Three common forms
- Like affects likeAn image is treated as equivalent to what it depicts. That's where protective charms shaped like the thing being warded off come from, as does the reluctance to tear up a loved one's photo.
- Contact means connectionAn object that has been near a person or event seems to retain a connection to it. Hence lucky socks and objects that can't be thrown away.
- Thought as causeThe feeling that you thought of something and brought it about. It arises especially easily after a coincidence that sticks in your memory more vividly than a dozen non-coincidences.
The underlying mechanism is useful. The brain is wired to look for patterns and would rather find a connection that isn't there than miss a real one: historically, the cost of these two errors was very different.
Selective memory fuels the whole thing. Coincidences are remembered, misses aren't, and a year later, a person has a collection of confirmations gathered without ever checking any of them.
When it's harmless
In moderation, rituals work well. Athletes and musicians use them to get focused: a sequence of familiar actions lowers anxiety before they perform, and this really does improve the result.
The boundary is freedom. As long as you can skip a ritual and nothing happens, it's a habit. When skipping it causes anxiety and carrying it out takes more and more time, it's already become a compulsion.
Substitution is a separate danger. Magical thinking becomes harmful when it replaces action: an amulet instead of a doctor, a ritual instead of preparation, belief in a thought instead of talking to someone.
What is considered magical thinking?
Where is the line between a harmless ritual and a problem?
Sources
- Magical thinking is described through the principles of similarity and contagion, formulated in anthropology, and through attributing causal power to thoughts. It is common among adults and is not itself a disorder
- in a clinical context, it is considered in connection with obsessive-compulsive disorders. Research shows that pre-performance rituals can reduce anxiety and improve results
Next in the “Superstitions” series
2 articles in full on the site, 3 more in the app
