Superstitions are cultural or personal beliefs that make connections between unrelated items or events and believe them to affect life events. They are also considered beliefs that contradict natural science and logic, or occasionally beliefs that are in opposition to the dominant religion/belief system practiced by the majority of the local population.
For instance, in North America people have traditionally believed that having a black cat cross your path will cause bad luck, or that breaking a mirror will bring 7 years of bad luck.
Another example of a superstition would be an athlete believing that a certain piece of clothing was ‘lucky’ and if they didn’t wear it they wouldn’t win.
Also seen in the Americas is a spiritual rift between Native populations and the European descended population. This is seen where most Europeans follow and use Christian beliefs and look down on the beliefs and traditions of the Native groups as “superstitions.” Likewise, Native tribes continue to practice and believe in their traditional ways and view Christian beliefs as alien and “intrusive.”