Several studies have reported that Psychologists are less open to the consideration of evidence related to paranormal phenomena.
Maybe scientists of Psychology are more often acutely aware of just how hard it is to rigorously design a study of the supernatural when there are people actively trying to thwart truthful results. Worse, even if you understand the scientific method better than those attempting to fool you, they may understand magic tricks way better than you (e.g., James Randi). Further, even if nobody is trying to con you, we're so very aware of the social cognitive biases all humans share and how these can lead us to trick ourselves with our own wishful thinking (e.g., Daryl Bem). I'm unfamiliar with the studies you reference, Neil. Would you might sharing references? I'm not totally sure I understand the difference you're suggesting across scientists. Do you mean those in Psychology are less likely to believe in the supernatural or less likely to believe it's worth studying? Best wishes, Kevin
Hi Kevin - great reply. I am going to play devil's advocate Hope you don't mind. Just to be clear, I am a cynic myself. But have become frustrated by the lack of sensible debate and open mindedness. Also, if I don't reply further it reflects an interest in the opinion of others and present busyness.
Quiet the converse regarding the first point. Parapsychologists are acutely aware of the difficulties of designing studies. Especially with regards to ESP. Then even when they meet the stringent prespecified criteria Psychologists are particularly skeptical about the validity of positive outcomes.
I take your point regarding Randi - however, some of his demonstrations and explanations over the years have been rather crude and reductionist (and I like his work = term used broadly intentionally!). I saw him crudely demonstrate a spoon bend on stage once, via distraction and his shoe. Although, one could argue that Geller used similar methods on that fine TV programme Noel's House Party (irony - lost through this mode of communication).
As with Anomalous Psychology, there is a tendency to prefer any mundane explanation, regardless of fit or applicability, over the possibility of the paranormal. The classic disavowal being, I have researched the area for years and found nothing therefore nothing exists.
As for Daryl Bem - many would disagree with that view. There is the old file draw problem and replication issue.
As for references - it is ancient hence my question -
Does psi exist? Most academic psychologists don't think so. A survey of more than 1,100 college professors in the United States found that 55% of natural scientists, 66% of social scientists (excluding psychologists), and 77% of academics in the arts, humanities, and education believed that ESP is either an established fact or a likely possibility. The comparable figure for psychologists was only 34%. Moreover, an equal number of psychologists declared ESP to be an impossibility, a view expressed by only 2% of all other respondents (Wagner &;Monnet, 1979).
The notion has intrigued for some time - not 199 though.......
Paranormal experiences contradict our current paradigm that aides in the understanding of both our body and mind. According to our current paradigm, we are not supposed to experience any event that does not correspond to our understanding of how our senses work. It's like what Thomas Kuhn says in his book on the Structure of Scientific Revolution, we initially oppose contradictions to current thought. This is not new. It was a struggle for people to stop believing the earth was not flat!
I am a healthcare researcher. I have studied paranormal (I prefer transpersonal) experiences for over 30 years. Patients have these paranormal experiences on a predictable basis. Whether or not healthcare workers believe or not in paranormal experiences, they need to deal with a large number of patients who want to talk about their paranormal experiences with them.
The healthcare research consistently shows evidence of our abilities to translocate. In healthcare these events are spontaneous and verifiable. My favorite story is the one about the red shoe that occurred in a hospital in which I was employed as an educator and researcher. A woman was brought to the hospital by helicopter, arriving unconscious. When she was alert she told her nurse she saw a red shoe on the roof of the hospital in the northwest corner. The nurse told one of the doctors who got someone from building services to unlock the door to the roof. The doctor came down holding the red shoe. These events occur with consistent frequency. See my article with Ken Ring about veridical perception.
In my book, The death view revolution: A guide to transpersonal experiences surrounding death (UK publisher who specializes in paranormal books), I chronicled most of the different paranormal experiences associated with death and dying with an extensive reference list. There are a number of researchers on Research Gate involved in this area of research - check out PC Grant.
I believe, but cannot validate, that psychologists do not believe in paranormal experiences because they do not have the same type of contact with mentally healthy patients who have these experiences as health professionals do. It is doubtful psychologists are reading medical literature. Which is unfortunate.
We build up walls between disciplines which can hinder scientific growth. In my recent article, Selective attention during transpersonal experiences surrounding death, I describe what healthcare researchers have observed attracts the attention of individuals when they perceive themselves as out of their body. Most traditional parapsychological researchers have subjects look for numbers and/or objects in an area not visible from the starting location. An analysis of motivation when out of their body of patients, indicates patients are not goal-directed. They operate on an involuntary stimulus-driven system. That means when they are out of their body, the goal of searching for numbers is probably not of interest. They are drawn to things that are out of place, the activities of people, and an assessment of their own bodies.
It would be great if psychologists got involved to help explain some of these phenomena and study what
would be helpful to say to experiencers.
Hope this helps!
Cause and effect are difficult, if not impossible, to measure in this case.
Lou
It is all about the dogmatic use of the experimental method ('many perfected laboratory artifacts') and the behaviorist model of the stimulus-response-machine.
However: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Princeton_Engineering_Anomalies_Research_Lab
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