Everyday life, full of superstitions based on beliefs and illusions, leads us to engage in “superstitious behavior,” a term defined by the psychologist Skinner (1948).
Skinner explains that there is no causal relationship between an action or behavior and its result. For this reason they are considered irrational and opposed to logical reasoning and the scientific method (Fluke, Saucier & Webster, 2012), but paradoxically the majority of the world’s population is superstitious, and according to some studies women are more prone (Wiseman & Watt, 2004).
Superstitions depend on the level of situational uncertaintyof the stress associated that the person lives, need to control a situation, importance of the result, and the influence of myths, traditions and social creations (Case, Fitness, Cairns, & Stevenson, 2004), which will vary according to the culture and the society Of each country. For example, the number 13 in the United States is avoided in 70% of buildings because it is associated with bad luck. And on the other hand, in Japan the harmful number is 4, whose sound is similar to the word death, and is avoided in telephones or hospital rooms; while in China it is 14, and a good luck number is 8, perhaps because it sounds similar to prosperity. However, there are also superstitious beliefs widely shared in the world, such as stepping on a “poop” in the street, which in Spain is related to good luck, as in China and many other countries. But the most used superstition in the world is probably that of “knocking on wood” to avoid bad luck.
Superstitions are generally sociocultural learningwhich can also originate from a causal learning by associating the performance of an action with its result, which is reinforced when the occurrence of the event is repeated. Some studies indicate that superstitions are common phenomena in human society, affecting all social strata, cultural levels, religious beliefs or ages. Let’s remember famous athletes like Michael Jordan and his eternal student t-shirt. Tiger Woods and his red shirt in the final rounds of golf, but also Serena Williams, Cristiano Ronaldo, Rafael Nadal among many other famous people.
Superstitions usually generate a false illusion of controland according to various investigations, superstitious behaviors apparently irrational they can produce better observable physical performance (Damisch et al., 2010) as happens in athletes. They also allow a sense of control to be created, especially in adverse and uncertain stages (Schippers and Van Lange, 2006), helping to reduce stress and anxietyincreasing self-esteem, optimism, self-confidence, they are even associated with risk-taking, including gambling addiction, sports hobby, investments, etc.
Personally, I had a patient who regulated his life by his beliefs in numerology, conditioning his daily decisions and behaviors, by the numerical calculations and associations he made irrationally, and despite his numerous mistakes, he persisted in his erroneous thoughts and beliefs, causing him a significant social, family and work deterioration. Today with the psychological help He has overcome it, normalizing his life.
By Adela Amado and Javier Santana
Bibliography
Case, T.I., Fitness, J., Cairns, D.R., & Stevenson, RJ (2004). Coping with uncertainty: Superstitious strategies and secondary control. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 34(4), 848-871. http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1559-1816.2004.tb02574.x
Damisch, L., Stoberock, B., & Mussweiler, T. (2010). Keep your fingers crossed! How superstition improves performance. Psychological Science, 21 (7), 1014-1020. DOI: 10.1177/0956797610372631.
Fluke, S.M., Webster, R.J., and Saucier, D.A. (2012). Methodological and theoretical improvements in the study of superstitious beliefs and behaviors. British Journal of Psychology, 105102-126.
Schippers, M., & van Lange, P. (2006). The psychological benefit of superstitious rituals in top sport: A study among top sportspersons. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 36(10), 2532-2533. DOI: 10.1111/j.0021-9029.2006. 00116.x
Skinner, B.F. 1948 Superstition in the pigeon. Journal Exp. Psychol. 38, 168–172. DOI: 10.1037/h0055873).
Wiseman, R., & Watt, C. (2004). Measuring superstitious belief: why lucky charms matter. Personality and Individual Differences, 37(8), 1533-1541. DOI: 10.1016/j.paid.2004.02.009.
