Answer: felt they lacked control over something
Bronislaw Malinowski (1884-1942) contributed to the field of Anthropology by studying the people in the Trobriand Islands of Melanesia during WWI. His main insights were on the topic of magic. He found that the inhabitants of these islands used "magic" as a way to addresse specific, practical issues. This, he argued, was different from religion, which addresses large, general concerns of humanity. Moreover, he found that magic gave people a feeling of confidence, opening up new opportunities for them. That is why people tended to use magic when they felt they did not have control over a particular situation.