GALLUP NEWS SERVICE
PRINCETON, NJ -- This Friday falls on October 13th, which folklore suggests is a day of bad luck. In a September 1996 Gallup poll, 25% of Americans acknowledged that they were "very" (1%) or "somewhat" (24%) superstitious, up from 18% who said that in 1990. The poll also shows that younger people tend to be more superstitious than older people. Over a third (35%) of those under the age of 30 said they were superstitious, but the percentage declines as people get older, so that only 17% of those 65 and older were superstitious.
More than a quarter -- 27% -- said they were superstitious about "knocking on wood," with 13% superstitious about a black cat crossing one's path, 12% about walking under a ladder, 11% about breaking a mirror, 9% about speaking ill of a person (that it will come true), and 9% about the number 13. Again, younger people (under 30) were more likely than older people (65 and older) to be superstitious about a black cat (19% vs. 12%), breaking a mirror (21% vs. 10%), speaking ill of a person (15% vs. 5%), and knocking on wood (38% to 18%). There was little difference in superstition by age on the other two items -- walking under a ladder and the number 13.
Survey Methods
The results reported here are based on telephone interviews with a representative sample of 1,000 adults aged 18 and older, conducted September 3-5, 1996. For results based on this sample, one can say with 95% confidence that the margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points.
Some people are superstitious and try to behave in such a way as to avoid bad luck or "jinxing" themselves, and others are not. How superstitious are you …
|
96 Sep 3-5 |
90 Jun 14-17 |
|
|
1% |
3% |
Very, |
|
24 |
15 |
Somewhat, |
|
28 |
26 |
Not very, or |
|
47 |
56 |
Not at all? |
|
* |
* |
No opinion |
|
100% |
100% |
Are you superstitious about each of the following, or not?First, ... Next, ... . [READ AND ROTATE a-f]
|
Yes, superstitious |
No, not superstitious |
No opinion |
|
|
% |
% |
% |
|
|
a. A black cat crossing your path |
13 |
86 |
1 |
|
b. Walking under a ladder |
12 |
87 |
1 |
|
c. The number 13 |
9 |
90 |
1 |
|
d. Breaking a mirror |
11 |
88 |
1 |
|
e. Speaking ill of a person makes it come true |
9 |
89 |
2 |
|
f. Knocking on wood |
27 |
72 |
1 |
* Less than 0.5%