Are You a Skeptic or Believer? Queendom.com Reveals Results of Their Paranormal Beliefs Study
Queendom.com delves into the mystical and supernatural, and makes interesting discoveries about people’s beliefs.
Montreal, Canada, August 03, 2010 --(PR.com)-- Queendom.com, one of the web’s foremost source of personality assessments, knocked on wood, threw salt over their shoulder, and stepped into the world of the paranormal. After releasing their Paranormal Beliefs test and collecting data from over 20,000 people from all walks of life, they uncovered gender, age, ethnic and other differences in views of the supernatural.
Belief in the supernatural is as ancient it comes. And while we’ve been able to prove that lightning and thunder are not bowling angels, and that spinning three times in front of the mirror while saying a dead person’s name will cause only dizziness, at most, there are some beliefs that hold solid. Science can boldly refute some theories, but paranormal researchers have their own fancy doodads now, like thermal imaging cameras, EMFs, and motion detectors. We’ve moved beyond parlor tricks, conspiracy theories, and taking pictures of muddy footprints of big feet.
Queendom.com’s Paranormal Beliefs Test assessed a number of beliefs, including the afterlife, the concepts of fate and karma, and aliens. Although superstitions are no longer as prominent as they used to be - the two most prevalent superstitions were the belief that thinking negative thoughts can make something bad happen (24%), and that “jinxing” something can cause you to lose it (24%) – there are many paranormal aspects that people strongly supported.
The afterlife, religion, and karma were the most widespread beliefs, followed by the belief in fate and psychic phenomenon. Superstitions brought up the rear, while folklore/myths/legends, witchcraft, telekinesis, and existence of UFOs and aliens fell somewhere in the middle on people’s belief system. Interestingly, women believed much more strongly in paranormal phenomenon than men did, particularly in terms of the idea of karma (average score for women 71, 57 for men). The only exception was that of aliens and UFOs, where men outscored women 52 to 49. Perhaps there really is something to that “Men are from Mars” theory…
“It seems that women are little more open-minded about the paranormal phenomena than men are. Maybe that’s why folklore is often referred to as ‘old wives tales,’” jokes Dr. Jerabek, president of the company. “In general, though, research has shown that women tend to have stronger paranormal beliefs than men. Perhaps the influx of sci-fi shows and movies can explain men’s stronger beliefs in extraterrestrials. In terms of age groups however, contrary to what some studies have found, our data show that belief in the paranormal actually increased with age in some cases, with older people believing more strongly than younger ones in the afterlife, the existence of God, psychics, telekinesis, and aliens. All in all, the results of our study were really quite out of this world (pun intended).”
Queendom.com’s data also revealed interesting differences among ethnic groups. Native Americans, who have a rich history and a deep respect for spiritual matters, were the group that believed the most strongly in the paranormal. Those from the Middle East scored highest in religious belief and belief in witchcraft, while Native Americans outscored the rest of the ethnic groups in belief in the afterlife (average score of 71), folklore/myths/legends (54), fate (66), psychics (68), and telekinesis (56). Latinos believed the most strongly in Aliens and UFOs, while the concept of karma was more widely accepted by the African American/African/Caribbean group. Finally, although the average score for superstitious beliefs was actually quite low (23), it was the Jewish group that took the top score, with 30.
Level of education is often linked to paranormal beliefs, with those who possess a higher education leaning more towards skepticism - the theory being that formal education helps develop analytical reasoning and critical thinking skills. While Queendom’s data did generally show this pattern, with those holding a Ph.D./Doctoral degree scoring the lowest, the results held an interesting surprise: Those who attended a technical/trade school showed the strongest belief in the paranormal, across all the beliefs assessed. This left the staff at Queendom.com scratching their heads a little.
“It seems a little odd at first that people in a technical field or trade would be so open to the paranormal”, says Dr. Jerabek. “But when you think about it, many people who pursue these types of occupations tend to have conventional values, which is often a characteristic of those who are religious. Religion doesn’t quite fall into the paranormal but it is a facet of it, and we assess it in this test because the idea of spirits and divine beings is a supernatural phenomenon – something that cannot be explained by natural laws. Of course, this in no way proves that they do not exist.” And if you’re still wondering why people in technical/trade occupations believe so strongly in the paranormal, check out some of the reality shows on paranormal investigation. More often than not, when a place is “haunted,” it is often people in manual labor fields who either sense it or see it – or are the ones running the investigation. For example, TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) is a group of paranormal researchers founded by two Rhode Island plumbers.
Other interesting tidbits from Queendom’s paranormal test reveal that the most prevalent legend is that of the Bermuda Triangle (41% believe that it is a danger), 66% of people believe in life after death, 69% believe in God or other divine entity, 69% believe that we are meant to cross paths with certain people (i.e. fate), 45% believe in the existence of real witches, 62% believe that certain people have the ability to foresee the future, 62% believe that there is life on other planets, and 66% believe in karmic balance, in that “what goes around comes around”. 34% of people who took our test report that they have experienced paranormal phenomenon.
Wherever you happen to fall on the paranormal belief scale, Queendom.com staff will make no judgment call for or against the paranormal. “While parapsychology is being pegged as pseudoscience by many members of the scientific community, there are labs all around the world, often associated with universities and sometimes funded by the military, investigating paranormal phenomena using scientific methods. We are keeping an open mind, and as researchers, we are letting the empirical data do the talking,” concludes Dr. Jerabek.
Those who wish to take the Queendom’s Paranormal Test can go to http://queendom.com/tests/access_page/index.htm?idRegTest=710 – just promise that you won’t take it 13 times.
About Queendom.com
Queendom.com is a subsidiary of PsychTests AIM Inc. Queendom.com is a site that creates an interactive venue for self-exploration with a healthy dose of fun. The site offers a full range of professional-quality, scientifically-validated psychological assessments that empower people to grow and reach their real potential through insightful feedback and detailed, custom-tailored analysis.
About PsychTests AIM Inc:
PsychTests AIM Inc. originally appeared on the internet scene in 1996. Since its inception, it has become a pre-eminent provider of psychological assessment products and services to human resource personnel, therapists, academics, researchers and a host of other professionals around the world. PsychTests AIM Inc. staff is comprised of a dedicated team of psychologists, test developers, researchers, statisticians, writers, and artificial intelligence experts. PsychTests AIM Inc. was founded and is led by Dr. Ilona Jerabek, a specialist in the field of psychometric assessments and Vrat Jerabek Ph. D., a researcher and authority in the field of artificial intelligence.
Contact:
Ilona Jerabek, Ph.D., president
PsychTests AIM Inc.
http://testyourself.psychtests.com/
1-888-855-6975
ilona@psychtests.com
###
Belief in the supernatural is as ancient it comes. And while we’ve been able to prove that lightning and thunder are not bowling angels, and that spinning three times in front of the mirror while saying a dead person’s name will cause only dizziness, at most, there are some beliefs that hold solid. Science can boldly refute some theories, but paranormal researchers have their own fancy doodads now, like thermal imaging cameras, EMFs, and motion detectors. We’ve moved beyond parlor tricks, conspiracy theories, and taking pictures of muddy footprints of big feet.
Queendom.com’s Paranormal Beliefs Test assessed a number of beliefs, including the afterlife, the concepts of fate and karma, and aliens. Although superstitions are no longer as prominent as they used to be - the two most prevalent superstitions were the belief that thinking negative thoughts can make something bad happen (24%), and that “jinxing” something can cause you to lose it (24%) – there are many paranormal aspects that people strongly supported.
The afterlife, religion, and karma were the most widespread beliefs, followed by the belief in fate and psychic phenomenon. Superstitions brought up the rear, while folklore/myths/legends, witchcraft, telekinesis, and existence of UFOs and aliens fell somewhere in the middle on people’s belief system. Interestingly, women believed much more strongly in paranormal phenomenon than men did, particularly in terms of the idea of karma (average score for women 71, 57 for men). The only exception was that of aliens and UFOs, where men outscored women 52 to 49. Perhaps there really is something to that “Men are from Mars” theory…
“It seems that women are little more open-minded about the paranormal phenomena than men are. Maybe that’s why folklore is often referred to as ‘old wives tales,’” jokes Dr. Jerabek, president of the company. “In general, though, research has shown that women tend to have stronger paranormal beliefs than men. Perhaps the influx of sci-fi shows and movies can explain men’s stronger beliefs in extraterrestrials. In terms of age groups however, contrary to what some studies have found, our data show that belief in the paranormal actually increased with age in some cases, with older people believing more strongly than younger ones in the afterlife, the existence of God, psychics, telekinesis, and aliens. All in all, the results of our study were really quite out of this world (pun intended).”
Queendom.com’s data also revealed interesting differences among ethnic groups. Native Americans, who have a rich history and a deep respect for spiritual matters, were the group that believed the most strongly in the paranormal. Those from the Middle East scored highest in religious belief and belief in witchcraft, while Native Americans outscored the rest of the ethnic groups in belief in the afterlife (average score of 71), folklore/myths/legends (54), fate (66), psychics (68), and telekinesis (56). Latinos believed the most strongly in Aliens and UFOs, while the concept of karma was more widely accepted by the African American/African/Caribbean group. Finally, although the average score for superstitious beliefs was actually quite low (23), it was the Jewish group that took the top score, with 30.
Level of education is often linked to paranormal beliefs, with those who possess a higher education leaning more towards skepticism - the theory being that formal education helps develop analytical reasoning and critical thinking skills. While Queendom’s data did generally show this pattern, with those holding a Ph.D./Doctoral degree scoring the lowest, the results held an interesting surprise: Those who attended a technical/trade school showed the strongest belief in the paranormal, across all the beliefs assessed. This left the staff at Queendom.com scratching their heads a little.
“It seems a little odd at first that people in a technical field or trade would be so open to the paranormal”, says Dr. Jerabek. “But when you think about it, many people who pursue these types of occupations tend to have conventional values, which is often a characteristic of those who are religious. Religion doesn’t quite fall into the paranormal but it is a facet of it, and we assess it in this test because the idea of spirits and divine beings is a supernatural phenomenon – something that cannot be explained by natural laws. Of course, this in no way proves that they do not exist.” And if you’re still wondering why people in technical/trade occupations believe so strongly in the paranormal, check out some of the reality shows on paranormal investigation. More often than not, when a place is “haunted,” it is often people in manual labor fields who either sense it or see it – or are the ones running the investigation. For example, TAPS (The Atlantic Paranormal Society) is a group of paranormal researchers founded by two Rhode Island plumbers.
Other interesting tidbits from Queendom’s paranormal test reveal that the most prevalent legend is that of the Bermuda Triangle (41% believe that it is a danger), 66% of people believe in life after death, 69% believe in God or other divine entity, 69% believe that we are meant to cross paths with certain people (i.e. fate), 45% believe in the existence of real witches, 62% believe that certain people have the ability to foresee the future, 62% believe that there is life on other planets, and 66% believe in karmic balance, in that “what goes around comes around”. 34% of people who took our test report that they have experienced paranormal phenomenon.
Wherever you happen to fall on the paranormal belief scale, Queendom.com staff will make no judgment call for or against the paranormal. “While parapsychology is being pegged as pseudoscience by many members of the scientific community, there are labs all around the world, often associated with universities and sometimes funded by the military, investigating paranormal phenomena using scientific methods. We are keeping an open mind, and as researchers, we are letting the empirical data do the talking,” concludes Dr. Jerabek.
Those who wish to take the Queendom’s Paranormal Test can go to http://queendom.com/tests/access_page/index.htm?idRegTest=710 – just promise that you won’t take it 13 times.
About Queendom.com
Queendom.com is a subsidiary of PsychTests AIM Inc. Queendom.com is a site that creates an interactive venue for self-exploration with a healthy dose of fun. The site offers a full range of professional-quality, scientifically-validated psychological assessments that empower people to grow and reach their real potential through insightful feedback and detailed, custom-tailored analysis.
About PsychTests AIM Inc:
PsychTests AIM Inc. originally appeared on the internet scene in 1996. Since its inception, it has become a pre-eminent provider of psychological assessment products and services to human resource personnel, therapists, academics, researchers and a host of other professionals around the world. PsychTests AIM Inc. staff is comprised of a dedicated team of psychologists, test developers, researchers, statisticians, writers, and artificial intelligence experts. PsychTests AIM Inc. was founded and is led by Dr. Ilona Jerabek, a specialist in the field of psychometric assessments and Vrat Jerabek Ph. D., a researcher and authority in the field of artificial intelligence.
Contact:
Ilona Jerabek, Ph.D., president
PsychTests AIM Inc.
http://testyourself.psychtests.com/
1-888-855-6975
ilona@psychtests.com
###
Contact
PsychTests AIM Inc.
Ilona Jerabek, PhD
514-745-3189
psychtests.com
toll-free at 1-888-855-6975
Ilona Jerabek, PhD
514-745-3189
psychtests.com
toll-free at 1-888-855-6975
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