ABSTRACT
Superstition, a “somewhat odd and esoteric topic” (Jahoda, 1969), has not been taken seriously by attitude researchers. However, despite the fact most people appear shamefaced and deny behaving in a superstitious manner when asked by an interviewer, one person in six is reputed to believe in ghosts, one in four are uncertain as to whether ghosts exist and one in fourteen say they have actually seen or heard a ghost. Citing results from the few available surveys on superstition, Jahoda notes that one English person in three has been to a fortune-teller, one person in ten believes they have a lucky number, and whilst “astrology” is not widely understood, about two-thirds of the adult population read their horoscope at least occasionally.
