Do Americans really believe Friday the 13th is unlucky?

Jamie BallardData Journalist
September 13, 2019, 3:30 PM GMT+0

Friday the 13th is often considered a cursed or unlucky day.

Americans who are superstitious may be especially wary about the occasion. New data from YouGov finds that nearly one in 10 people (9%) say that they’re “very superstitious,” while another 20 percent consider themselves “somewhat superstitious.”

Americans between the ages of 25 and 34 may feel the most anxiety about the date. Nearly a quarter of that age range (23%) said they consider themselves “very superstitious.” Younger and older adults don’t seem as nervous: just 12 percent of 18-24-year-olds said the same, and fewer than 10 percent of all Americans over 35 agreed. Those over 55 years old (43%) are especially likely to say they’re “not at all superstitious.”

Previous YouGov research finds that most Americans don’t believe that Friday the 13th is an unlucky day. About half (52%) say it’s “definitely not” unlucky, while three in 10 (28%) believe it’s “probably not” unlucky. However, 11 percent of people do believe that it’s “definitely” or “probably” an unlucky day.

Men (16%) are about twice as likely as women (8%) to believe that Friday the 13th is unlucky. They’re also more likely to consider themselves superstitious overall - 16 percent of men say they’re “very superstitious” compared with just 2 percent of women who say the same.

As for being lucky or unlucky in general, about four in 10 (41%) say that they’re lucky people. Just 16 percent of Americans consider themselves unlucky, while a plurality (43%) say they don’t know whether they’re lucky or unlucky.

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Image: Getty

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