One-third in AP poll believe in ghosts and UFOs

      Do you believe in ghosts?

      A pre-Halloween poll by The Associated Press and Ipsos shows that 34% of people say they do.

      That's the same proportion who believe in unidentified flying objects. The poll also shows that 19% of people accept the existence of spells or witchcraft.

      And forty-eight percent believe in extrasensory perception, or ESP.

      A smaller but still substantial 23 percent say they have actually seen a ghost, with the most likely candidates for such visits including single people, Catholics and those who never attend religious services.

      Three in 10 have awakened sensing a strange presence in the room.

      Fourteen percent - mostly men and lower-income people - say they have seen a UFO.

      One in five say they are at least somewhat superstitious, with young men, minorities, and the less educated more likely to go out of their way to seek luck. Twenty-six percent of urban residents said they are superstitious, while single men were more superstitious than unmarried women, 31 percent to 17 percent.

      The most admitted-to superstition, by 17 percent, was finding a four-leaf clover. Thirteen percent dread walking under a ladder or the groom seeing his bride before their wedding, while slightly smaller numbers named black cats, breaking mirrors, opening umbrellas indoors, Friday the 13th or the number 13.

      Generally, women were more superstitious than men about four-leaf clovers, breaking mirrors or grooms prematurely seeing brides. Democrats were more superstitious than Republicans over opening umbrellas indoors, while liberals were more superstitious than conservatives over four-leaf clovers, grooms seeing brides and umbrellas.

      The poll, conducted October 16-18, involved telephone interviews with 1,013 adults.

      你相信鬼吗？

      美联社与益普索调查机构在万圣节前开展的一项民意调查显示，34%的受访者称他们信鬼。

      另有相同比例的人相信存在不明飞行物。此外，调查显示，19%的受访者相信世界上存在“魔力。

      48%的人相信“超感知”（指超感官知觉）的存在。

      23%的受访者称他们见过鬼，其中单身人士、天主教徒及从未参加过礼拜仪式的人“见到鬼”的几率最大。

      30%的受访者称他们曾在醒来时感到房间里有奇怪的东西。

      14%的受访者（其中大多数为男性及低收入者）称他们见过不明飞行物。

      五分之一的人称自己多少有点迷信，其中年轻男性、少数民族及教育程度较低的人尤为如此。26%的城镇居民称自己相信迷信；单身男性比单身女性更迷信，比例分别为31%和17%。

      调查显示，相信“发现四叶草能交上好运”的人最多，占受访人数的17%。13%的人认为走在梯子下面会走霉运或新郎新娘在婚礼前见面不吉利。另有一小部分受访者认为黑猫、破裂的镜子、在屋里撑伞、“黑色星期五”、数字13都是不吉利的象征。

      总的来说，女性比男性更迷信四叶草、破裂的镜子及新郎新娘在婚礼前见面等说法；民主党人比共和党人更迷信“在屋里撑伞不吉利”的说法；自由主义人士比保守主义人士更迷信四叶草、新郎新娘在婚礼前见面及在屋里撑伞的说法。

      该项电话调查于本月16日至18日进行，共有1013位成年人参加。