Thailand: The Place Rich In Superstitions

        With its rich culture and language, Thailand can definitely be seen as the next vacation spot,  who could resist the beautiful architecture, scenery, and beaches? Only within the culture can you see that superstition is a big factor in the way that they develop as a society.  For many natives superstition plays a very large role in their way of life and how they decide in their beliefs and morals. Like any country they  abide by different beliefs, a big significance to them according to the article "Thailand Living With Ghost, Soaked In Superstition" from Hindustan Times says that people from Thailand, have a strong belief in the afterlife and ghosts,  one of them being a ghost named 'Nak'.

         By having such belief, allows them to refrain from doing things that are bad. As Kapol Thongplab a host in a paranormal show called Humans Defy Ghosts puts it, it keeps Person A from killing person B because they think that they will come back and haunt them. This is just one of many examples of how much superstition is intact within these communities.
        Weather it be a fishing trip to the canal or a simple walk through the streets, the significance of superstition can definitely be seen. Woman often pray, holding incense sticks before releasing fish to the canal. Its just simple factors that play a big role in a lot of the Thai peoples life. With the extended amount of growth for the praise of ghosts, their is also opposing views that think that Thailand should not evolve around ghosts and all these superstitions. A source coming from the Hindustan Times. whom wanted to stay anonymous said, "Thais would rather put their faith in statues and amulets than take concrete steps to reduce personal risk, such as driving more safely. "  Regarding the way that rules and laws are exhibited throughout the country. So who really decides what to with all the worship to the ghosts? Does having superstitions block the opportunity to advance within the laws of the communities? Is there a definite line that must cross between reality and superstition? The only answer to these questions lie within the communities, and weather or not superstitions can really change them as a whole.

Citations:
"Thailand: Living with Ghosts, Soaked in Superstition." Http://www.hindustantimes.com/. Hindustan Times, 03 Feb. 2015. Web. 01 Mar. 2015.

The Statistics!

        Why do we commit acts of superstitions? Is it because of how our parents taught us deal with anxiety? Or maybe its simply something we have accustomed too. Whatever the fact, we can see that superstition is an important factor that plays in achieving something. Superstition can just be simply be a hope for an upcoming event or outcome, but it has to do with how you perceive things. Superstition has a big impact on the way the way you perform in sports, due to a placebo effect.
        According to an article from the Atlantic, "How Superstition Works" says that superstition is seen and analyzed a lot in the sports industry. Even the famous NBA stars have the history of superstition, an example is Chuck Persons whom used to eat two candy bars before each game or Jim Kelly who forced himself to throw up prior to playing in a game. This was in all types of atmospheres and as seen even in the pros.
        Another good aspect to explore is the different types of sports that show the amount of players with a belief in superstition.  Weather its in the local school gym or at the stadium in Denver, there is a wide range of sports players that show a strong belief in superstitious behavior. A group of studies done by a Canadian students, Maxwell Zaug and Hans Buhrmann showed that the better players in a team were much more superstitious then nonstarters. They also found that teams that reported higher superstition rates had a much better win-loss record.  Out of all these sports you can see above that, superstition is big in the sports world.
        According to "WebMD.Com" the award of most superstition goes to females, as children we are all taught of a variety of superstitions, but women tend to use superstition the most among both groups and we can definitely see how that relates to the chart above. According to Stuart Vice a psychologist, women tend to be much more anxious, and along with anxiety come the desire for superstitions in social situations. The graph definitely shows that women use a little bit more superstition then men, even if it is a few numbers above if they are added it up it ends up being much more.

Citation:

Albert, Sarah. "The Psychology of Superstition." WebMD. WebMD, n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2015

Vyse, Stuart. "How Superstition Works." The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 22 Oct. 2013. Web. 23 Feb. 2015.

You better knock on wood!

          Are there times where you rapidly knock on wood after you say some negative future bringing? Believe it or not some people do it even if they don't believe in superstition, and go ahead and knock on wood anyways. Author Angela Chens article, When Superstition Works gives a thorough and concise point on some of the good outcomes that superstition can have on someone. By taking some time to analyze two different articles I was able to see how different opinions can be over this topic. Its a whole idea that we have set upon the human race that, even though in reality knocking on wood will not stop it from snowing or maybe from your car not to breaking down. Belief is a strong power, and at times can even produce a good outcome, but when it doesn't, does that strike a question upon the truth of superstitions? Author Jane L Rison and A.David Naussbaum of the article, Sense and Superstition question why people knock on wood even if they don't believe in it. This article serves as an explanation as to why superstition is something that people refer to on so many occasions. That begs a question, Is superstition worth believing? In a way does this help produce a better outcome or maybe a win in a game? This article helps to look at the other side of the magical thinking, and takes a look at the psychology in it. 

            To contrast the Psychological view, Angela Chen from the Wall Street Journal writes about some of the positive impacts that superstition can have on someone's outcome. Chen uses examples as to why superstition can almost be good! "Still, for people under pressure to compete or perform, superstitious behavior can create a placebo effect that can improve the outcome." In a way this article produced a much more informational aspect as to the reasons behind superstition and the good that can come from it. A good example that she used was of Mary Pfister a college student whom wore her Seahawks (school team) shirt to every hockey game, since the first game she has worn it as almost a good luck charm. It shows how sometimes simple things like a pair of old socks or a team shirt can help you do even better. I find myself sometimes using the same pencil from a previous successful test on a new one with the belief that maybe it was the pencil that helped. You can look at this issue in two ways, it can help you or maybe its just a psychological scheme that your mind is playing on you. Either way, you can see that superstition can often aid us, before a test, a game, or even an interview there is a positive side to this so called 'superstition'.

Works Cited:
Chen, Angela. "When Superstition Works." Wall Street Journal. N.p., 25 Feb. 2013. Web. 09 Feb. 2015.

Risen, Jane L., and A. David Nussbaum. "Sense and Superstition." The New York Times. The New York Times, 05 Oct. 2013. Web. 09 Feb. 2015.

Links:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/06/opinion/sunday/sense-and-superstition.html
http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303559504579197920998454920

Is Friday the thirteen really an unlucky day?

          Do you remember as a child when they'd tell you there was a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow? Or that an apple a day kept the doctor away? These are all alleyways leading down to superstition. Superstition is defined as excessively credulous belief in and reverence for supernatural beings. So what really are some of the types of superstitions that as human beings we have because of what we've grown up with? I remember my mom telling me not to open the umbrella in the house, or that out cat Kiki had nine lives. Superstition has become part of our way of life, and developed into a way that we analyze certain situations. We tend to lead off into this whole other realm when thinking about superstitions, and yet you question if that's something you'd even believe in.

        In accordance to Encyclopedia.com the ancient Greeks referred to superstition as deisidaimonia, which was the fear of spirits or demons. Originally the term was looked at positively until the fourth century when a character named Theophrastus began to create rituals to ward off gods, he wasn't able to live his life out normally. The Romans looked at superstition as a way of negativity, meaning that they thought that it was the opposite of religion. Every different group of people looked at what superstition was differently, although it was mostly looked at by being negative, positive relations started developing throughout the years, and finally reached the 21st century where a lot of these superstitions are now intact and mostly referred to in a positive demeanor. According to data from a National Geographic article, "Are You Superstitious? Facts." people became less superstitious as they aged. 59% of people ages  11-15 said they were superstitious which compared to 44% of adults aged 31-40 saying they were not superstitious. Maybe it is your maturity and your level of belief that changes these kinds of thoughts, but what triggers superstitions? Are they childhood memories? Is there times where it is just downright luck? Maybe it is just crossing your fingers as you "swear" to not tell anyone or maybe its finding a patch of clovers and trying to find the four leafed one for good luck. There are times where superstition is used inevitably, to do certain tasks throughout your die. I knows for a fact that I've crossed my fingers before a test or even been a little more edgy when it actually is Friday the 13th.
          It could just be the whole sanction given to this day of bad luck that you just start thinking in that way so you end up committing more mistakes, failing at something that could lead you to think that Friday the 13th is really an unlucky day! At the end of the day, it could be the way you grew up or the people that you associated with that result in the level of superstition that you have. Before I leave i'd like to leave you with a quote by Bertrand Russell “I do not pretend to be able to prove that there is no God. I equally cannot prove that Satan is a fiction. The Christian god may exist; so may the gods of Olympus, or of ancient Egypt, or of Babylon. But no one of these hypotheses is more probable than any other: they lie outside the region of even probable knowledge, and therefore there is no reason to consider any of them.”  
Questions:
Is superstition in a way related to religion?
What are some of the discoveries that have been made?
Do your superstition beliefs have to do with the way you grew up or any religion beliefs?
What are some odd examples of superstition?
What parts of the brain trigger superstition?

Citations:

 "Are You Superstitious? Facts | National Geographic Channel." National Geographic Channel. N.p., 02 Apr. 2014. Web. 02 Feb. 2015.

 

Burns, William, "Superstition." Gale Encyclopedia of Psychology. 2001, "superstition." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009, "superstition." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th Ed.. 2014, and T. "Superstition." Encyclopedia.com. High Beam Research, 01 Jan. 2005. Web. 02 Feb. 2015.