At the beginning of 2019 , I collected a survey of results where I asked people where their beliefs within the paranormal field lay. I found this to be a really interesting yet surprising exercise. A lot of the results were not what I expected. I wanted to revisit this and see if there has been a noticeable shift in the answers given the time that has passed. I realize that the response group is completely different so it is not a direct comparison, but it is an exercise I wanted to revisit again.
Acknowledging the flaws
Now I am fully aware that this survey has many flaws. There is nothing to stop someone from completing the survey twice or even multiple times as it is anonymous and doesn't track IP addresses. It was purposely set up that way as people don't like to have their data collected and also can be free to answer without social media ridicule. I only provided a Yes/No response in an attempt to encourage an answer that was not 'maybe'. It forced people to take a stance, however I did allow the option for them to skip the question if they felt indifferent which a few people did. Obviously, this skews results. I also can't ignore the bias I expected. Being that I am a paranormal blogger who focuses on the spirit world, my first question is: "Do you believe in ghosts/spirits" - well I expected that to have a pretty high yes rate because the people who follow me, obviously have an interest in that area. So not for one minute am I treating this like a properly controlled and measured exercise ready to be picked apart by peer review. Aside from being a little bit of fun, this gives me a bit of a snapshot of where people's beliefs lie. The fun part was comparing these to the same survey I conducted in 2019. It is also worth mentioning the first survey was done in January 2019 VS November 2024, meaning the gap is quite close to 6 years. I guess a lot can change in that timeframe and I think is indicative of where we are in the paranormal field today.
Comparing the results ...
The 2019 survey had a total of 80 respondents. I moved the survey from Survey Monkey to Google Forms which is why it looks different. One thing that hasn't changed is our reluctance to complete surveys! (Also thank you so much to everyone who took the time to do so). In 2024 even which a much larger reach and following than what I had back the, there were 74 respondents as of the 20th of November.
Do you believe in ghosts/spirits?
In 2019, 93.75% voted YES compared to 90.5% in 2019. Of course, this is a difficult question to ask. Some people believe in the activity but don't believe in the general assumption that a ghost is the soul of a person who was once living. In both cases, no one skipped their answers meaning they were pretty sure of their stance.
Do you believe in ghosts/spirits?
In 2019 78.75% were in favour of UFOs and ETs while in 2024 we jumped right up to 90.4%. In 2019 no one skipped this question, however this year someone couldn't answer so skipped it. It is understandable because this as well can be a double-handed question. A UFO is an unidentified flying object. If we don't know what it is, it makes it unidentified. The general assumption here is that a UFO is something that is not of this world and is associated with aliens or Extraterrestrials. In 2019, I was surprised the figure seemed to be only 78.75. For myself, I feel like being that we are just a tiny dot in the entire universe, surely there has to be more out there. I think that sometimes people are influenced by movies and TV which depict UFOs invading the earth, abducting humans, and destroying all humanity. The huge increase one could argue could have something to do with the ground broken in the process of disclosure.
Do you believe in Cryptids such as Yowies, BigFoot etc
In 2019, I found the most surprising results of only 46.25% of people believe that there could be these kinds of creatures. In 2024, this increased to 68% with 3 people skilling the question. Maybe a higher interest in the paranormal and more eyes on this kind of phenomenon has contributed to the strong increase. There are Netflix specials, movies and just a lot more eyes on other areas of the paranormal that do not include Ghost. In my opinion, it is this exposure that has increased the belief scale.
Do you believe in elementals and mystic creatures?
In 2019 58.75% of the respondents voted they believe in magical creatures. In 2024, it is pretty comparative and even though 4 people skipped the question, 57.1% voted Yes. Why has there been a steep incline in things like UFOs and Yowies and not this category? Again I believe that Pop Culture is absolutely playing a role here.
Do you believe in Demons and Demonic possession?
In 2019, 65% of the respondents believed in the demonic. In 2024 this has sharply decreased to 48.6% with 4 people skipping the question. While this in part could be part of religious beliefs, I do find that people are less susceptible to some of the things they see on TV. Again I believe these results are heavily influenced by pop culture. Maybe people have wisened up to some of the hype out there that was perpetuated by some of the popular paranormal TV shows. Another option could also be that the paranormal is much more accessible now than it was even 5-6 years ago. People are going on investigations and realising it is not what they see on TV, and just because they might have a bad feeling, it doesn't mean there is a demon in the room. I do think that with the resources available today right at our fingertips, we are becoming more critical and educated in areas of the paranormal and I feel that these results reflect this. I wonder if in 5 years time these will continue to go down or if they will bounce back up?
Do you believe in Astral Projection?
In 2019, 77.5% voted in favour of astral projection compared to 74.3% in 2024.
Do you believe in reincarnation?
In 2019, 81.25% leaned towards yes while in 2024 it was 79.5% with one person skipping the question. Again pretty much the same.
Do you believe in Psychic Phenomena such as ESP/Telepathy
In 2019 85% believed in this phenomenon while it was 89% in 2024 with one person skipping the question. Interestingly, a lot of people believe this in fact is what causes paranormal activity often interpreted to be a ghost or spirit meaning we are the ghost so I was not surprised to find this figure so high and remain there.
Much like the mythical creatures section, I think these sections haven't really moved for the same reasons. It is not as known in as much of a mainstream basis compared to areas like UFOs and dare I even say Demons. As more and more people expand their research in the field, I would expect categories like this to shift in direction.
Do you believe in clairvoyance and precognition?
In 2019 91.25% believed in this phenomenon with 83.8% in voting yes in 2024. It meant that the next results below surprised me a little.
Do you believe in mediumship?
In 2019, this figure came in at 85% and 79.7% in 2024.
The above 2 sections have dropped a little, but it is their ratio in difference that still has me puzzles as it seems more people believe in clairvoyance and psychic phenomena, but not everyone is convinced with mediums. A lot of people put them in the same basket which is incorrect, so this tells me that people are really understanding the difference.
The results in general do make me question how much our belief can influence the way we research and seek the paranormal. If we don't believe in something, we take more of a sceptical approach to our research. When we believe in something, we tend to misinterpret things to fit our own narrative based on our beliefs. I think sometimes as investigators who are often arguing that people need to be more open-minded, that in a lot of ways, we ourselves are close-minded based on what we believe. In the same way, perhaps we believe there is a ghost or spirit, why couldn't there be a creature such a bigfoot or a mythical creature? I am not saying that there is, but why are the possibilities any different? Every person will have a different answer and rationale to answer this question which again shows us just how much our belief influences us.
Thank you for participating in this survey it was quite interesting. What do you think of the results? Did anything surprise you?
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