Even in secular Denmark, supernatural beliefs remain surprisingly common, study finds

Despite Denmark’s reputation as one of the most secular and scientifically literate countries in the world, new research has found that a surprising number of Danes continue to believe in supernatural phenomena. The findings, published in Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences, suggest that the tendency to believe in spiritual forces, psychic essences, and magical thinking remains widespread even in a highly educated and irreligious society.

“I’m interested in how the mind works and how various types of cognitive bias can sometimes be advantageous and sometimes make us see patterns that aren’t real and to see causal agents where there are none,” explained study author Ken Ramshøj Christensen, an associate professor at Aarhus University.

“Inspired by earlier, primarily American, surveys on supernatural belief that showed striking high levels of isolated supernatural belief, we wanted to find out how widespread different types of supernatural belief is in Denmark, which is otherwise a highly secular country, and to look for potential correlations between different types of belief, i.e. patterns, which most other surveys haven’t done.”

The research team surveyed 2,204 adults from across Denmark using an anonymous online questionnaire that circulated through Facebook, Twitter, and online forums. The survey ran from November 2017 to February 2018 and asked participants to respond to 39 belief-related items using a five-point scale ranging from strong disbelief to strong belief.

Participants indicated their beliefs in a variety of domains: spirituality, supernatural forces, aliens, conspiracy theories, and science. The questions touched on topics such as telepathy, crystal healing, reincarnation, astrology, vaccines, angels, ghosts, and scientific explanations of the universe. The researchers also gathered demographic data, including biological sex, age, education level, and religious identification.

Although the sample was not randomly selected, it was demographically broad and aligned reasonably well with the national population in terms of age and education. The researchers then conducted statistical analyses to examine how belief levels varied across different groups and whether the beliefs clustered in meaningful ways.

The results revealed that supernatural beliefs remain widespread in Denmark, though their prevalence varies by topic. While only a tiny fraction of participants endorsed belief in vampires (0.3%) or zombies (0.6%), belief in a “psychic essence” or soul was endorsed by over 30% of respondents. Roughly 12% said they believed in angels, while around 14% reported belief in astrology. About 25% believed in dream interpretation as a meaningful way to understand the subconscious.

“I found it a bit surprising that 12.3% said they believe in angels, and 10.1% weren’t sure; that’s almost 1 in 5 in total,” Christensen told PsyPost. “For ghost, it’s almost 1 in 4. It’s also interesting that while astrology is popular, only few say they actually believe in it.”

The researchers found that these beliefs were not randomly distributed but tended to fall into coherent clusters. For example, belief in angels often co-occurred with belief in ghosts, reincarnation, and psychic energy, forming what the researchers described as a “spirituality” cluster. Beliefs in clairvoyance, magic, tarot, and crystal healing formed another distinct group, which the researchers called “magical thinking.” Beliefs in alien visitors and vaccine-related conspiracy theories were also correlated and formed part of what the authors labeled “openness to alternative explanations.”

In contrast, belief in scientific explanations—such as human evolution by natural selection or the usefulness of science for explaining mental and emotional life—tended to be negatively correlated with supernatural and magical beliefs. In other words, the more someone believed in scientific reasoning, the less likely they were to believe in paranormal forces, and vice versa.

The researchers also examined how demographic characteristics were linked to belief patterns. One of the strongest predictors was sex. Women were significantly more likely than men to report belief in supernatural ideas across nearly every category, including spirituality, magical thinking, and paranormal phenomena. Men, on the other hand, scored higher in belief in science.

This sex difference might relate to average differences in cognitive style, according to the researchers. For instance, women tend to score higher on empathizing traits—such as understanding others’ emotions—while men tend to score higher on systemizing traits, such as analyzing rules and patterns. These tendencies may affect how people interpret ambiguous events or engage with belief systems.

Education level also played a role. Participants with more years of education tended to report slightly lower levels of supernatural belief, especially in spirituality, conspiracy theories, and magical thinking. However, this effect was small. The researchers noted that while education may offer tools for critical thinking, it does not entirely override cognitive biases or intuitive reasoning.

Religiosity was another strong predictor. People who identified as religious—whether Christian or another tradition—were significantly more likely to endorse supernatural beliefs. Those with no religious affiliation reported the lowest levels of belief in paranormal and spiritual phenomena and the highest levels of belief in science. Still, the boundaries were not absolute. Some nonreligious individuals endorsed belief in concepts like psychic energy or angels, suggesting that supernatural beliefs are not confined to formal religious systems.

Age, by contrast, was not a significant factor. The researchers found no meaningful relationship between a participant’s age and their tendency to believe in supernatural ideas or scientific explanations.

The findings offer insights into how cultural and biological factors work together to influence belief. Even in a society like Denmark—known for its secular values and widespread education—supernatural ideas remain embedded in the population.

“Even though almost two thirds of our participants said they didn’t have any religious belief, there was a fair amount of belief in spirituality and the supernatural, including spirits, ghosts, angels, and telepathy,” Christensen explained. “And length of education only has a tiny effect on supernatural belief. Above all, there was a clear sex difference: More women than men are religious, and women are also significantly more likely to believe in the supernatural. All of this, we think, can be explained in terms of evolved predispositions.”

While the study offers a detailed look at supernatural belief in a secular context, there are limitations. The sample was not randomly selected, and certain regions of Denmark were overrepresented, which could introduce bias. The cross-sectional nature of the study also means it cannot capture how beliefs change over time.

“It would be interesting to see whether the belief in various supernatural phenomena is rising, and whether the correlation patterns are changing, which would require replicating our study,” Christensen said.

Still, the researchers argue that the large sample size and the consistency of findings with existing research strengthen the conclusions. Future studies could examine whether supernatural beliefs are increasing or decreasing in different societies, how they respond to major cultural events, or whether education systems can shape these beliefs in lasting ways.

The results also suggest a need to explore the psychological functions that supernatural beliefs might serve, especially when they are not tied to organized religion. Beliefs in spirits, angels, or intuitive healing may offer emotional comfort, community identity, or a sense of control—particularly during uncertainty.

The study, “Evolved Minds in a Secular World: A Large-Scale Survey of Supernatural Beliefs in Denmark,” was authored by Ken Ramshøj Christensen and Mathias Clasen.