Magical thinking as a socio-psychological phenomenon of spiritual life in the early 21^st century

Department of Humanitarian Disciplines, Admiral Ushakov State Maritime University, 93 Lenin Ave., Novorossiysk, 353924, Russian Federation

^* Corresponding author: alenaserduk@yandex.ru

Abstract

The paper considers the phenomenon of magical thinking as a cognitive-emotional distortion of a person’s perception of objective reality from the standpoint of the doctrine of esotericism. The author analyzes esotericism as a sociocultural and psychological phenomenon. The question of understanding life, finding subjective meaning, understanding and determination of a person’s place in reality and beyond the space that the understanding is able to catch is the main question of philosophy, where esotericism is a specific direction in the process of world perception. In modern society such global events as the pandemic, military conflicts, natural and technogenic disasters influenced the position of a person in terms of understanding of his role in current circumstances. The paper analyzes the transformation of a common vision of a person’s position and role in an objective space, the formation and spread of magical thinking as a result of experiencing the helplessness of a person in large-scale events, an insufficient level of readiness for difficulties and a reduced level of personal responsibility for their contribution to current events. The author considers the esotericism doctrines and their influence on the formation of the worldview of a modern person.