Nearly two in five Canadians say they believe in haunted houses, research shows

You may have heard stories about the existence of haunted houses, which instill fear in your heart. If you happen to believe in their existence, you’re not alone.

a new survey performed by Research Co. reveals that nearly two in five Canadians believe the haunted house phenomenon is real.

According to research published Friday, there has been a notable increase this year in the number of Canadians who believe buildings may be inhabited by the ghosts of dead people.

The survey found that 39 percent of Canadians say they “definitely” or “probably” believe in haunted houses, indicating a seven-point increase compared to a similar survey conducted in 2021.

“At least two in five residents of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (46 percent), Alberta (40 percent) and Quebec (also 40 percent) believe in haunted houses,” said Mario Canseco, president of Research Co. in a press release published on Friday. “The proportions are lower in Atlantic Canada (38 percent), British Columbia (37 percent) and Ontario (36 percent).”

The research also found that haunted houses are not the only paranormal belief embraced by many Canadians. the ability to obtain information about an object, person, location, or physical event through extrasensory perception.

According to the survey’s findings, 32 percent of Canadians said they believe in mediumship, showing a six-point increase since 2021. There’s also a three-point increase for those who believe in clairvoyance, to 31 percent.

The research shows that women are more likely to believe in these two concepts at 36 percent and 34 percent respectively than men at 28 percent and 29 percent respectively.

In addition, 35 percent of Canadians involved in the survey said they believe in astrology — or studying the motions and relative positions of celestial bodies to make observations about human affairs and terrestrial events — representing a three percent increase in comparison with previous data.

Breaking down the data regionally, 43 percent of people in Saskatchewan and Manitoba and 32 percent of people in Quebec say they believe in astrology.

In Atlantic Canada, 35 percent of people believe in astrology, in Alberta 42 percent, Ontario 38 percent, and British Columbia 27 percent.

The survey also found that fewer Canadians, less than one in five (17 percent), reported paying attention to astrology and 28 percent reported that they used to follow the concept of astrology, but no longer.

The proportion is higher (55 percent) for those who stated that they had never paid attention to astrology.

Methodology:

The results are based on an online survey conducted from June 9 to June 11, 2023 of 1,000 adults in Canada. The data is statistically weighted by Canadian census figures for age, gender and region. The margin of error – which measures sample variability – is +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

Coverage for this story was paid for through the Meta-funded The Afghan Journalists in Residence Project.