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Vitalism, purpose and superstition.
Marjaana Lindeman1, Marieke Saher
1University of Helsinki, Finland. Marjaana.Lindeman@Helsinki.fi
British Journal of Psychology (London, England : 1953)
|February 27, 2007
Summary
Superstitious adults, like children, often attribute purpose to objects and explain life using vitalistic reasoning. These cognitive patterns link to superstitions and alternative medicine beliefs, suggesting shared conceptual errors.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Developmental Psychology
- Philosophy of Mind
Background:
- Children tend to anthropomorphize objects and use vitalistic explanations for biological phenomena.
- Adults typically move beyond these simplistic causalities, yet misconceptions may persist.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if superstitious adults exhibit similar cognitive biases as children regarding purpose and vitalistic causality.
- To explore the relationship between these cognitive patterns and belief in superstitions and alternative medicine.
Main Methods:
- Surveyed 116 superstitious and 123 skeptical individuals.
- Assessed attributions of purpose to objects.
- Examined explanations for biological processes (e.g., organ intentionality, energy transmission).
Main Results:
- Superstitious individuals more frequently attributed purpose to objects compared to skeptics.
- Superstitious individuals explained biological processes using vitalistic concepts like organ intentionality and energy transmission.
- Belief in energy as a vital force with life/mental properties was common among the superstitious group.
- These conceptual confusions positively correlated with all measured superstition types and alternative medicine beliefs.
Conclusions:
- Ontological confusions and category mistakes underpin both superstitious thinking and vitalistic reasoning.
- Cognitive biases observed in children may persist into adulthood, particularly in superstitious individuals.
- Findings support a unified explanation for seemingly disparate belief systems rooted in flawed causal reasoning.
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