Uncommon Knowledge
Tom StandageHow many Americans believe in ghosts?
Halloween in America is a multi-billion-dollar industry.
Each year some 175m Americans spend a total of $9 bn dressing up as ghouls, witches and monsters; spraying fake cobwebs over their homes; and wolfing down horror-themed candy.
But what, if anything, remains of the original Gaelic belief that spirits can haunt? On behalf of The Economist, YouGov, a pollster, asked a representative sample of American adults whether they believed in ghosts. A shocking 47% of respondents said that they did. Around 15% even said they had seen one.
