Are you the kind of person who refuses to walk underneath ladders, will not open an umbrella indoors, will habitually throw salt over your left shoulder, avoids cracks in the pavement, and are suspicious of people whose eyebrows meet in the middle? A frightening number of us, who are quite sensible about other aspects of our lives, respond to uncertainty with such superstitious beliefs and actions. Why on earth do we behave in this way? To answer this question, Stuart Vyse examines current behavioural research and shows us that everyday superstitions are the natural result of several well-understood psychological processes. Written in a style that is both entertaining and informative, this book demonstrates how complex, even paradoxical, human behaviour can be understood through scientific investigation.