Research says quarter of UK has had ‘ghostly encounter’

March 4, 2011 by Nataly in Misc

A recent research survey shows that 25 percent of British adults, or about 11 million UK adults, claim to have had a ghostly encounter.

Professor Richard Wiseman of the University of Hertfordshire in the UK, who led the research, is considered to be a leader in psychology and paranormal investigations.

In the 1950s, the figure was just 7 percent, rising to 14 percent in the 1990s and 19 percent in 2003.

Although Professor Wiseman doesn’t believe in ghosts himself, he thinks that TV is to blame for the large number of wraiths and bumps in the night that are being reported. He thinks that shows such as Ghost Hunters, Most Haunted and Famous And Frightened have raised the popularity of ghosts on television attracting large numbers of fans.

“It’s a surprisingly high figure, and it’s interesting that the proportion of people who say they believe in ghosts has remained the same as it has been for many years, which is about a third,” Prof Wiseman said.

“My only thought is that, because there have been a lot of ghost shows on TV, people may just be more likely to attribute certain experiences, like hearing creaky floorboards, to ghosts. All these shows are feeding off the perception that these things actually exist and not looking at the psychological perspective.”

Prof Wiseman produced a ‘ghost map’ of Britain showing that the largest number of ghostly goings-on – experienced by up to 30 percent of the population – were reported in Yorkshire and Humberside, the East Midlands and Wales.

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