Stuart Vyse Ph.D

About

Stuart Vyse, Ph.D, author of Believing in Magic: The Psychology of Superstition, winner of the William James Book Award of the American Psychological Association, and Going Broke: Why Americans Can’t Hold On To Their Money, an analysis of the current epidemic of personal debt. He also an online contributor for the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry.

Books by Stuart Vyse Ph.D

Recent Posts

Boyhood and the Judgment of Artistic Value

As viewers, we are not entirely unconscious dreamers. When we sleep we are often able to stand apart from the action of our dreams and recognize that the chaotic story we are witnessing is not real. This kind of double consciousness is always true of our experience of art. When we watch or read or listen to a fictional story, we know it is a fiction.

Halloween and the Mad Scientist Problem

In traditional portrayals, scientists are thought to have stolen forbidden knowledge from the gods or lost their humanity in some unholy Faustian bargain. Mary Shelley’s rarely remembered alternative title for "Frankenstein" was "The New Prometheus."

What if the Hot Hand Wasn't a Fallacy?

Three recent Harvard grads conducted a study that challenges 30 years of research and suggests that basketball players really do have hot streaks.

Denying Determinism

So why is human behavior so special? Does it make sense that we alone should stand apart from the rest of nature? Is it reasonable to think that humans possess a non-material mind that makes decisions for the material body but is itself not caused or determined by anything else? A ghostly entity floating above the ordinary clockwork of biology and physics.

Five Reasons Why the Red Sox Grew Their Beards

The 2013 Boston Red Sox are famously bearded in an effort to bring on a winning season. Where does this kind of team superstition come from and can it possibly help?

Friday the 13th Wrap-up

The news media loves Friday the 13th, and this month was no exception. Some of the notable superstitions uncovered just in time for September 13.

She Loves Me, She Loves Me Not

Normally we do everything we can to eliminate uncertainty in our lives, but sometimes, when we see no other way to control the situation, a magical roll of the dice can be just the thing we are looking for.

When Hope Becomes Belief

When we want something badly enough, we sometimes act as if we were wizards with magical powers. Why are we superstitious? What is the appeal of the paranormal? Is magical thinking good or bad?