Zodiac Signs: Myth or Truth?

Many students at Harding identify themselves with their zodiac signs, but is there any real truth in astrology? Or is it just a glorified personality test?

Astrology is the study of the movements of planets and stars in relation to their influence on humans. This influence, as interpreted by astrology, affects an individual’s personality, general human affairs, the future, and world events.

In Western astrology, zodiac signs correlate to the twelve 30 degree sectors that form the 360-degree orbit of the Earth. These twelve signs consist of Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, and Pisces. Each person has an astrological chart based on their date and time of birth consisting of these signs.

The main part of a person’s chart is their “sun sign.” This part essentially determines our own individual personality and how we express ourselves depending on which of the twelve signs it is in.

For example, if your sun sign is in Leo, you are thought to be a natural leader, theatrical, self-assured, and generous. In other words, you’re an attention hog.

There are various studies that have been conducted in order to confirm the legitimacy of astrology, despite its pseudoscience status.

When asked about the validity of astrology, one student responded, “I just believe it because...I’ve found that each person of each zodiac sign has specific, certain traits that other people of that zodiac sign have.”

Other students echoed this belief, with one going on to explain, “When you go through and actually read about your sign...there is so much more to it than just ‘you’re a libra.’ It's honestly pretty creepy.”

Various other students expressed an opposing view, feeling that there is no real evidence, even in their personal experiences, of any real truth in astrology. Of course, many of these people are Capricorns who can’t believe in anything positive.

According to the University of California Berkeley, astrology’s legitimacy isn’t even really testable: “Some expectations generated by astrology are so general that any outcome could be interpreted as fitting the expectations; if treated this way, astrology is not testable.”

The University goes on to state that, “In the few cases where astrology has been used to generate testable expectations, and the results were examined in a careful study, the evidence did not support the validity of astrological ideas.”

However, other studies combat these claims by using astrology to predict specific events that could have varied outcomes in the “natural world.” This basically means that, for example, if you have a certain sign, astrologists could determine the likelihood of you being hired for a specific job vs. a person of a different sign due to your sign’s traits. So, watch out, Scorpios. You aren’t exactly known for being personable.

Thus, although scientific research does not support the validity of astrology—whether a believer or a skeptic—it is really up to personal interpretation.