The expectation effect, with David Robson
Doing It Right with Pandora Sykes
How Expectation Shapes Behaviour
A group of Lauschen immigrants began dying in their sleep in 1970s America. They had a strong belief in this dangerous demon that dots or which allegedly would visit you at night, sit on your chest and kind of suffocate you to death. So these immigrants who weren't performing the rituals to kind of protect themselves really started to worry that the dumpster was going to come and kill them in their sleep. And then obviously, if you knew someone who had died in their sleep, apparently because of the actions of the dumpster, then you are much more likely to experience yourself. That's the element of contagion there, that actually our fears and worries these negative beliefs can pass from
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