अरदास

This study is about people in their formative years. It is about their beliefs and practices. It is about their personality and how it relates to their beliefs. It involves empirical investigation of 1800 college going men (882) and women (918) with an average age of about 20 years. The subjects are predominantly Hindu (85%), with 12% Christian and 3% Muslim student attending colleges in Visakhapatnam urban area. Data were collected from them using the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and the two specially developed questionnaires that survey religiosity and paranormal beliefs and experiences. Paranormal beliefs and experiences surveyed included sacred as well as secular beliefs, experiences, and practices. While several studies in the West attempted to explore the relationships between personality, paranormal beliefs and religious practices and experiences, there are hardly any investigations in non-Judeo-Christian cultures. The present study can help by throwing light on the cross-cultural relevance of these findings