Examining Magical Differences Between Wixen of Three Age Groups with Magical or Non-Magical Ancestry
Objective
Magical ancestry plays a key role in many individuals' relationship with their magic and the development of their magical abilities (Thistledown & Smith, 1875). Whether one has a magic presence in their lineage has been of particular relevance in recent history as it is colloquially understood that individuals with magical ancestry have a better intuitive grasp and performance of innate magical ability than those who do not have magical ancestry (Bones, 2001). However there is a severe lack of precise scientific rigor and understanding on how, or if, magical ancestry influences wixen’s relationship with their magic and overall development (Granger, 2003; Silvermist et al, 1934; Valtoris, 1732). This current research and data collection aims to expand upon and build the comprehension of the links of magical ancestry on an individual’s relationship with their magic and the development and ability of their magic.
Background
Magical Ancestry
Many individuals may be familiar with the terms ‘pure-blood’ and ‘muggle’, the former denoting an individual or family who has exclusively magical ancestry in their line, and the latter being individuals who do not possess any magical ability and do not have magical parentage. Since the anonymous publication of, “A Pure-Blood Directory’ in Britain, which the author—speculated to be be Cantankerus Nott, but cannot be confirmed—ascertained there were twenty-eight ‘truly’ pure-blooded families, the obsession of magical ancestry has flourished. Although it should be noted this is not the first instance of intense focus on magical ancestry, for a further analysis of this, read Granger & Bones’ 1999 review of Prewett & MacMillan’s 1973 paper.
There is paltry amounts of research on magical ancestry and its relationship with magical abilities. For example, Flint et al, published research in 1980 claiming that wixen with less than three generations of magical ancestry on average had weaker spell casting ability, poorer theoretical magical grasp, and higher likelihood of producing non-magical children. However, it is critical to highlight that this research was funded by the Malfoy line and its purpose was to provide evidence that Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry should not admit students who did not have magical ancestry. In contrast, journals kept by Perenelle Flamel, one of the oldest witches in history, highlighted how she was able to tutor children who were born to magical parents, but abandoned for not possessing magic themselves. Her journals account that she was able to hone a modest theoretical grasp of magic with these individuals, but they only possessed weak magical abilities.
There is the question to consider between nature and nurture when discussing magical neutral individuals as children born to magical parents have more opportunities before formal education begins to practice and learn magical theory that children born to non-magical parents do not have access to. Additionally, many children, after it becomes apparent they have very weak or no magical ability, are sent away to non-magical schools. This severely limits their general magical exposure, which may also contribute to weaker magical ability than those who are consistently surrounded by magic. This theory has not been formally tested, and is only a potential explanation since it does not account for wixen who are born from non-magical parents and surrounded by magic.
Magical Heritage
Heritage refers to the traditions, values, artifacts, and knowledges that are passed down generation to generation. This can include cultural, natural, historical, and intangible heritage. For example, wixen cultural heritage would include quidditch history (see Quidditch Through the Ages: Wisp, 1952). Intangible heritage includes the non-physical aspects, like the oral history of Salazar Slytherin or traditional skills. Some wixen families may showcase proclivities for specific areas of magic, for instance the Flamel line is known for their skill with alchemy, that may be passed on to their offspring. Nevertheless, similar notions as previously discussed apply: there is simply no way of knowing yet whether giftedness in a specific field is due to genetics or environmental causes.
While there is some research present regarding magical ancestry and correlated magical ability, there is not enough unbiased documentation that supports one prevailing theory over another. Without this evidence, researchers would be amiss to claim whether magical ancestry truly influences magical ability, or if there is an effect at all.
Aims and Hypothesis
As wixen with no magical ancestry continue to join Britain’s magical society, stereotypes, prejudices, and discrimination still run rampant. The examination of the nuances with magical ancestry is essential before drawing conclusions about an individual's ability. Previous studies have only examined exclusively people with magical ancestry, or have not shown the necessary experimental design to delineate cause and effect. Therefore, it remains unclear how magical ancestry influences magical ability. Specifically, this study aims to:
- Examine the association, if any, between wixen with and without magical ancestry and different magical strengths.
- Examine whether individuals derive a proclivity for different magics based on their magical ancestry
- Examine whether age influences an individual’s magical strengths
Hypothesis
- There will be no significant association between a wixen’s magical ancestry and their magical strengths.
- In wixen with magical heritage, if there is a noted proclivity in the family, then there will be a slight association between a wixen’s magical heritage and their ability in that specific branch of magic.
- There will be a bell curve effect regarding wixen age and their magical ability
Methods
Participants
This study employs a within-subjects design. Participants will include wixen with both magical ancestry and non-magical ancestry and will be recruited using the magical census housed at the Ministry of Magic. Participants will ideally include 60 adolescent wixen (11-17), 60 adults (18-50), and 60 older adult (51+) to total 180 participants. This sample size was determined to satisfy an 80% power for the appropriate effect size. Recruitment will aim to be as representative as possible, with an even magical ancestry split, even sex split, and a range of ethnicities. For the purpose of this study to identify and create a baseline, only participants who are human will be considered for this research. Further studies should be conducted to see how different species may present with different magical inheritance, but that is beyond the scope of this research.
Procedure
Participants will be welcomed into the lab and informed they are completing a magical baseline survey. After receiving informed consent—magical guardians need to provide consent and adolescents provide assent—participants will be given a demographic survey to complete to the best of their ability. Following that, the experimenter will guide the participant to a separate room where they will be asked to perform a series of different spells on a mannequin. Participants will be tested on their magical ability regarding: charms, transfiguration, offensive spells, defensive spells, divination, and potions. These areas have been selected as they have previously shown to be attune to an individual’s magic. To prevent order effects, each participant will be randomly assigned a different order of completing each task.
Measures
Charms & Transfiguration. Strength of an individual’s charm and transfiguration ability will be initially ranked on a 7-point likert scale where 1 is extremely weak and 7 is extremely strong. If the participant could not complete this section they score a 0. Further, the items will be examined by an apprentice with the department of mysteries to determine an index of strength and completion will be noted. This is in accordance with the department of mysteries development of a standardized metric of magical strength.
Defensive and Offensive Spells. Offensive spell casting strength will be collected using monitoring charms on an auror training mannequin. Defensive spell casting strength will be collected using wards where the participant is standing and on the receiving end of an experimenter’s randomly ordered set of offensive spells.
Divination. Participants will complete the Vablatsky Scrying Task. Scores will be averaged, where larger scores indicate a higher proclivity for divination than lower scores
Materials
The demographic questionnaire will be composed of questions regarding: date of birth, sex, magical ancestry (going as far back as 5 generations even if the participant can provide more), highest completed level of education, age at which introduced to the magical world, awareness of magic before attending formal education, if no magical ancestry how supportive family is, experiences of challenges or discrimination due to magical status.
Two auror training mannequins will be procured as well as training space and lab space.
Funding disclosure
This research is made possible by the support of the Wizarding Research Council in tandem with the British Ministry of Magic. This research proposal is the recipient of the Althea Moonshadow Advancing Magical Studies Grant. The funders have no role in study design, data collection, and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of a manuscript.