Lucky charms

A 2010 study at the University of Cologne found that participants who had a lucky charm with them performed better in a memory test than those who didn’t, while participants who were told someone was ‘pressing their thumbs’ for them (the German equivalent of crossing fingers) experienced greater success in a separate task, requiring manual dexterity. The researchers concluded that activating these positive superstitions improved confidence and led to participants setting themselves greater goals.

Meanwhile a 2013 University of Chicago study found that fear of bad luck really can be reversed by superstitious rituals such as touching wood and throwing salt – or even actions with no superstitions attached, such as throwing a ball away from your body. The scientists behind the study said that actions which felt like physically pushing any perceived bad luck away appeared to be most effective.