No, it’s basically the belief that you can influence events beyond your control. My mom prays the rosary during flights because she feels it keeps the plane aloft. Lots of neurotypical folks have a bit of magical thinking. It’s not a problem unless you feel it is negatively affecting your life.
How is praying when you’re concerned about something magical thinking? In that case everyone who has any kind of religious or even spiritual beliefs has exhibited magical thinking.
I always thought magical thinking was more abnormal such as believing you could control the weather or that trees could talk to you. (That’s some stuff I’ve experienced)
Believing you can control the weather, maybe? If you thought there were things you did that specifically caused the weather to change. That trees could talk to you, no.
I thought that if I got a new cat and treated her perfectly, my recently deceased cat would come back to life. Sports fans with superstitions about hats, chairs, songs, rituals, engage in magical thinking. It’s basically a fancy term for superstition.
I think I have a bit of magical thinking as part of my delusion. I believe I am telepathic and a medium but brain researchers are preventing me from accessing those skills. That seems magical to me but maybe not. Maybe it’s just way out there but not magical.
Do you think you cause things to happen by thinking or doing other things? Step on a crack, break your mother’s back? Cause someone to die or get injured by thinking wrong thoughts? Have to do certain things in certain ways so nothing bad happens?
That’s magical thinking, as opposed to just delusional thinking. It’s cause and effect centered, based on an early world model that humans had - do a rain dance to control the weather, eat the heart of a lion to gain its strength, etc.
It’s the first step on the magic - religion - science path. Magic is thinking you can control your environment through rituals. Religion is realizing you have no control and having to petition higher powers for what you want. Science is, frankly, magic that works.
I have this habit of saying “The Conservatives lost the general election by 6 goals to 3” whenever I start going into " i think I’m going to have a brain haemorrhage/heart attack" mode .
Why the beeping hell that phrase, I haven’t a clue. I am not sure if you could call that magical thinking or simply daftness.
I’m fond of “US politics should be played between the 35 yard lines,” which is an American football reference. Means that they shouldn’t get too extreme in either direction.
But my calming mantra is, swear to god, “i love my cat so much.” Embarrassing as it gets, but it immediately derails my terrible thoughts and sends them somewhere happier.
My calming phrase is, “You’re okay.” I say it while patting myself on the shoulder. I stole it from one of my students, because it worked so well for him
The study of magic, more so
I’m fond of “US politics should be played between the 35 yard lines,” which is an American football reference. Means that they shouldn’t get too extreme in either direction.
