Supernatural Beliefs among Graduate Students at the University of Pennsylvania

Abstract

JAHODA¹ at the University of Ghana and Pasachoff et al.² at Harvard University have tested the hypotheses that (a) general university education leads to a decline in supernatural belief, and (b) scientific training in particular hastens this decline. Neither of these hypotheses was supported by the data presented. In both studies, however, only male undergraduates were examined. This suggests a natural extension of the basic paradigm to graduate students and female students. Examination of graduate students' beliefs is a further test of both hypotheses because graduate students have had both more university education and more experience and training in their particular field, for example, science. The addition of female students eliminates the possible bias effect due to testing of one sex only. This extension was carried out at the University of Pennsylvania.