magical thinking

Question 1

What is Magical Thinking?

Answer 1

• occurs when someone explicitly or implicitly attributes relationships between actions and events to non-natural causes
• e.g. someone’s thoughts by themselves can directly bring about effects in the world
• irrationality is cognition or behaviour that makes inadequate use of reason and evidence

Question 2

Criteria for a Thought to be labelled as ‘Magic’

Answer 2

Rosengren & French (2013):
1. natural causality
* belief (realise) that objects/events (follow pattern/order that) are governed by laws of nature
2. violation
* belief that an object/event violates/contradicts normal laws of nature
3. supernatural causality
* belief that some alternative form of causality occurs outside the laws of nature

Question 3

What do Beliefs not need to be to be labelled as ‘magic’?

Answer 3

The belief does not need to be conscious for thinking to be labelled as magic

Subbotsky (2000):
* MT in most cases is not under conscious control

Question 4

Natural Laws Challenged by MT

Answer 4

Nature is:

1.) physical
* everything consists of matter alone (nature, minds, consciousness)

2.) deterministic
* everything caused by mechanistic interactions of matter
* one possible future state of universe

3.) mindless
* most objects/entities have no mind (only humans & some animals do)

4.) purposeless
* only minds have purposes (universe has no goals/intentions)

Question 5

How do Humans Make Sense of the World?

Answer 5

• matter, causality, minds & purposes
• these are concepts which humans use to make sense of the world
• they are subjective impressions attributed to the world
• it’s rational to hold these concepts as they provide a sound understanding of the world

Question 6

Types of Magic Thinking (9)

Answer 6

1. essentialism (believe things can’t be explained by science alone)
2. contagion (believe essences are contagious)
3. fatalism (believe certain events are destined to occur)
4. teleological thinking (believe there’s a purpose to the universe)
5. anthropomorphism (believe certain objects & animals have human-like mental abilities)
6. sympathy (believe those interconnections are made according to likeness)
7. dualism (believe there’s 2 types of substances: 1 material & 1 immaterial)
8. vitalism (believe living things possess animating energy/life force)
9. holism (believe vital energies of individuals are all interconnected)

Question 7

Explicit MT is … ?

Answer 7

Irrational

Question 8

Superstitious Beliefs

Answer 8

Jahoda (1969):
* 37/51 pedestrians stepped into road to avoid walking under ladder
* 72.5%; 95% CIs [59.0, 82.9]

Question 9

Law of Contagion

Answer 9

Rozin et al (1986):
* transfer of an underlying essence from source to recipient through some form of direct or indirect contact
* e.g. reluctant to taste juice if a sterilised dead cockroach was dipped in it
* e.g. less willing to try chocolate if shaped like faeces than a control
* e.g. prefer to taste sugar water from a glass labelled ‘Sucrose’ than one labelled ‘Cyanide’

Question 10

Moral Contagion

Answer 10

Eskine, Novreske & Richards (2013):
* IV: contact with “immoral” confederate or no contact
* DV: self-Reported State Guilt
* expt. 1: indirect contact (M = 2.82, SD = 0.66) & No Contact (M = 2.28, SD = 0.77), N = 54, Cohen’s d = 0.75 95% CI [0.19, 1.30]
* expt. 2: replicated with direct contact
- bigger effect in ppts who have high disgust sensitivity
- note: positive moral contagion

Question 11

‘Tempting Fate’ Study

Answer 11

(Risen & Gilovich, 2008):
* ppts (N=62) read a scenario (about Jon applying to graduate school and that Stanford was his top choice - Jon’s mother sent him a Stanford T-shirt)
* IV: Tempt Fate or Not
- ppts read either that Jon wore the shirt while awaiting Stanford’s decision (tempt fate) or did not wear the shirt (not tempt fate)
* DV: How likely Stanford would accept Jon acceptance
- between 0 (not at all likely) & 10 (extremely likely)
* ppts believed Jon’s application was less likely to be accepted if he tempted fate (M = 5.19, SD = 1.35) than if he didn’t (M = 6.13, SD = 1.02)
* Cohen’s d = 0.78, 95% CI [0.26, 1.29]

Question 12

What are ‘Just World’ Beliefs?

Answer 12

• example of teleological thinking (belief there’s purpose to the universe)
• the world is fair (e.g. karma)
• blaming the victim

Question 13

3 Theories to Explain MT

Answer 13

Rosengren & French (2013):

1.) Dual-Process Theory
- system 1 (Intuition) & System 2 (Reflection)

2.) Tendency to attribute causality
- to events close in time and proximity
- even when the events are clearly random

3.) Tendency to essentialise
- “individuals treat objects and entities in the world as if they have an underlying core nature or “essence” that determines the properties and characteristics of that object or entity”

Question 14

Which of the following is not a type of magical thinking?
a) anthropomorphization
b) the conjurers dilemma
c) belief in a just world
d) contagion

Answer 14

b) the conjurers dilemma

Question 15

Which of the following is not a type of magical thinking?
a) essentialism
b) luck
c) fatalism
d) The Penn-Teller illusion

Answer 15

d) The Penn-Teller illusion

Question 16

The reluctance of someone to try on a sweater once worn by a serial killer is an example of what kind of magical thinking:
a) teleological thinking
b) the Harold-Shipman effect
c) social conformity
d) contagion

Answer 16

b) the Harold-Shipman effect (contagion)

Question 17

Which of the following best describes the relationship between magical thinking and irrationality:
a) magical thinking and irrationality are near enough the same thing
b) magical thinking is a special kind of irrationality
c) irrationality is a special kind of magical thinking
d) magical thinking and irrationality are completely unrelated phenomena

Answer 17

b) magical thinking is a special kind of irrationality

Question 18

According to Subbotsky and other psychologists magical beliefs are:
a) mostly unconscious
b) mostly conscious
c) neither conscious or unconscious
d) equally conscious and unconscious

Answer 18

a) mostly unconscious

Question 19

6 Magical thinking is observed in:
a) Adults only
b) Children only
c) Children and adults
d) Children, adults, and some non-human animals

Answer 19

c) Children and adults

Question 20

7 Essentialism is the belief that:
a) living things possess an animating energy or life force
b) there are two types of substances, one material and one immaterial
c) things have an irreducible quality that cannot be explained by physics and chemistry alone
d) certain events are destined to occur somehow

Answer 20

c) things have an irreducible quality that cannot be explained by physics and chemistry alone

Question 21

8 Teleological thinking is the belief that:
a) living things possess an animating energy or life force
b) the belief that certain events are destined to occur somehow
c) the belief that there is a purpose to the universe
d) certain events are destined to occur somehow

Answer 21

c) the belief that there is a purpose to the universe

Question 22

9 Belief in a just world is an example of what kind of magical thinking:
a) the Harold-Shipman effect
b) the conjurers dilemma
c) The Penn-Teller illusion
d) Teleological thinking

Answer 22

d) Teleological thinking

Question 23

10 Which of the following criteria are not part of Rosengren & French’s (2013) definition of magical thinking:
a) the belief that objects and events are governed by laws of nature
b) the belief that an object or event appears to contradict the normal laws of nature
c) a lack of knowledge about how objects and events are governed by laws of nature
d) the belief that some alternative form of causality occurs outside the laws of nature

Answer 23

c) a lack of knowledge about how objects and events are governed by laws of nature