Previous studies have found evidence for the belief that actions which tempt fate increase the likelihood of negative outcomes. These included actions that presuppose a good outcome, that reflect hubris or that involve excessive risk taking. This paper explores a related form of magical thinking...

Recent literature in empirical finance is surveyed in its relation to underlying behavioral principles, principles which come primarily from psychology, sociology, and anthropology. The behavioral principles discussed are: prospect theory, regret and cognitive dissonance, anchoring, mental...

Nearly half the currency notes in circulation in Nigeria today has lost its wholeness to one form of mutilation or another due to superstitious beliefs. Statistics have shown that 98.0% of the disfigurement of the naira is (deliberately) caused by superstitious belief, while only 0.2% is due to...

Magical thinking refers to irrational peculiar beliefs, including those that conform to the laws of contagion. We propose that touching an object that was previously touched by a high performer increases confidence via magical thinking (ability contagion) and improves actual performance among...