Paranormal beliefs, schizotypy, and thinking styles among teachers and future teachers

This study examines the psychological correlates of paranormal beliefs among teachers and teachers in training. Teachers are a population of special interest because they may transmit paranormal beliefs to their students. Teacher paranormal beliefs were found to be correlated with cognitive perceptual and disorganized schizotypal thinking and intuitive thinking styles. The overall pattern of the correlations suggests that intuitive thinking style and schizotypal thinking contribute independently to paranormal belief. This study confirms the findings of Wolfradt, Oubaid, Straube, Bischoff, and Mischo (1999) of a statistically significant difference in paranormal belief between thinking style groups, although the effect size was small.