Can Good Luck Charms and Superstitious Rituals Enhance Performance?

The legendary Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti famously had a quirky backstage ritual that he needed to complete before he could go on stage. Apparently, he would wander around backstage, scanning the floor until he found a bent nail, which would serve as his good luck charm for that performance. It sounds like a silly sort of thing to do, and it’s hard to imagine Pavarotti needing much in the way of luck, but could this have been more helpful than we think? A 2010 study provides some answe...