), attempts to read the future (divination), and occult rituals and observances. These categorizations illustrate the underlying mechanism of superstition, namely that it is shaped by belief in supernatural casualty and a worldview that rejects or diminishes the validity of science and reason.

Superstitious beliefs and practices manifest in a wide variety of ways, including the application of pseudoscientific systems such as astrology, augury, card-reading, palm-reading, and geomancy. Other superstitions revolve around the crafting of potions, the casting of charms and spells, contact with the dead, the recital of incantations, the use of amulets and other items believed to bestow supernatural or divine protection on the wearer, and the observance of events believed to cause good or bad luck.

In the Western tradition, superstition is thought to have originated during pre-Christian or "pagan" times. With the arrival and spread of Christianity in Europe, superstition was driven out of the mainstream, but nonetheless continued to thrive in some cultures. Superstitious folk beliefs remain a prominent feature of numerous Western societies, particularly in present-day Italy, Romania, and Mexico. Numerous Eastern and Oriental cultures, including India, China, and Japan, also retain strong, centuries-old superstitious customs.

The Psychology of Superstition

Scientific inquiry into superstitious phenomena generally takes a psychological focus in that it attempts to understand the reasons people believe in superstitions rather than discredit (or prove) the beliefs themselves. Prevailing models claim that superstition is rooted in the natural, innate human fear of the unknown as well as in anxiety about death. Other psychology-based theories suggest that superstition may be a manifestation of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), a condition marked by an uncontrollable preoccupation with ritualistic behaviors.

Some psychologists suggest that those who have an enhanced ability to observe what is not readily seen also believe in higher powers, some of which may be superstitious. They found that those who have a superior ability to predict the character of other people also believe in God, the supernatural, and the idea that human life has a specific purpose.

Another framework for the psychological understanding of superstition is based on the idea that human beings desire greater degrees of control over events and affairs that are partially or fully beyond their domain. Psychologists also note a default tendency in people to try to explain or understand events that may not have an identifiable explanation. According to such theories, people have a natural tendency to find a relationship between something that happens or exists and what causes it, even though this relationship is not true.

The psychological equivalent of the placebo effect has also been forwarded as a possible explanation for superstitious beliefs and behavior. In medicine, the placebo effect refers to a strange phenomenon in which people suffering from an illness or injury are given an inactive substance they believe to be a drug that will improve their symptoms. After taking the inactive substance, sizable numbers of patients report that their symptoms have improved or disappeared, despite the fact that they had nothing but a false belief in the fake medication. The mainstream medical community has accepted the placebo effect as fact, though it has not yet been explained beyond the suggestion that the human mind is capable of exerting a quantifiable influence on the body when driven by belief, regardless of whether or not that belief is true.

Examples of Common Superstitions

Many well-known superstitions have remained part of popular culture. In many areas of the world, certain numbers are thought to change luck, either for the better or for the worse. For example, in Japan, the number four is associated with bad luck since the Japanese word for "four" can be pronounced so that it sounds like the Japanese word for "death." Many Western countries have a folk belief that the number thirteen brings bad luck; this belief is so widespread that many tall buildings do not have a thirteenth floor, instead jumping from twelve to fourteen in their numbering systems. Conversely, the number seven is commonly thought to bring good luck.

Similarly, shattering the glass of a mirror is said to bring seven years of bad luck to the person who broke it. It is also considered bad luck to open an umbrella while indoors, to walk under a ladder that is propped up against a wall, or to cross paths with a black cat.

Other superstitions are thought to encourage good luck. For example, touching or knocking on wood when discussing a possible future event is said to ensure that event will unfold favorably. Similarly, crossing one's fingers when making a wish is believed to increase the chances of that wish coming true.

More obscure superstitions also persist in many parts of the world. In Japan, superstitious people tuck their thumbs in their pockets when they pass a graveyard or encounter a hearse, as this is believed to protect the person's parents from death. Ancient Britons thought that carrying the acorn of an oak tree would prevent aging and preserve youth, with some adherents continuing the practice today. In Spain, the superstitious eat a dozen grapes when the clock strikes midnight on New Year's Eve, believing that each of the twelve grapes will deliver one month of good luck during the upcoming year. Hundreds of other such folk beliefs can be found in cultures around the globe, making superstition one of humankind's most universal cultural phenomena.

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