Astrology is one of the most popular New Age beliefs and is commonly embraced by the general public (national newspapers still feature daily horoscopes, and publicising your zodiac signs is often an option on dating apps). Its popularity persists, despite the fact that there is no scientific evidence to support the idea that astronomical phenomena – such as the stars overhead when you were born or the path of Mercury – influence your personality or daily events in your life. No empirical test has validated this belief, nor is there an established mechanism that would make it plausible (what is it, exactly, about astronomical phenomena that could affect our psychology and lives in the way that astrologists claims?).
The propensity to believe in astrology, in spite of a lack of evidence, has been explained by certain cognitive biases. These include the Barnum effect: a common psychological phenomenon whereby people rate descriptions of their personality – supposedly designed specifically for them – as highly accurate, yet the descriptions are general and vague enough to apply to a wide range of people. Confirmation bias, which plays into the Barnum effect, is involved in belief in astrology too. One seeks out and focuses on information that confirms one’s assumptions (e.g. in a horoscope reading) while ignoring information that contradicts those assumptions. (The comedian Ryan Goodcase showed how confirmation bias underlies belief in astrology during some crowd work.)
Even though there may be no good reason to believe in astrology, there is something appealing and comforting about horoscopes that forecast our future and offer life advice. They offer order, meaning, and purpose to our lives through easily digestible information. During uncertain, complex, or stressful circumstances, astrological explanations can help people feel that life is predictable, clear, and going in a positive direction. While all this seems generally enticing, not everyone is enticed by astrology – since clearly many people reject it as outdated, unfounded, and arbitrary. Many reasons could be offered as to why some people embrace astrology but not others. One overarching reason is our psychological differences.
I specifically want to draw attention to the egocentrism behind astrology. After all, it involves the idea that the stars, moon, and planets have a bearing on your life – that they are relevant to your birth, social life, and finances. Astrology puts humans at the centre of the universe, with astronomical activity influencing our fates. Some people would rather believe that physical phenomena and events are signs for them or influence their behaviour in meaningful ways than accept that they have nothing to do with them. (This egocentric view is understandable of course – and ancient and perennial – as it is comforting to believe in a universe that ‘has you in mind’.) While the self-focused nature of astrology may seem obvious, there is now research that helps explain why this aspect of astrology appeals to some people but not others. A 2022 study published in Personality and Individual Differences found that belief in astrology is associated with higher narcissism.
Commenting on the study, Arash Emamzadeh writes in Psychology Today that “the focus on the self and one’s special place in the universe appeals to narcissists. In addition, certain paranormal and superstitious beliefs—such as narcissists’ beliefs concerning their own supposed superior abilities (e.g., “I’m psychic”)—may also make narcissists feel special and superior.” Indeed, there can be something self-gratifying about believing in one’s abilities to ‘diagnose’ and ‘forecast’ one’s life, and the lives of others, by being in tune with the position of the stars and planets. Believing that one can accurately judge the star sign of someone else, based on meeting them, can also feed into an undue sense of pride and superior ability.
The authors of the study speculate that the link between narcissistic personality and belief in astrology is due to the “self-centered worldview uniting them.” Moreover, they say “cultural aspects of millennials may emphasize the uniqueness of individuals which might lead to a more egocentric view of the world, and thus relate to narcissistic traits.” And finally, “Astrological predictions and horoscopes tend to be positively framed; this reinforces grandiose feelings and thus might appeal even more to narcissists.” Interestingly, the results of the study also showed that narcissists were more likely to assume (erroneously) that astrology is backed up by science. Nonetheless, Emamzadeh cautions:
The reviewed study had a number of limitations, such as a lack of random sampling, participants being mainly young women, and the use of mostly shortened versions of the scales. Therefore, future research needs to replicate the present findings. Until then, we should refrain from drawing strong conclusions about belief in astrology and its association with higher narcissism.
In addition, the sample size was small (264 participants), the online survey was shared on social media, and the survey was done in English. All of this makes it difficult to generalise the results. So we should, of course, wait for future research to better establish links between personality traits and belief in astrology. At the same time, the role of egocentric tendencies does seem relevant. Personality differences aside, the individualistic culture that is prevalent in certain countries may also help explain why belief in astrology is popular in these countries. However, it would be reductionist to say that any single factor, such as one personality trait or one cultural factor, explains the popularity of astrology. Age, gender, education, spirituality, thinking style, attitude, and cognitive ability are all relevant factors. For instance, the 2022 study also linked belief in astrology with lower intelligence. Emamzadeh writes:
[W]hy lower intelligence? Potentially because belief in the paranormal is often associated with a lack of critical thinking. For instance, believers may assume supernatural causality for events and, due to lower intelligence and cognitive ability, fail to adjust their thinking when presented with empirical evidence to the contrary.
Critical thinking involves not just valuing evidence when forming beliefs, and proportioning our beliefs to the evidence available, but also being sensitive to the influence of cognitive biases. This is not to say that disbelievers in astrology are immune to cognitive biases, or that they should feel superior to proponents of astrology (that just encourages egocentricity). I’m mindful that linking astrology to egocentricity and a lack of critical thinking can be an attempt to judge others or feel better about myself for not embracing astrology. Nonetheless, we shouldn’t ignore those links if there is evidence to support them.
Furthermore, I think a positive interpretation of the psychology behind belief in astrology is that beliefs are subject to revision. Everyone is capable of thinking more critically, and egocentricity can be noticed in oneself and tackled. Some parts of ourselves can be difficult to alter, but they’re not immutable. If critical thinking were encouraged, and egocentrism discouraged, we would start to view ourselves as less special. This might feel disenchanting, but it can have real-life benefits, such as an ability to accept uncertainty and a wish to find the true (and typically complex) causes behind who we are and the events in our lives. Reducing our sense of self-importance can also help us feel less isolated and more connected to others.
