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It starts when people try something different-Pepsi instead of Coca-Cola, a blue tie instead of the old red one-and find that something good happens. 在一旦尝试了新东西――百事可乐替代可口可乐，用蓝领带替代旧的红领带――之后有好事发生，很多人就会变得迷信起来。 Soon, without realizing it, someone who wouldn't think twice about, say, walking under a ladder or traveling on Friday the 13th begins to associate their new behavior with good luck-and starts reaching for the Pepsi again and again. 那些人虽然毫不介意走在梯子下面、不介意在恰逢13号的周五这天出远门，但他们很快也开始不自觉地将好运气和这些新行为相关联，然后就一听接着一听地喝起了百事可乐。 Such 'conditioned superstitions' can develop when people believe there is something they can do to control a situation, despite there being no rational reason to think so, says Gita Johar, a professor of business at Columbia University who recently co-wrote a paper on the phenomenon. Recent research shows that superstitions that increase the illusion of control can help people find meaning and psychological comfort-and in some cases, even boost performance. 哥伦比亚大学(Columbia University)商业教授乔哈尔(Gita Johar)说，如果人们在没有合理依据的情况下相信他们可以通过做某些事来控制某一局面，这种“条件性迷信”(conditioned superstition) 就产生了。乔哈尔近期曾就这一现象与人合写了一篇论文。近期研究显示，这种能强化控制幻觉的迷信能够帮助人们找到事情的意义，获得心理安慰，有时甚至能提升业绩。 | 
