ParanormalReview.com News

Most people assume that better educated we are the greater our scepticism about things paranormal. But a recent poll of 439 college students, surprisingly and contrary to the researchers’ expectations, found the opposite to be true.

The new study was conducted by two well-known sceptics, Bryan Farha of Oklahoma City University (left) and Gary Steward Jr of the University of Central Oklahoma (below), and was modelled on a nationwide Gallup Poll carried out in 2001. This found that younger Americans were more likely to believe in the paranormal.

The results were published in the January-February issue of “Skeptical Inquirer” magazine.

Gary Steward Jr.jpg

Though the students, in general, ticked the “believe” box less often than members of the general public when surveyed, they also gave fewer “don’t believe” responses, indicating that more of them were unsure about certain topics.

The biggest surprise, however, was that whereas almost a quarter of college freshmen expressed a general belief in paranormal concepts, including astrology and communication with the dead, that number rose to 31 per cent of the seniors questions and jumped to 334 per cent among postgraduate students.

“As people attain higher college-education levels, the likelihood of believing in paranormal dimensions increases,” Farha and Steward conclude.

The highest scoring response showed 56 per cent believing in psychic or spiritual healing or the power of the mind to heal the body. Belief in haunted houses and people being possessed by the devil both scored 40 per cent. All three responses were very similar to the Gallup Poll results.

Interestingly, only 28 per cent of students believed in ESP compared with half of the Gallup Poll’s public respondents. Other student belief statistics (with Gallup Poll comparisons in parentheses) were:

Ghosts or spirits of the dead can come back in certain places and situations: 39 (38) per cent.

Telepathy or communication between minds occurs without using the traditional five senses: 24 (36) per cent.

Extraterrestrial beings have visited the earth: 17 (33) per cent.

Clairvoyance: the mind has the power to know the past and predict the future: 24 (32) per cent.

That people can hear from or communicate mentally with someone who has died: 16 (28) per cent.

Astrology: that the position of the stars and planets can affect people’s lives: 17 (28) per cent.

Witches: 26 (26) per cent.

Reincarnation: the rebirth of the soul in a new body after death: 14 (25) per cent.

Chanelling: allowing a ‘spirit being’ to temporarily assume control of a human body during trance: 10 (15) per cent.

Posted on Monday, September 04, 2006
Category: Paranormal

Return