THE CULTURE OF FILIPINO SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND ITS INFLUENCE IN THE HEALTH THEMES OF WMSU STUDENTS

A research paper presented to the College of Liberal Arts of the

Western Mindanao State University

A Paper submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements

For Sociology & Anthropology

by:

Samaco, Maria Ann Grace O.

Rizada, Aizel

Montallana, Milamay

Taup, Marijay Merlina

Anjah, Algafar

Laja, Sitti Kharna A.

Ibrahim, Noraziah

March 12, 2015

1

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We gratefully and wholeheartedly would like to thank the following individuals who have

inspired us, of which we find our strength and encouragement since the idealization until the

materialization of this paper.

First and foremost, we would like to thank God for guiding and giving us the

strength and knowledge in doing this research paper,

To our teacher in Socio-Anthropology, Ms. Irish Salasain Jawali without her

assistance and dedicated involvement throughout the process, this paper would

never have been completed. We would like to thank you so much for the

support these past few weeks,

To our parents for their reassurance in a thousand ways and financial help in

order to materialize this paper

To Mr. and Mrs. Cirilo Samaco for allowing us to do our research works in

their residence and extending their help in one way or another

To our friends, classmates and relatives who pushed us to our limits

Thank you so much for without your help and support! We dedicate this research

paper to you and from the bottom of our hearts, Thank you and God bless!

2

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Acknowledgement 2

Table of Contents 3

Abstract 4

Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 5

Chapter II REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 10

3

Chapter III RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY 15

12

Chapter IV PRESENTATION AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA 17

Chapter V RESULTS AND CONCLUSION 23

Bibliography 25

ABSTRACT

Superstitious belief has been a part of the lives of many Filipino. It has passed from generation to generation and until now it does exist. Superstitions affect almost every part of the lives of people. By studying this, the researchers aimed to know the impact of the superstitions in the decision making of the students, what are the things that the students consider in believing. And the main objective is to know how they act when their health is the main thing affected in believing in these things. This study includes 50 respondents according to Slovin’s formula (1960), a quota

4

sampling was used to obtain the respondents and they were chosen accordingly for they were fitted on the said study. The data were collected with the use of a survey form, which is composed of twelve (12) questions which is in connection to their believe ib superstitions and was tallied and computed by the researchers. In the survey done of the 50 respondents more than half says that they do believe in superstitions and family is the major influence in believing in such. And in the research done, the researchers found out that despite of the educational attainment and socioeconomic standard of an individual they still chose to believe in superstitions.

CHAPTER I

Introduction

A. Background of the Study

The phenomena in which people believe in superstitions are very much prevalent and

superstitious beliefs still persist in this age of globalization (George & Sreedhar, 2006). They

are beliefs or practices that are not based on facts or events that can be proven but it based on

myth, magic and irrational thought. Superstitions are also known as old wives' tales, legends,

5

and traditions. It also arises from irrational beliefs resulting from ignorance or fear of the

unknown. It characterized by obsessive reverence for omens, charms, etc. The validity of

superstitions is based on belief in the power of baffling things such as magic and witchcraft

and in such invisible forces as spirits and demons. One thing binding these meanings together

is that they are usually negative – something that may inflict harm on you on way or another.

Superstitions are also defined as belief in irrational, but usually deep-seated belief in the

magical effects of a specific action or ritual, especially in the likelihood that good or bad luck

will result from performing it (Microsoft® Encarta® 2009).

According to Steiner (1999) Superstition is an integral part of almost every culture

around the world. They have lived long as it can be cultural based; that it came from others and

passed to one another. Superstitions, whether believed by a whole culture or just one person,

still have some sway over people's lives, with or without having any actual power. The sources

which might have been a great source for such superstitions are leaders or governments, elders,

cultures, imaginative stories, scholars and myths. Some popular superstitions are a result of

misinterpreting correlations as causes, although many others are simply urban legends that have

no rational justification. Some of the common superstitions are the fear of Friday the 13th.

Many people feel that it's a day of bad luck. Also consist of things like, the 7 years bad luck that

you receive if you break a mirror, or walking beneath a ladder, will also bring you bad luck. But

superstition can also bring you real luck and one of the popular is, picking up a penny that is

heads up, will bring you good luck. Some of the superstition in the Philippines are like, When

someone sleeps with wet hair, that person may go blind or go crazy; If a person sits on a book,

that person will become stupid or dumb; People with large ears have long life.

In terms of health practices and traditions, the culture of Filipino superstitions has a

plethora of irrational beliefs to offer. Although a lot of people may be apprehensive, scared even,

older generations of Filipinos believe that a dog’s lick or licks have healing powers. Hence, they

let dogs lick their wounds. Also, people should never take a bath in the evenings as doing so will

cause them to get anemia or have low blood pressure. Likewise, one should never take a bath on

Good Friday and on New Year’s Day as doing so will cause sickness to the person. Sore eyes or

pink eyes are believed to be cured by putting some mother’s breast milk on it. There is another

6

Filipino superstitious belief which says that it can also be cured by washing the eyes with the

person’s first urine of the day.

These are some common superstition in our country. Many superstitions emerged from

the notions of "good luck" and "bad luck"; the notion of "luck", however, can itself be

considered a form of superstition. It quite irrational and are something beyond the ground of

Science. It creates beliefs that misfortune will always happen if it will not be followed. Despite

the technological advances and continuous progress in the sciences, people still adhere to these

superstitious beliefs and allows these beliefs to influence their daily lives (Jahoda, 1969).

Apart from people believing in different kinds of superstition, the main question which

arises in many minds is that why do certain groups of people believe in one kind of superstition

and the others believe in another. Also what could be the main reason why a particular thing

became a superstition while the others did not? Hence, this research study aims to know the

magnitude of the culture of superstitious beliefs and its influence and effects in the decision

making of WMSU students with regards to their health care practices and traditions.

B. Statement of the problem

This study determines to know the magnitude of the belief of WMSU students to

Filipino superstitions, know whether these beliefs still play a crucial role in the belief pattern of

educated youth its effects on the subjects’ decision making with regards to health practices and

traditions. Consequently, it aims to resolve the following questions:

7

a. What is the effect of Filipino Superstitious beliefs on the decision making of

WMSU students and its influence on their Health care practices?

b. How does belief in superstitions relate to the socio-economic status of the WMSU

students?

d. Is there a direct effect on the belief of WMSU students in superstitions with their

respective educational attainment and class standing?

e. How do beliefs in Cultural Superstitions, such as those specified in this study,

affect the health care practices of the respondents?

C. Significance of the Study

Superstitions are actually rooted in logical behaviors meant to the society, out of mischief

and to adhere to a good way of life. The supernatural elements in some of the sayings can simply

be attributed to lack of education and people's fear of the unknown. Superstitious beliefs have

probably been present among us since the beginning of time and have been passed on through

the centuries, culturally shared and transmitted from generation to generation. Superstitious

rituals or activities are thought to have a positive or negative impact on the events of one’s life,

hence, influencing people’s behavior in various ways effecting both one’s psychological and

social state.

Superstitious behaviors have been used to reduce anxiety, build confidence, and cope

with uncertainty, giving the illusion of control over reinforcement in an uncontrollable situation.

The purpose of this study was to obtain data about the magnitude of superstitious beliefs and

their effect and influence to the decision making of the WMSU students with regards to their

health care practices and traditions. The study examined the belief and interest of students of

WMSU in superstitions and the impact superstitions have on their health care. The study

explored whether participants perceive happenings and success and/or failure as being of their

own making rather than that of the superstitions. Also, the study includes the precursors of

beliefs in such. The data obtained in this study will enable the researchers and the Western

Mindanao State University Institution and College of Nursing to determine whether beliefs in

superstitions impact the students’ health care practices and know the need for further information

8

dissemination to obtain optimum personal health care and lessen, if not eradicate, erroneous

information with regards to superstitious beliefs and health care practices.

D. Scope and Limitation

The scope of this research is the culture of superstitious beliefs among the WMSU

students, its magnitude and effects & influence in their actions with regards to health care

practices. Moreover, the researchers are endeavored to know if these superstitions really affect

not only their lives and most especially their health.

In this study we conducted some questions for them to answer. There are fifty (50) survey

forms to be disseminated to the students of the Western Mindanao State University Campus A.

This study focuses on the answers of the students who received the survey forms and emphasized

not to convince them not to believe nor to believe on the superstitions. This research was

conducted to know if superstitions are affecting their studies or lives as a student, also taking into

consideration external and environmental variables such as socio-economic status, class

standing, educational attainment and religious affiliations.

E. Definition of terms

Usog or balis - an affliction or psychological disorder is attributed to a greeting by a stranger, or an evil eye hex. It usually affects an unsuspecting child, usually an infant or toddler, who has been greeted by a visitor or a stranger.

Pasma - unique to the Filipino culture that is said to be most commonly brought about by exposure of "cold" and water in many forms: water is believed to facilitate the unhealthy coldness that enters the body in the Filipino culture.

Paglilihi “pregnancy cravings - what you eat and crave for during pregnancy has a direct influence on the physical attributes of the baby

Albularyo. - faith healer in the Filipino parlance.

Pagpag, - after attending a funeral or burial, you must do pagpag (tapping action) so that the spirit of the deceased person will not follow you.

9

CHAPTER II

Review of the Related Literature

Superstition is the belief in supernatural causality—that one event causes another without

any natural process linking the two events—such as astrology, religion, omens, witchcraft,

prophecies, etc., that contradicts natural science. The word superstition is sometimes used to

refer to religious practices (e.g., Voodoo) other than the one prevailing in a given society (e.g.,

Christianity in western culture), although the prevailing religion may contain just as many

superstitious beliefs. It is also commonly applied to beliefs and practices

10

surrounding luck, prophecy and spiritual beings, particularly the belief that future events can be

foretold by specific (apparently) unrelated prior events.

The word superstition is first used in English in the 15th century, modeled after an earlier

French superstition. While the formation of the Latin word is clear, from the verb super-stare, "to

stand over, stand upon; survive", its original intended sense is less than clear.It can be interpreted

as "‘standing over a thing in amazement or awe", but other possibilities have been suggested, e.g.

the sense of excess, i.e. over scrupulousness or over-ceremoniousness in the performing of

religious rites, or else the survival of old, irrational religious habits.

Greek and Roman polytheists, who modeled their relations with the gods on political and

social terms, scorned the man who constantly trembled with fear at the thought of the gods, as a

slave feared a cruel and capricious master. Such fear of the gods was what the Romans meant by

"superstition" (Veyne 1987, p. 211).

What is fully accepted as genuine religious statement may be seen as poor superstition

by those who do not share the same faith. Since there are no generally agreed proper or accepted

religious standards among people of different cultural backgrounds, the very notion of what is a

superstitious behavior is relative to local culture. In this sense, Christian theology will interpret

African cults as pure superstition while an evangelical Christian will see as meaningless the

Catholic ritual of crossing oneself (the Sign of the cross) when going by a church. With the

development of folklore studies in the late 18th century, use of the derogatory

term superstition was sometimes replaced by the neutral term "folk belief", an attempt to go over

local cultural biases. Both terms remain in use; thus, describing a practice such as the crossing

fingers to nullify a promise as "folk belief" implies a neutral description from the perspective of

ethnology or folklore studies, while calling the same thing a "superstition" implies its rejection as

irrational.

In 1948, behavioral psychologist B.F. Skinner published an article in the Journal of

Experimental Psychology, in which he described his pigeons exhibiting what appeared to be

superstitious behavior. One pigeon was making turns in its cage; another would swing its head in

a pendulum motion, while others also displayed a variety of other behaviours. Because these

11

behaviors were all done ritualistically in an attempt to receive food from a dispenser, even

though the dispenser had already been programmed to release food at set time intervals

regardless of the pigeons' actions, Skinner believed that the pigeons were trying to influence their

feeding schedule by performing these actions. He then extended this as a proposition regarding

the nature of superstitious behavior in humans. Skinner's theory regarding superstition being the

nature of the pigeons' behavior has been challenged by other psychologists such as Staddon and

Simmelhag, who theorized an alternative explanation for the pigeons' behavior.

Despite challenges to Skinner's interpretation of the root of his pigeons'

superstitious behavior, his conception of the reinforcement schedule has been used to explain

superstitious behaviour in humans. Originally, in Skinner's animal research, "some pigeons

responded up to 10,000 times without reinforcement when they had originally been conditioned

on an intermittent reinforcement basis." Compared to the other reinforcement schedules (e.g.,

fixed ratio, fixed interval), these behaviors were also the most resistant to extinction. This is

called the partial reinforcement effect, and this has been used to explain superstitious behavior in

humans. To be more precise, this effect means that, whenever an individual performs an action

expecting reinforcement, and none seems forthcoming, it actually creates a sense of persistence

within the individual. This strongly parallels superstitious behavior in humans because the

individual feels that, by continuing this action, reinforcement will happen; or that reinforcement

has come at certain times in the past as a result of this action, although not all the time, but this

may be one of those times.

From a simpler perspective, natural selection will tend to reinforce a tendency to

generate weak associations. If there is a strong survival advantage to making correct

associations, then this will outweigh the negatives of making many incorrect, "superstitious"

associations. It has also been argued that there may be connections between OCD and

superstition. This may be connected to hygiene.

Filipinos are very superstitious people. Many Filipinos still cling to the traditional

practices, beliefs and traditions. They are still strongly rooted to the superstitious beliefs that they

believe could help them deal with day to day occurrences and events. This trait was influenced

12

by the Hindus who have been part of the past colonization of the Philippines. Despite the

computer age that has changed the lifestyles of most Filipinos, many Filipinos still spice their life

To a lot of Filipinos, superstitious beliefs are very crucial in making decisions and

planning an important event. The superstitious beliefs of Filipinos are often consulted especially

during important occasions such as weddings, trips, moving to a new house, opening a business,

finding a job and many more major events in life.

A few examples of Filipino superstitious beliefs are as follows: The phase of the moon is

very important when planning very important events. According to Filipino beliefs, the phase of

the moon is crucial when planning something. Thus, it is better to find a job during the waxing

period of the moon rather than during the waning period. Also, A black cat crossing your path

means bad luck. Many people in the Philippines believe that when a cat crosses their path they

should go back to their house and postpone their plan or errand for the day because pushing with

the plan may produce bad results. To some, the black cat means a warning that something

dangerous maybe waiting to happen. In order to be safe, people prefer to stay at home first. In

Filipino weddings, The bride should never try on the wedding dress. It is believed that if the

bride tries on the wedding dress before the wedding takes place, the wedding will not pursue.

Consequently, Filipinos believes that if a pregnant woman who eat twin bananas will have twin

babies too. Pregnant women are advised not to eat twin bananas if they don’t want twin babies.

Unless the woman wants to deliver twin babies then she can eat twin bananas. In addition, You

should not sit on a pillow because it will mean slow recovery from an illness. According to

beliefs, a person who sits on his pillow will undergo a slow recovery process when he gets sick.

These are only superstitious beliefs but many Filipinos make these beliefs part of their

day to day life. Whether they are advantageous or disadvantageous depends on how the person

involved sees the situation. The modern age has made many Filipinos changed their lifestyle

including the traditions. Most of the younger generations do not anymore believe in superstitious

beliefs.

Here are some common superstitious beliefs related to health (Fojas, 2010)

o Sleeping after taking a bath during daytime or at night will result in blindness.

13

o A menstruating woman should not eat sweets lest blood flow stop and cause illness or

death.

o Let a dog lick your wounds, and the wounds will be healed.

o Sleeping with wet hair makes one crazy.

When one is wounded during high tide, much blood will ooze out.

After circumcision, a boy should not step on a mortar or pestle; otherwise, his organ will

grow as big as these.

When one is sick with smallpox, he must be given all the things he wishes; otherwise he

will die.

The successive birth of four children of the same sex is believed to endanger the life of

the parent of the same sex.

Children are advised not to bite banana leaves, as this is believed to cause tooth decay.

One should not eat mollusks when he has wounds, otherwise, his wounds will grow big.

A sick person is always believed to grow worse when the moon is full. If the patient does

not recover before one lunar month has elapsed and the moon once more assumes this

phase, the case is considered hopeless.Taking a bath at night will cause anemia or low

blood pressure.

Taking a bath on New Year’s Day and/or Good Friday will cause one to get sick.

If the family is eating and a member arrives, he is not permitted to join the others in the

meal, for if this rule is violated and a member of the household becomes ill, the others

may become ill too.

Menstruating girls should not eat papaya to avoid whitish blood, nor liver or blood, as

they will cause a strong flow. Moreover, Asthma can be cured by putting a cat near the

throat and the chest and at the same time reciting a prayer.Sore eyes can be cured by

washing the eyes with the first urine early in the morning.

A child who plays with fallen unripe coconuts will suffer body swelling.

Philippine beliefs and superstition have grown in number throughout the various regions

and provinces in the country. These beliefs have come from the different saying and

superstitions of our ancestors that aim to prevent danger from happening or to make a person

refrain from doing something in particular. These beliefs are part of our culture, for one

derives their beliefs from the influences of what their customs, traditions and culture have

14

dictated to explain certain phenomena or to put a scare in people. Some are practiced

primarily because Filipinos believe that there is nothing to lose if they will comply with these

beliefs. The following are some of the different superstitions in the Philippines.

Chapter III

Research Design and Methodology

A. Research Design

15

This study was done in accordance to the descriptive-analytic method of research. In this

study, researchers endeavored to describe and reflect the views of the respondents with regards

to their Superstitious beliefs and how it affects their health practices and traditions. The

researchers have used Sample surveys to materialize the study. The surveys used in this study

covers diverse queries in connection to the culture of Filipino Superstitions and its effect to the

health practices and traditions of the students of the Western Mindanao State University.

B. Respondents

This study determines to know the magnitude of the belief of WMSU students to

Filipino superstitions and its effects on the subjects’ decision making with regards to health

practices and traditions. According to Slovin’s formula (1960), fifty respondents (50) or

subjects will be needed in this study. The researchers used quota sampling to obtain respondents

for this study. The gathered respondents for this study were Fifty (50) students from the

Western Mindanao State University Campus A. The respondents were selected accordingly as

they were fitted to be the focus of this study.

C. Research Instrument

The method done to gather information from subjects was through survey. The

researchers have prepared twelve (12) questions to express the idea, views and personal

opinions of the subjects to the matter being studied. A survey questionnaire that aims to gather

data was created by the researchers in order to know the effects of the belief in superstitions to

the decision making of the subjects with regards to health practices and its correlation to some

personal and environmental variables such as socio-economic background, educational

attainment and distinctive community and religious links.

16

The questions in this study was answered through checking the box that corresponds to

yes (if the answer is yes) and checking the box that corresponds to no (if the answer is no).

Moreover, there are questions that requires the personal information of the client (name is

optional) and personal views should be cited by the client through a short sentence or phrase in

order for the researches to know the effect of Filipino superstitions to the health practices and

traditions of the students of the Western Mindanao State University.

D. Treatment of the Data

This study was materialized and constructed by the researches in a short period of time

only. To further the analyzing of the data, the information gathered in this study was

congregated by the researches through survey, tallying and presenting the data gathered in

charts.

CHAPTER IV

Presentation and Interpretation of Data

17

In the progression of the survey, the researchers were able to gather 50 respondents

from the Western Mindanao State University Campus A through quota sampling. Presentations

of the data gathered are as follows:

I. Personal Profile

Distribution of the respondent's genders

MalesFemaleLGBT

The majority of the respondents in this study were females followed by males and a

few from the LGBT community.

Distribution of the respondents’ objective class standing

18

Males 17Female 30LGBT 3

Excellent

Very Satisfactory

Ssatisfactory

Poor

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

Among the fifty student respondents of this study, 34 of them answered they received

satisfactory (Most grades are 2.5-2.75) remarks, followed by 11 students who answered they

received very satisfactory (Most grades are 1.75-2.0) grades, next with 4 students with Poor

(Most grades are 3.0 and lower) remarks and lastly, 1 student answered to be recipient of

grades between 1.0 – 1.5 or excellent.

19

Distribution of Respondents Engaging in Extrcurricular Activities

YesNo

Yes 15No 35

Distribution of the monthly family income of the respondents

50,000 and above

25,000-49,000

10,000 - 24,000

5,000-9,000

5,000 below

0 5 10 15 20 25

20

II. Survey Form

Distribution of respondents who believe in Superstitions

Yes 30No 20

In the survey form, the researchers included the question “Do you believe in Superstitions?” and among the fifty respondents, thirty students checked Yes and on the other hand, 20 students checked No.

21

Distribution of belief influence

Family

Friends

Peers

School

Neighbor

Hearsay

Culture

Media

0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

In the chart, it is evident that the main source and foundation for the belief of superstitions is the family, seconded by friends and culture, third is neighbor/community, 4th is Media and peers, while tied on the last are Hearsay and School.

Distribution of respondents in the production of a tangible end result in their beliefs

Yes 32No 18

22

Distribution of respondents who believe that su-perstitions can help in the progression of Nursing

Practice in the Philipines

Yes 20No 30

Distribution of respondents who believe that Su-perstitions affect their lifestyle and health practices

Yes 27No 23

23

CHAPTER V

Results and Conclusion

Superstition has its own place in every nation and ethnicity. Even, today, that we can

predict most of the events and happenings, and look into them from a scientific point of view,

there are still some people who believe in the superstitious beliefs remaining from their ancestors

and transfer these beliefs using the process of cultural acceptance and socialization to their

children. For this purpose, the true understanding of this issue can be very useful for the process

of socialization.

In this study conducted by the researchers titled “The Culture of Filipino Superstitious

beliefs and its influence in the health themes of WMSU students”, it was found out that belief in

superstitions is prevalent and present in the Western Mindanao State University. In the survey

questionnaires, the researcher found out the diversity and variation of reasons as to why the

respondents have this distinct belief ranging from influences within the family and community to

stimulus from peer groups and media. Also, according to our gathered information, more than

half of the subjects responded that belief in superstitions has affected their lifestyle and health

practices one way or another. This can be seen more in women with their health practices

regarding women issues that encompasses hygiene and self-care routine during their menstrual

period, and in men in their hygiene practices as well.

In this study, the researchers found out that despite the educational attainment of the

respondents and their involvement in extra-curricular activities, they believed in superstitions

and which is being reflected in their lifestyle and health practices. The majority of the

respondents in this study have an objective class standing of Satisfactory (Most grades are 2.5-

2.75) which implies that students with lower grades are more prone to the belief of superstitions.

The root of the superstition is the ignorance and the lack of knowledge in the human being. The

mind of the ignorant and less educated people does not have enough ability to analyze the

encountered problems and usually these people are looking for the easiest way, which is not

necessarily the most accurate solution, to solve the problems. Superstitions are among these

24

solutions. Therefore, as the knowledge and the education of the people in the society increase,

their tendency to superstition and help from such solution decreases.

Furthermore, the majority of the respondents in this study are individuals coming from

families with an average monthly income of 10,000 -24,000 pesos and below. One of the indexes

of the public welfare is high income level for the people of the society. The findings of this study

revealed that people with a higher income are less inclined to the superstitions than people with

lower incomes. However, when asked if any of the superstitions will help in the progression of

the Nursing practice in the Philippines, they answered No. This simply implies that Filipino

recipients do not want to rely on superstitions for their nursing care.

The results of this study showed that those individuals who aren’t at the level of

satisfaction with their lives are more inclined to the notion of luck , and they seek help in the

notion of luck, and they do not know that this supposed help is but a façade of false mirage and

phantasm. The more an individual feel low and helpless, the more he/she will be inclined to the

notion of luck and beliefs in superstitions.

The information gained from this study is a significant statistic that can be used to

promote the rational action and the deletion of the emotional and traditional action as much as

possible in the social domains within the university. Moreover, it is an eye-opener to the WMSU

family in the need to improve the students’ knowledge level with the promotion of study and

participation in scientific and research activities.

25

Bibliography

UP-ISMED. Philippine Folk Science, Katutubong Agham ng Pilipinas. Quezon City:

Pundasyon sa Pagpapaunlad Kaalaman sa Pagturo ng Agham, Ink., 2000.

Sta. Romana–Cruz, Neni. Don’t Take a Bath on a Friday: Philippine Superstitions and

Folk Beliefs. Manila: Tahanan Books, 1996.

Vyse, Stuart A (2000). Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition. Oxford,

England: Oxford University Press. pp. 19–22.

Benedictus de Spinoza, Tractatus Theologico-Politicus, namely the preface.

Wilson, Helen Judy; Reill, Peter Hanns. Encyclopedia of the Enlightenment. New York:

Facts on File Inc. p. 577.

Skinner, B. F. (1948). "'Superstition' in the Pigeon". Journal of Experimental Psychology

38 (2): 168–172.

Staddon, J. E. & Simmelhag, V. L. (1971). "The 'supersitition' experiment: A

reexamination of its implications for the principles of adaptive behaviour". Psychological

Review 78 (1): 3–43.

Kokko, Hanna (2009). "The evolution of superstitious and superstition-like behaviour".

Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 276 (1654): 31–7.

Fojas, Felix (2010) “Superstitious beliefs of Filipinos” Wordpress.

26