Skepticism on Palm Reading

There are very few studies done on the scientific basis of palm reading. Most of the studies done on this practice are even conducted by palm readers themselves making the study insufficient as proof for the accuracy of palm reading.

In relation to palm reading, there are some scientific studies, however, that were done to find out the relationship of the lines of the hand with some psychological conditions (including schizophrenia and ADHD). There were some similarities found although these not very significant. John T. Manning, a researcher, also did a related study. He studied the ratios of the length of the person's fingers and related these to several characteristics and conditions like depression, musical talent, homosexuality and fertility. However, these studies were not enough to prove that there is a relationship between the lines of the hand and the person's character.

There are also some people who are skeptical about the fortune telling aspect of palm reading. Although this type of palm reading is not as popular as reading the person's characteristic (cold reading), this is also being done by many palm readers. Many, if not all, types of fortune telling are still unproven by scientific or mathematical studies. Aside from the lack of studies on these fortune-telling methods, the studies on these methods are done either by scientists who lack knowledge on these divination techniques, or by believers who seek to prove the accuracy of these methods but lack knowledge on the proper methods of research. In addition, the results in the research subjects may easily be influenced by the subject's belief in the divination method.

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