Glenn Wilson, Visiting Gresham Professor of Psychology

1

COSMIC INFLUENCES ON BEHAVIOUR

• Glenn Wilson, Visiting Gresham Professor of
  Psychology

2
WHO BELIEVES IN ASTROLOGY?

• Around a quarter of people in Anglo-American
  countries believe in astrology (women more than
  men).
• Those high on neuroticism are more likely to
  read their horoscope.
• Belief in astrology declined between 2000 and
  2005 but is now increasing among young new age
  people.
• Around 60 of 18-25 yr- olds in US now believe
  (Nat. Science Foundation), while traditional
  religious belief is plunging among young people.

3
SUN-SIGNS AND PERSONALITY

• There is no relationship between natal charts,
  sun-signs and personality (Carlson, 1985
  Hartmann et al, 2006).
• Groups matched for planetary alignment at birth
  show no similarity in personality (Steyn, 2013).
• People familiar with their sun-sign and its
  supposed traits think their horoscope is more
  accurate (Fichten Sunerton, 1983).
• The self-concept of believers is influenced by
  knowing their expected personality traits (Van
  Rooij, 1999).
• People believe more if their sign goes with
  favourable traits (Hamilton, 2001). Sceptics
  given favourable horoscopes become more positive
  in their opinion of astrology (Glick et al, 1989).

4
THE BARNUM EFFECT

• Named after P.T. Barnham, American circus
  manager credited with saying theres one born
  every minute.
• Astrologers and fortune tellers exploit
  statements about personality that ring true to
  nearly everyone.
• To others you appear self-confident but inside
  you feel much uncertainty.
• You are a highly creative person but people
  fail to appreciate your true talents.
• Acceptance of bogus personality descriptions is
  highest for vague, ambiguous and flattering
  statements.

5
THE MARS EFFECT

• In the 1950s, French psychologist Michel
  Gauquelin claimed that eminent sports stars and
  military men were born disproportionately when
  Mars was rising above the horizon or just past
  its culmination.
• Similar relationships were reported for actors in
  relation to Jupiter (jovial) and scientists
  with Saturn (saturnine).
• Effect seemed to apply only to natural births
  (not those induced).
• Studies with newer samples were progressively
  less able to replicate the Mars Effect (Kurtz et
  al, 1997).

Position of Mars at birth of eminent sportsmen
according to M.Gauquelin.
6
SOCIAL ARTIFACTS

• Detailed analysis by Dean (2002) showed that the
  Mars Effect (and other planetary influences)
  could be accounted for by self-attribution and
  parental adjustment of birth details.
• Parents avoided midnight when registering their
  childs birth, tilting the date to the auspicious
  side. Christian feasts, full moon and lucky
  days (1st, 3rd 7th) were favoured, against
  witches sabbats, new moon unlucky days (9th,
  13th last). This information could be gleaned
  from widely read almanacs.

7
SHEEP v. GOATS

• Research on people who believe in the paranormal
  (sheep) compared with those who do not (goats)
  reveals certain personality differences.
• Sheep are higher in Openness to experience and
  lower in Conscientiousness than goats.
  Traditionally religious people show the reverse
  traits (Miklousic et al, 2012) - more
  conscientious and less open.
• Sheep are inclined to various schizoid traits
  and the use of recreational drugs - new age
  tendencies (Swami et al, 2011).

8
BOUNDARIES OF THE MIND

• Thalbourne (2009) describes paranormal belief as
  a form of transliminality blurring of fantasy
  and reality and propensity to enjoy altered
  states of consciousness.
• Paranormal beliefs are associated with the same
  reasoning biases as those underlying psychotic
  delusions (Irwin et al, 2012).
• Persinger (2001) implicates temporal lobe
  electro-sensitivity in people who have anomalous
  experiences, similar to complex partial seizures
  in the amygdala and hippocampus.

9
LUNACY

• 43 of people believe the full moon causes
  erratic behaviour even higher for mental health
  professionals emergency workers (Vance, 1995).
• Scientific evidence is elusive. A meta-analysis
  of 37 lunar-lunacy studies involving psychiatric
  admissions crisis calls, accidents, murder and
  suicide (Rotton Kelly, 1985) found no
  consistent effects of moon phases. Likewise a
  review of 20 studies on suicide (Martin et al,
  1993).
• Odd positive results continue to be reported
  (Parmar et al, 2014) but effect sizes are tiny at
  best.

10
WHEN THE DOG BITES

• Wolves are supposed to be more active at full
  moon. Not actually so, because prey is concealed
  (Sabato et al, 2006). Baying at the moon is a
  mating call rather than hunting-related.
• An A E study in Bradford reported that
  admissions for animal bites were twice as
  frequent at full moon (Bhattacharjee et al,
  2000).
• However, an Australian study failed to replicate
  (Chapman Morrell, 2000).

11
LYCANTHROPY

• Rare clinical condition individual believes
  he/she is changing into a wolf (or some other
  animal) or behaves as though they are.
• Roots in werewolf legends and fictional works
  like Jekyll Hyde but still seen in modern times
  (Keck et al, 1988).
• May appear as a form of multiple-personality
  disorder, an empowerment fantasy or a psychotic
  delusion.
• Projection of sexual/aggressive instincts onto
  an animal (Garlipp et al, 2004), or just a
  convenient excuse for letting out the animal in
  oneself?
• One case was connected with damage to
  proprioceptive brain areas (Moselhy, 1999).
• If people believe the moon changes them there is
  bound to be some self-fulfilling prophecy.

12
MOON TROUBLE

• Belief in power of the moon is confirmed by
  tidal pull (even though gravitational effects on
  brain are tiny and same for new moon).
• Reinforced by myths/horror stories/movies
• throughout history.
• Selective recall when a bizarre event occurs
  together with a full moon it is planted in memory
  (no perceived link if moon is new).
• Moonlight is romantic illumination is subtle,
  mysterious, and optimal for mischievous activity
  (e.g. full-moon parties in Thailand).
• Monthly female cycle is coincidental (not same
  for all primates) but women with 30-day cycles
  may lock onto moon phases, menstruating mostly
  when full. Such women are particularly fertile
  (Cutler et al, 1987).

13
SLEEP DISRUPTION

• Beliefs about lunacy at full moon could have
  arisen because, historically, sleep deprivation
  sparked erratic behaviour in vulnerable
  individuals (e.g., manic and epileptic episodes).
  Modern studies dont find because artificial
  lighting has obscured lunar light variations
  (Raison et al, 1999).
• Poor sleep at full moon (as measured by EEG and
  melatonin as well as self-report) has been
  observed in a sealed sleep lab where moonlight
  was not seen (Cajochen et al 2013). Endogenous
  lunar cycle, or perhaps subjects aware of moon
  phases from diary.

14
SEASON OF BIRTH

• Birth season effects on health and behaviour are
  well documented .
• Humans unusual in breeding fairly evenly across
  year (esp. industrial society). Preferred temp.
  for conception about 12C in morning, hence slight
  peaks in April/November (Europe US).
• Best time to be born is autumn - life span about
  160 days longer than spring (reversed in
  S.Hemisphere.) Centenarians more often born
  Sept/Nov their siblings in March.
• Spring corresponds with winter foetal
  development.
• Schizophrenia about 10 more common in winter
  births (compared with summer).

Winter birth has been linked with schizophrenia,
biopolar disorder, creativity and left-handedness.
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DONT BE BORN IN SPRING

• Many medical conditions greater for certain
  birth months (esp. spring), with reversals in the
  Southern Hemisphere (Foster Roenneberg, 2008).

16
POSSIBLE MECHANISMS

• (1) Poorer nutrition and more infectious
  diseases in winter running up to spring birth
  (Currie Schwandt, 2013).
• (2) Vitamin D depends largely on sunlight -
  deficient during winter at high latitudes and may
  affect foetal development.
• (3) The perinatal light-dark cycle permanently
  imprints the biological clock in rats, affecting
  activity cycles for life (Ciarieglio et al, 2011)
• (4) Allergens vary by season (more pollen in
  spring/summer).
• (5) Deprived mothers give birth more in months
  with worst outcomes. More teenagers/unmarried
  mothers in winter (Buckles Hungerman, 2013).
• (6) Summer-born children academically
  disadvantaged because younger than classmates
  (Bell Daniels, 1990).

The suprachiasmic nucleus and pineal gland
control many body clocks, with light inhibiting
secretion of melatonin.
17
MATERNAL MELATONIN

• Professional baseball players (esp. biggest
  hitters) show distinct seasonality (excess born
  in November fewer than expected in May).
  Lesbians show the same pattern and gay men the
  opposite (Marzullo, 2014).
• The 4th month of pregnancy (critical for sexual
  dimorphism) would occur at the summer solstice
  for November births and mid-winter for May
  births.
• Marzullo hypothesises that sunlight suppresses
  maternal melatonin in mid-summer, unleashing
  foetal testosterone (vice-versa in winter).

18
SOLAR ACTIVITY

• Sunspots cycle over 11 years. Associated with
  more intense geomagnetic activity. Affect
  communications on Earth, and there is
  (controversial) evidence that EM activity also
  affects human behaviour and health via brain or
  epigenetics (Lucock, 2012).
• Anxiety, depression suicide are most often
  implicated (Tada et al, 2014) also temporal
  lobe seizures, hallucinations, UFO sightings, and
  sundry paranormal phenomena (Lipnicki, 2009,
  Saroka et al, 2014).
• Not always clear whether high or low EM activity
  is responsible and many sources of variation
  apart from Sun.

Solar activity follows an 11-yr cycle, which may
be diminishing ahead of a reversal of Suns
polarity.
19
CRYPTOCHROMES

• Plants, insects and some animals (e.g., birds,
  turtles) are equipped with primitive
  blue-sensitive photoreceptor proteins that
  contribute to biological clocks and sense
  magnetic fields to assist in navigation.
• Cryptochromes and magneto-sensation could also
  affect human behaviour via the pineal gland and
  melatonin. Disturbances in consciousness would
  likely involve the hypothalamic/pituitary stress
  system (Close, 2012).
• Research currently in infancy but exciting field
  for future.

20
SUMMARY

• No evidence for any planetary effect on human
  behaviour, either linked with time of birth or
  otherwise.
• Moons gravity has no effect and moon phases
  very little (hardly detectable to casual
  observer).
• Season of birth effects on health are real,
  particularly for those living away from the
  equator.
• Solar storms and geomagnetism may have subtle
  disruptive effects on behaviour but research is
  controversial.
• Superstitious beliefs stem from illogicality and
  a loose grip on reality.
• Can be dangerous when important decisions are
  based on them.

Donald Regan confirmed that President Reagan was
influenced by the occult prognostications of
Nancys astrologer.