Belief in the paranormal is actually more “normal” than you think and can be quite common, says the new research book Paranormal America: Encounters with Ghosts, UFO Visits, Hunting for Bigfoot and Other Curiosities in Religion and Culture "(" Paranormal America: Ghost Encounters, UFO Sightings, Bigfoot Hunts, and Other Curiosities in Religion and Culture ").
To understand what makes some people really believe in the supernatural, two sociologists attended so-called "supernatural sessions" - spent nights in haunted houses, sneaking with Yeti hunters, visited support groups for people who were abducted by aliens and held two nationwide poll.
Contrary to popular stereotypes, the study did not reveal a single profile of a person who embraces the supernatural. The proponents of the reality of the paranormal ranged from the free-spirited low-income, low-educated type to the big business. There were vagabonds, but there were also neurosurgeons.
For some, the supernatural served only as some other way of explaining this world. For others, extraordinary experiences open up opportunities for mystery, thrill and popularity gain when the latter manage to find “factual” evidence.
"It's like an adult's desire to satisfy a child's need for adventure and seeking," says Paranormal America co-author Christopher Bader of Baylor University in Waco, Texas / USA. "While some are sitting at home and beating on video, others ambush haunted houses infested with demons."
“The guys who hunt for Bigfoot are chasing - is it a joke! “a monster,” he added. "And you never know what you're going to end up with."
There is no reliable evidence of the prevalence of belief in the paranormal, which Bader and co-author Carson Mencken define as beliefs or experiences that are not fully recognized by science and religion.
However, trends in the selection of television programs show that there is tremendous interest in mystical phenomena, which are becoming more common. In the 1970s and 80s, Bader said, there were at most one or two "paranormal" shows on the general TV schedule. Today, there are dozens of them, and among them are programs about ghost hunters, about children with psychic abilities, about haunted houses and other things that go beyond the ordinary.
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A great many scientists believe there is energy behind the pretense of the paranormal. Instead, Bader and Mencken sought to understand what makes people believe in the supernatural.
They conducted two nationwide surveys asking more than 3,000 Americans about beliefs, experiences and interests.
After examining the results, scientists found that people with moderate religious beliefs are most likely to believe in the paranormal. According to sociologists, this may be due to the fact that, being open to belief in the unknown, they are not so firm in their religious beliefs, rejecting mysterious events in principle.
The results also showed that different types of paranormal creatures testify to different demographics. For example, women are more likely to believe that they live in haunted houses. College graduates are most likely to experience out-of-body experiences (with astral projection). Unmarried white men are ready to believe in UFOs faster than others.
The Yeti Hunters were arguably the most surprising group of "paranormalists," Bader notes. They challenged all stereotypes about the pursuer of the supernatural. Oddly enough, these people are very serious, very common and often very professional. In fact, their beliefs have contradicted their way of life so much that many of them suffer from anxiety, which causes them to continue holding on to their beliefs.
"They are not trying to explain the crazy world," Bader quoted Discovery.com as saying. "They are trying to prove to themselves that they are not insane, because everyone around them thinks they are crazy."