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Belief in ghosts is on the increase


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A recent study conducted in the UK has reported a steadily increasing trend in paranormal belief.

The results suggested that up to 52% of the population believes in the supernatural, a figure that represents an increase from two similar studies conducted in 2009 and 2005 that saw a result of around 40%. One in five people were also said to have had a paranormal experience at some time in their lives.

Read More: http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/254654/belief-in-ghosts-is-on-the-increase

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This does not surprise me. We have shows about ghosts and ghost hunters, cyrptozoology from bigfoot to mermaids, zombies galore, movies about wizards, monsters, hobbits and aliens, etcetera. If you saturate the masses with this stuff, of course you are going to get an uptick in those who believe in such things. It is really no different then advertising: money spent to change one's mind about a good or service. While one deals in real products, there will always be a segment of the population that will be influenced by pure fantasy and incorporate it into their belief system. It doesn't help if these television programs make you think bigfoot is lurking around every bend or ever noise in an old house MUST be a haunting spirit. Combine a steady diet of fantasy/fiction with an ever poorer education system, a breakdown of family, government, church, and so forth and people may indeed gravitate to such beliefs.

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Looking at the Afterlife Investigations - The Scole Experiment, I'm not surprised. There comes a time however when we should come to accept the evidence and have the humility to call it knowledge of ghosts rather than belief in them.

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What if the ghost shows are popping up BECAUSE more people believe in them and not the other way around ? The market could just be filling the new need.

Chicken and egg argument.

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This is because more people are watching youtube. Some will believe anything with a KFC on their lap when in front of a video.

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LOL

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I've seen something in the sky that I couldn't identify and I have seen ghosts. The ghosts were a lot closer and looked human, so I have a tendency to say I believe in them. Those lights in the sky at nighttime could have been a lot of things, so usually I don't admit to that.

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I tend to agree with Sundew, that most "converts" are probably not due to a lot more eyewitnesses, but due to television.

Wasn't there just a report that just under 50% of people in England believe in aliens also?

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What if the ghost shows are popping up BECAUSE more people believe in them and not the other way around ? The market could just be filling the new need.

Chicken and egg argument.

Well it's true that television execs certainly try to give the public what they want, otherwise how do you explain such intellectually stimulating shows like American Idol.......

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There has been a steady decline in christian religion church goers in the UK and also around the world over past few decades. People have a fundamental need to believe in something. We need to know there is something else or something better after our days on this earth. Afterall, there is no scientific evidence of god either but millions of people believe in him.

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There has been a steady decline in christian religion church goers in the UK and also around the world over past few decades. People have a fundamental need to believe in something. We need to know there is something else or something better after our days on this earth. Afterall, there is no scientific evidence of god either but millions of people believe in him.

I think the steady decline is due to the steady increase of abuse stories within the church over the years. :unsure2:

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I think the steady decline is due to the steady increase of abuse stories within the church over the years. :unsure2:

The abuse stories don't help the cause but I think, going back a couple of thousand years people were willing to believe the tall tales spread by the Church. We didn't have the knowledge then and it seemed plausible. Nobody wanted to go to hell and did as they were told. Nowadays, we have made many scientific advances and I think society is just waking up to the facts. I know there are some that believe in Adam and Eve, blah blah blah and completely disregard the fact we have evidence of evolution. At the end of the day, people are entitled to their own beliefs, as long as they don't force their opinions on the rest of us. The Church is a very powerful organisation and have a very big political role in most countries which does affect all of us in one way or another.....but that is another debate, lol!

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I have never experienced anything that I could not rationally explain. I've never seen a ghost or an alien vessel. I have seen shooting stars, satellites and distant airliners. I have never seen a cryptid ... though I once saw a critter that was supposedly extinct in the area I lived in (supposed to have been "out of the area" for nearly a hundred years), but there it was. Long story and not worth going into.

I do not belittle the people that believe they saw something paranormal or supernatural. I believe they saw something they could not understand or explain. My first instinct is that the people that believe in the "supernatural-paranormal" tend to leap to that explanation quicker than someone who is skeptical.

I'm not saying the "weird and unusual" doesn't happen. I just have never experienced it so I am not quick to get on board with that explanation of things.

Just my personal perspective

Edited by Jeremiah65
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How right you are Sundew we have that crap overhere plus ex factor and other mindless rubbish so i am not suprised what people watch and belive

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It's probably because of all the fake ghost shows and fake ghost videos on youtube.

Yes, but its those who do not recognise they are fakes which are upping the stats.

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There has been a steady decline in christian religion church goers in the UK and also around the world over past few decades. People have a fundamental need to believe in something. We need to know there is something else or something better after our days on this earth. Afterall, there is no scientific evidence of god either but millions of people believe in him.

But if one is a Christian, they should believe in ghosts, demons, spirits, etc. because all of that is in the Bible.

You would think that if the number of religious folks was decreasing, then fewer people would believe in the paranormal.

Personally I believe the above hypothesis that it's all related to television, books, and movies.

Edited by Rafterman
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But if one is a Christian, they should believe in ghosts, demons, spirits, etc. because all of that is in the Bible.

The bible is just an elaborate work of fiction. People can pick and choose paragraphs from it and twist it to suit their purpose. It is also very contradictory. I am not an avid church goer but I believe that christians believe in the holy spirit and after we die we go to God in heaven. As far as I am aware, they do not advocate ghosts. I know that churches will not allow investigations into paranormal activity in the church buildings. They believe it is the occult. It's just very hypocritical.

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The bible is just an elaborate work of fiction. People can pick and choose paragraphs from it and twist it to suit their purpose. It is also very contradictory. I am not an avid church goer but I believe that christians believe in the holy spirit and after we die we go to God in heaven. As far as I am aware, they do not advocate ghosts. I know that churches will not allow investigations into paranormal activity in the church buildings. They believe it is the occult. It's just very hypocritical.

Agreed. Not dissimilar to all of the Fundamentalist hub bub related to the Harry Potter books. Pretty much everything they criticized those books for can be found in the Bible as well.

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But if one is a Christian, they should believe in ghosts, demons, spirits, etc. because all of that is in the Bible.

You would think that if the number of religious folks was decreasing, then fewer people would believe in the paranormal.

Personally I believe the above hypothesis that it's all related to television, books, and movies.

I don't think there are any "ghosts" in the Bible. Spirits and demons sure, but not fluffy white ghosts.

Belief in ghosts existing here on Earth among us is completely against Christian tradition. According to Christian tradition, we die and go someplace... either to a good reward, a bad punishment, or a waiting place. But, we don't hang around here haunting people.

Edited by DieChecker
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The supernatural could also include just plain old life after death. That'll get your numbers up right there.

Show me the actual questionaire and if it included el chupacabra and bigfoot.

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Why did we need a study of this? One can simply watch t.v. or cable to know that belief in the paranormal is on the rise.

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Humans are spiritual beings, meaning we have a sense or desire of the "the great mystery," that there is "something out there that is greater than me." And, the research demonstrates that those individuals who do cater to this sense of the great mystery are more psychologically resilient and adaptive to dealing with adversity. So, these ghostly beliefs and the like evolve as simple survival strategies.

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Humans are spiritual beings, meaning we have a sense or desire of the "the great mystery," that there is "something out there that is greater than me." And, the research demonstrates that those individuals who do cater to this sense of the great mystery are more psychologically resilient and adaptive to dealing with adversity. So, these ghostly beliefs and the like evolve as simple survival strategies.

Or maybe rather they are a side effect? The people who are more mentally resilient also tend to have strong belief systems. Because there is a strong correlation does not mean that one equals the other.

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Humans are spiritual beings, meaning we have a sense or desire of the "the great mystery," that there is "something out there that is greater than me." And, the research demonstrates that those individuals who do cater to this sense of the great mystery are more psychologically resilient and adaptive to dealing with adversity. So, these ghostly beliefs and the like evolve as simple survival strategies.

Idk if were talking about the same study it not but I just wanted to point out that in the study showing people with beliefs are more resulant. They also expanded that study to see if it was supernatural belif or just belief in general. People who have no spiritual beliefs get a increased faith in science when under alot of stress. I would link it if I wasent on my phone.

Not using it to argue anything just pointing it out

Edited by spartan max2
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