Do you believe in ghosts?

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.

(Agencies)