Research Article
Open access
Published on 26 November 2024
Download pdf
Peng,L. (2024). Divination Reimagined: The Impact of Online Platforms on Traditional Beliefs among Chinese Netizens. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,73,135-140.
Export citation

Divination Reimagined: The Impact of Online Platforms on Traditional Beliefs among Chinese Netizens

Liangyu Peng *,1,
  • 1 University of Sydney

* Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

https://doi.org/10.54254/2753-7048/73/20241055

Abstract

The culture of divination has a large fan base from ancient times to the present day. Whether it's offline fortune-telling or online through the so-called "a few cards to tell your future fortune", people are fascinated by the ability to "foretell the future" brought by divination. With the help of social media, the fame of fortune-telling has skyrocketed. The enthusiasm of Chinese netizens for the current online craze for divination is only increasing, from seeking guidance from online gurus to consulting AIs themselves for divination and interpretation, and as the Internet continues to diversify, traditional forms of divination are transforming into digital formats. This paper will dissect the psychological and practical reasons for this craze by linking numerous sociological and psychological references, comparative arguments and real-world cases. Finally, from the perspective of future social development and cultural inheritance, the importance of balancing the secondary and tertiary dimensions is proposed, pointing out that online divination, as a tool to assist people in decision-making or provide directionality, should help individuals focus on reality and contribute to social progress.

Keywords

Divination, Psychology, Sociology, Digital Media.

[1]. Boyer, P. (2020). Why divination? Evolved psychology and strategic interaction in the production of truth. Current Anthropology, 61(1), 100-123.

[2]. Schmiedl, A. (2023). “A Living Tradition”: Tracing Chinese Character Divination from Imperial China to Contemporary Taiwan. Monumenta Serica, 71(2), 303–335.

[3]. Mason, O. J., & Budge, K. (2011). Schizotypy, self-referential thinking and the Barnum effect. Journal of Behavior Therapy and Experimental Psychiatry, 42(2), 145–148.

[4]. Gonthier, C., & Thomassin, N. (2024). Getting Students Interested in Psychological Measurement by Experiencing the Barnum Effect. Teaching of Psychology, 0(0)

[5]. Seth Flaxman, Sharad Goel, Justin M. Rao, Filter Bubbles, Echo Chambers, and Online News Consumption, Public Opinion Quarterly, Volume 80, Issue S1, 2016, Pages 298–320

[6]. Fink, J. K. (2022). Archetypal Tarot. Jung Journal, 16(2), 62–74.

[7]. Turkle, S. (2011). Alone together : why we expect more from technology and less from each other. Basic Books.

[8]. Carleton, R. N. (2016). Fear of the Unknown: One Fear to Rule them All? Journal of Anxiety Disorders, 41, 5–21.

[9]. Yin, D., Mitra, S., & Zhang, H. (2016). When do consumers value positive vs. negative reviews? An empirical investigation of confirmation bias in online word of mouth. Information Systems Research, 27(1), 131–144.

[10]. Kappes, A., Harvey, A. H., Lohrenz, T., Montague, P. R., & Sharot, T. (2020). Confirmation bias in the utilization of others’ opinion strength. Nature Neuroscience, 23(1), 130–137.

[11]. Rickwood, D. J., Deane, F. P., and Wilson, C. J. (2007). When and how do young people seek professional help for mental health problems? Med. J. Aust. 187, S35–S39.

[12]. Zeitlyn, D. (2021). Divination and Ontologies: A Reflection. Social Analysis, 65(2), 139-160. Retrieved Jul 21, 2024, fromhttps://doi.org/10.3167/sa.2021.650208

[13]. Tovar, M., Rosillo, M., Spaniardi, A. (2023). Social Media’s Influence on Identity Formation and Self Expression. In: Spaniardi, A., Avari, J.M. (eds) Teens, Screens, and Social Connection. Springer, Cham.

[14]. Wood, M.A., Bukowski, W.M. & Lis, E. The Digital Self: How Social Media Serves as a Setting that Shapes Youth’s Emotional Experiences. Adolescent Res Rev 1, 163–173 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40894-015-0014-8

[15]. Festinger, L. (1954). A Theory of Social Comparison Processes. Human Relations (New York), 7(2), 117–140. https://doi.org/10.1177/001872675400700202

[16]. Nabi, R. L., Pérez Torres, D., & Prestin, A. (2017). Guilty Pleasure No More: The Relative Importance of Media Use for Coping With Stress. Journal of Media Psychology, 29(3), 126–136. https://doi.org/10.1027/1864-1105/a000223

[17]. Kashdan, T. B., & Rottenberg, J. (2010). Psychological flexibility as a fundamental aspect of health. Clinical Psychology Review, 30(7), 865–878. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpr.2010.03.001

Cite this article

Peng,L. (2024). Divination Reimagined: The Impact of Online Platforms on Traditional Beliefs among Chinese Netizens. Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media,73,135-140.

Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study will be available from the authors upon reasonable request.

Disclaimer/Publisher's Note

The statements, opinions and data contained in all publications are solely those of the individual author(s) and contributor(s) and not of EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s). EWA Publishing and/or the editor(s) disclaim responsibility for any injury to people or property resulting from any ideas, methods, instructions or products referred to in the content.

About volume

Volume title: Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Global Politics and Socio-Humanities

Conference website: https://2024.icgpsh.org/
ISBN:978-1-83558-715-7(Print) / 978-1-83558-716-4(Online)
Conference date: 20 December 2024
Editor:Enrique Mallen, Ifa Khan
Series: Lecture Notes in Education Psychology and Public Media
Volume number: Vol.73
ISSN:2753-7048(Print) / 2753-7056(Online)

© 2024 by the author(s). Licensee EWA Publishing, Oxford, UK. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license. Authors who publish this series agree to the following terms:
1. Authors retain copyright and grant the series right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgment of the work's authorship and initial publication in this series.
2. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the series's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgment of its initial publication in this series.
3. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See Open access policy for details).