Mind over matter? The cognitive styles of scientific scepticism and paranormal belief

TL;DR

The study explores how scientific and paranormal beliefs relate to different thinking styles, finding two distinct groups based on evidence-based reasoning.

Contribution

The study identifies two cognitive profiles linked to scientific versus paranormal belief using Latent Profile Analysis.

Findings

Higher Evidence-based Thinking (HET) individuals show strong scientific belief and analytical processing.

Lower Evidence-based Thinking (LET) individuals exhibit low scientific belief and high intuitive processing.

Cognitive rigidity does not distinguish between HET and LET profiles.

Abstract

Scientific scepticism, as an epistemic orientation, remains under-researched. This study investigated the interplay between belief in science, supernatural credence, and cognitive processing styles in a sample of 300 participants (Mage = 45.95, SD = 14.32). Traditional (TPB) and New Age (NAP) paranormal beliefs correlated positively with intuitive-experiential measures and negatively with analytical-rational processing indices. Belief in Science showed the inverse pattern of relationships. Latent Profile Analysis (LPA) identified two distinct subgroups: Higher Evidence-based Thinking (HET; 55%), defined by high scientific and low paranormal belief, and Lower Evidence-based Thinking (LET; 45%), characterized by low scientific and high paranormal belief. HET (vs. LET) participants demonstrated significantly greater analytical-rational and lower intuitive-experiential processing. Cognitive rigidity (dogmatism and need for closure) did not differentiate between profiles, suggesting these are belief-neutral characteristics of strongly held convictions. Findings indicated that scientific and paranormal beliefs represent oppositional worldviews associated with distinct, preferred modes of information processing.

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