I am a psychology major, and I believe that it plays a huge role in every aspect of our lives. I also think that it plays a huge role in spellcraft. Everyone says that it's not the tools or the words, but the intent of a spell that matters.
If I were to cast a healing spell, and it was successful, I think that there are three factors at play. First, my body's natural ability to heal, especially if I am taking medications. Also, the spiritual energy of the spell that I cast. Then, the psychological factor. If I think that a spell is going to work, if I cast a healing spell and think "I'm taking my medicines, and I did a spell, so I'm going to get better", then my mental state is going to be much more conducive to healing.
Now, I think that the psychological factor is actually part of the spell. I think about many things in a "psycho-spiritual" way. Basically, I mean that a large part of the reason that a spell works is because you think it is going to.
This doesn't mean that I think it's all in my head, or that the spell didn't really do anything (if I did, I wouldn't bother, lol).
How do you feel about this? Do you think that your mentality is a factor, or do you think that the energy raised by the spell itself is the only factor?

I believe mentality -can- be a factor, but not always.
For example if you do a spell for someone else, I don't think your mentality will do the work?
Or if you do a spell to make new friends, new love, work etc... sometimes they just don't work while you wanted it to work so badly.
If mentality would be a reason why spells work, why don't they all work?

I just have the question why spells don't always work anyways.  
There are just different factors which take care of the spell... if there is someone who do spells and they ALWAYS work, well I believe they have found a chest with gold lol.  

Mentality can be very strong, you are right...but sometimes there are just other reasons why things are or just happen... or don't work in case you do a spell. Sometimes I have the feeling that ''Destiny'' haves a own way to let things happen, to block you if you about to do something wrong (take the wrong road I mean), etc.

Hm I have to say it's really difficult to understand why things just.. are.  

— Dryalantha wrote

I believe mentality -can- be a factor, but not always.
For example if you do a spell for someone else, I don't think your mentality will do the work?
Or if you do a spell to make new friends, new love, work etc... sometimes they just don't work while you wanted it to work so badly.
If mentality would be a reason why spells work, why don't they all work?

That's true. I rarely cast spells on someone else without their permission first though. I do believe that the spell has power, of course. But if you cast a spell for someone else, and they don't know about it, it can be very effective. I think psychology is part of the equation, but not the whole problem, so to speak.

I am a big believer (obviously being a naturopathy student lol) in the bodys ability to heal itself.  Our body is amazing.  I am also a believer in the placebo effect.  The human mind is a truly brilliant thing.  Given something, be it medication, a placebo, an affirmation or spell work, if one truly believes it is going to make them better, the odds are it will work to an extent.  Interesting post as this is exactly what we have been discussing in one of the lectures at uni this week.  I'll re post an article from a medical journal our lecturer gave us:

2.1 Case Example: �The Fishskin Boy�

The British Medical Journal reports the case of an English teenager who, in the early 1950�s, was afflicted with an extremely severe case of warts. The boy visited a doctor to have the warts removed but, upon examination, it was considered that the condition was far too extensive for surgical removal. Thickened, scaly, deformed and fissured skin covered almost all of the boy�s body, and infection was so extensive and foul smelling that he was unable to attend school.

The doctor took a biopsy of the boy�s affected skin and referred him to a colleague (an anaesthesiologist who practised hypnosis). Hypnosis, it was suggested, may be better suited for treating the condition as it had proven successful for warts treatment in the past. However, just how it worked remained a mystery.

The anaesthesiologist, Dr. A. A. Mason, found the boy to be a suitable hypnotic candidate and agreed to treat him. Treatment began with the extremities and, while the boy was under hypnosis, Mason suggested to him that the thickened, disfigured, infected skin would disappear, one extremity at a time, and be replaced by healthy, pink, normal skin.

The day after the initial hypnosis session, at a case meeting at his hospital, Dr Mason was informed that pathology results of the biopsy indicated that the boy�s wart condition had been wrongly diagnosed, and that, instead, he had a severe case of congenital ichthyosiform erythrodermia (�fishskin� disease).

There is no known physical treatment for this genetic condition but, although thrown by this diagnosis, Mason decided to continue with hypnosis.

To his surprise, the hypnosis treatment brought results and treatment was extended to cover the entire body (not just the extremities). Before long, for the first time in the boy�s life, he had healthy-looking skin.

At follow-ups of one month and four years, the hypnosis treatment resulted in a sixty to seventy percent permanent improvement of the skin. Photographs throughout the treatments recorded the changes and pathological and dermatological analysis confirmed the disorder was ichthyosis.



�A Case of Congenital Ichthyasiform Erythrodermia�, A. A. Mason, British Medical Journal 2 (1952)


Articles just like this one are so common, and highlight what biomedicine misses - we *can* heal ourselves.  Obviously not in all cases, but we really are amazing.  Sorry, I got a little off track here, but something I am passionate about.  Thanks for the food for thought, Eirwen    

A

That is a really interesting case study, thanks for sharing, Akina. I am a psychology student (thinking about minoring in anthropology), so I believe very strongly in things like that. I think that some of what we call magick is just science that hasn't been figured out yet. Look at hypnosis, quantum physics, etc. Meditation is considered legitimate by medical professionals these days, as a stress reliever. Of course, the spiritual element is a huge part of it, the energy of the God and Goddess, nature, the elements, etc. Our bodies are so amazing, they are designed to fight to keep us healthy.
I also think that confidence is a factor. If you cast a glamour for beauty, or do a spell for employment, it can give you the extra confidence boost to put yourself out there to get a job, or to hold your head up high and feel more beautiful.
This is not to discount the power of magick, the power of the Goddess and God, and the power of nature.

Blessed Be.

Doesn't your mental thoughts produce energy?  
Thus if you feel negative thoughts about your spell, it won't work. The same goes if you tell someone about your spell and they have negative thoughts.  Your negative thoughts or the person who you told, their negative thoughts send out negative energy to counteract your spell.  
I thought also that was how telekenisis worked.  Some extraordinary people are able to focus their thoughts more clearly into energy to change the physical realm.  Healing is along the same line but I'm guessing easier because it's more of a personal nature.  I could heal myself of migraines because I know how my body works and can change it accordingly.  But, with my arthritis, I have been unsuccessful.  A friend, who doesn't believe in magic (but believes in science not yet understood) told me it was because I'm afraid of my arthritis.  She's right about me being afraid,  and I think my negativity or fear is what is stopping the energy from healing myself of that.  
The boy with the fishskin disease could only heal himself when he was given the confidence to do so under hypnosis.  It really didn't matter whether it was fishskin disease or warts, but that he had only positive thoughts to heal himself.