Welcome to the Psi Encyclopedia! We aspire to provide a comprehensive introduction to academic parapsychology, which studies the range of psychic experiences collectively termed ‘psi’.  The existence of psi phenomena – and the related idea that consciousness is independent of the physical body and so may survive death – is strongly disputed by materialist scientists, yet parapsychologists are convinced they have evidence for these things. The Psi Encyclopedia presents this evidence in nearly 750 signed articles by over 80 authors, many of them senior academics, arranged in categories and subcategories that highlight the major interests of the field.

Featured

Key Topics

photograph of JB Rhine, one of the first to explore psychological variables underlying psi

Psychology and Parapsychology

Explores the overlap between psychology and parapsychology, such as personality and other variables linked to psi.

Ingo Swann, one of the first remote viewers

Remote Viewing

An experimental form of clairvoyance, in which a suitably trained person attempts to visualise the topography of a distant scene.

Tunnel in Near-Death Experience

Near-Death Experience (Overview)

This article describes anomalous mental events reported by people who have survived a near-fatal accident or illness.

photo of N'kisi, an African Grey parrot involved in ESP experiments

Animals in Psi Research

Describes informal observations, early tests and modern lab experiments looking at animals' psychic capabilities.

Gladys Leonard, medium studied by the Society for Psychical Research

Mediumship and Multiple Personality

The personalities of mediumistic communicators are similar to dissociative identity disorder.

vernon mews

Society for Psychical Research (SPR)

Membership organization founded in London in 1882 for the scientific investigation of claims of psychic phenomena.


European Children with Past-Life Memories

European children speak of past lives less often than Asian children do, yet the cases are very similar.

Bronislaw Malinowski among the Trobriand Islanders

Anthropology and Psi Research

Anthropologists have long been fascinated by belief in the supernatural, a near universal aspect of human culture.

Recent Additions

Explore the Psi Encyclopedia

ESP & Psychokinesis

Extra-sensory perception (ESP) comprises telepathy, clairvoyance and precognition. Psychokinesis (PK) is the direct influence on matter by mind alone. Both ESP and PK have been tested in the laboratory and studied in real life situations. They are thought to be united as capabilities of consciousness, distinct from the physical body. Together they constitute psi, in the strict sense of the term.

cannard

Cédric Cannard

Cédric Cannard is a French researcher working on altered states of consciousness and psi phenomena.

Concealed Chinese words identified by Chinese children by anomalous non-sensory means

Extraocular Image (China)

1980s experiments in which children demonstrated an ability to recognize hidden images and words by touch alone.

Reginaldo Hiraoka

Reginaldo Hiraoka

Brazilian philosopher and psychologist with research interests in ganzfeld ESP and collective influence on random number generators.

Mind & Body

This category contains articles that treat consciousness in relation to the body. Major topics covered include healing and psychotherapy; dreams and dreaming; and out-of-body experiences, end-of-life experiences, and near-death experiences, all of which suggest that consciousness may have an existence independent of the physical body.

photo of Arigo

Arigo

Brazilian celebrated for making diagnoses, prescriptions, even surgery, while possessed by ‘spirit doctors’ in a trance state.

image of young girl with divided personality

Doris Fischer

Notable early 20th century American case of dissociative identity disorder, described by Walter Franklin Prince, who helped cure her.

crookall

Robert Crookall

English geologist (1890-1981) who promoted out-of-body experiences as evidence of ‘astral projection’ and postmortem survival.

Survival of Death

Life continued in a spiritual or purely mental form after bodily death is a staple of religious beliefs worldwide, and likely is as old as humanity. The question of evidence for it has been central to the Society for Psychical Research since its founding in 1882. This category includes articles on mediumship as well as general topics related to the survival question. Other survival-related topics appear under other category headings.

The Cideville Poltergeist

Cideville Poltergeist

Mid-nineteenth century French poltergeist case, with testimonies given in court about the phenomena.

photo of Geza Maroczy

Maroczy Mediumistic Chess Match

Match played between a living Russian grandmaster and a deceased Hungarian one.

helen duncan

Helen Duncan

Controversial Scottish physical medium (1898–1956) sentenced to jail under England’s Witchcraft Act of 1735.

Reincarnation

Reincarnation beliefs are widespread in the world and in recent decades researchers have found what they believe is evidence of them through the study of people (mainly children) who claim to have lived before. This category includes case studies and overviews of phenomena that appear regularly in the cases. Some articles deal with past life regression as well.

Pondicherry

Mallika Aroumougam (reincarnation case)

Reincarnation case notable for being reported from South India (most are in the north of the country).

Anne Frank

Famous Past Life (FPL) Claims

Claims to remember having been famous people must be regarded with caution, yet they have been supported in a few cases.

Hernani Guimarães Andrade

Brazilian Children with Past-Life Memories

List of cases of children’s past-life memories reported from Brazil, some relating to past lives in Europe.

Researchers & Authors

Here can be found more than 300 biographical profiles of key figures who have been involved in psi research and parapsychology as field investigators, experimentalists, theorists and commentators. Many have scientific and academic backgrounds – in psychology, physics, biology, philosophy, engineering and other disciplines.

photograph of Gustave Geley (1865-192), French psi researcher

Gustave Geley

French investigator of mediums (1865–1924) remembered for his controversial attempts to provide proof of ectoplasm in the form of plaster moulds.

John Kruth 2

John G Kruth

Executive director of the Rhine Research Center. His research interests include bioenergy in healing.

medhurst

George Medhurst

British mathematician and engineer (1920–1971) who carried out experiments and scholarly studies in psychical research.

Organizations

The oldest organizations devoted to parapsychology were member organizations like the Society for Psychical Research, established in London in 1882. Since JB Rhine founded the Parapsychology Laboratory at Duke University in 1930, there have been university-based units as well. This category comprises both historical and contemporary bodies concerned with research and education in parapsychology.

IGPP, Wilhlem Straße 3a, Freiberg, Germany

Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health (IGPP)

The IGPP is a German parapsychology organization based in Freiburg.

Psychologist Gardner Murphy led the ASPR during its heyday in the 1960s.

American Society for Psychical Research (ASPR)

The oldest parapsychological organization in the United States, founded in 1884, now practically defunct.

photograph of Eileen Garrett

Parapsychology Foundation (PF)

US-based forum, founded in 1951 by Eileen J Garrett, that supports parapsychology internationally.

Sceptical Views

Sceptics argue that psychics and mediums achieve their effects by trickery, that psychic experience is an illusory effect caused by a combination of brain misperceptions and confirmation bias, and that evidence of psi in laboratory tests can be attributed to poor methodology. This category includes biographies of leading sceptics as well as general articles discussing their allegations.

james randi

James Randi

Canadian-born conjurer (1928–2020) and public scourge of psychics, faith healers, parapsychologists and practitioners of alternative medicine.

Susan Blackmore

Susan J Blackmore

British psychologist, consciousness researcher and psi sceptic, who has frequently appeared in the media promoting her views.


CEM Hansel

British psychologist who authored controversial critiques of parapsychology.  

General Topics

This category contains articles on a variety of topics that do not fit well in any of the main categories, from dowsing to crop circles and other anomalistic phenomena, the Miscellaneous Anomalistic subcategory. Other subcategories list articles on psychics and mystic and on important articles, books and journals in the field of parapsychology.

St. Joseph of Cupertino is lifted in flight at the sight of the Basilica of Loreto, by Ludovico Mazzanti  (detail)

Religious Levitation

Reports of individuals being seen, spontaneously and involuntarily, to rise into the air and remain suspended

photo of Henry Gross dowsing

Henry Gross

American game warden and dowser (1895–1979) who located water for landowners in his home state of Maine and in Bermuda.

human radiations

Human Radiations

The idea that humans radiate biophysical forces was once used to explain phenomena such as auras, ESP, healing, and luminous effects.

Scroll to Top