ESP & Psychokinesis

The term extra-sensory perception (ESP), introduced in the 1930s, comprises telepathy, clairvoyance and precognition, acknowledging that these categories may considerably overlap. Psychokinesis is the direct influence on matter by mind alone, without physical action. All have been successfully tested in the laboratory and studied in real life situations.

Psychometry

Clairvoyance facilitated by holding an object, which enables a psychic to describe key incidents associated with it.

Dreams and ESP

This article describes the experience and study of ESP in dreams, notably of telepathic interactions and precognitions of future events.

The Brain and Psi

Describes how electroencephalography (EEG) and brain imaging technology are being used to demonstrate psychic functioning.

Gifted People

Most people may only experience a psychic event once or twice in their lives, but for a few it’s a natural ability, which some develop as a professional career. Two types feature in the Psi Encyclopedia: those who have demonstrated telepathy, clairvoyance, precognition or psychokinesis in some way, and those who believe themselves to be in communication with the deceased.

Zancigs (telepathy stage act)

A mind-reading act performed by a Danish-American couple that may have included some genuine telepathy.

Ingo Swann

American artist (1933–2013) whose psychic ability led him to participate in successful ESP and PK experiments in the 1970s.

Sean Harribance

Trinidadian psychic of Indian descent who participated in ESP and PK experiments with American researchers from the 1970s.

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.

Christine Beauchamp

Noted case of multiple personality disorder reported by American psychologist Morton Prince in 1906.

Altered States of Consciousness and Psi

Altered states of consciousness have long been known to be associated with psi experiences.

Spirit Release Therapy

Clinical treatment used with patients who appear to be ‘possessed’ by harmful spirit entities.

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 Junot Sittings (Leonora Piper)

Highly evidential communications purporting to come from the surviving spirit of a deceased teenager.

Did Robert Swain Gifford Survive Death?

Analysis of the Thompson-Gifford case of ostensible possession as evidence of survival.

Goligher Circle

Northern Irish Spiritualist group said to produce striking psychic phenomena, the subject of research in the 1910s.

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.

Jagdish Chandra (reincarnation case)

An Indian boy remembered a previous life as the pampered son of a corrupt official in a distant city.

Reincarnation: An Introduction

This introductory article covers beliefs in reincarnation, evidence for reincarnation, and sceptical views of the research.

Testing Children’s Past-Life Knowledge

Children who remember past lives are often set tests to try to establish the truth of their claims.

Haunting

Location-based hauntings have been relatively little studied by parapsychologists, but the frequent incidence of apparitional episodes (the appearance of a deceased family member) attracted the attention of early researchers. Much interest has also centred on so-called ‘poltergeist’ episodes, of powerful domestic disturbances now often attributed to involuntary psychokinetic effects by living agents.

Borley Rectory

Until its destruction by fire in 1939, Borley Rectory was the focus of persistent claims of poltergeist disturbances and haunting phenomena.

Versailles ‘Time-Slip’

An experience in the gardens of Versailles, described by two Englishwomen in their 1911 book An Adventure.

Why Do Ghosts Wear Clothes?

Sceptics use the fact that apparitions appear fully clad as reason to doubt them. This article discusses why they might.

General Topics

This section lists articles on a variety of topics that are not found in any of the main categories, from brain research and altered states of consciousness to dowsing, crop circles and other anomalistic phenomena.

Eyewitness Testimony (Analysis)

This article discusses the reliability of eyewitness testimony about paranormal events.

Anthropology and Psi Research

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

Cottingley Fairies

1920s hoax by two girl, who persuaded Sir Arthur Conan Doyle that they had photographed themselves playing with fairies.

Scientists & 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.

Wellington Zangari

Brazilian psychologist whose research interests include anomalistic psychology, hypnosis and altered states of consciousness.

Dennis Bardens

English journalist and author (1911–2004), founder of the BBC news programme Panorama.

Richard S Broughton

Experimental psi researcher concerned with cognitive and evolutionary aspects of ESP.

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.

Bial Foundation

Foundation set up by Portuguese pharmaceutical giant to support research in neuroscience, psychophysiology and parapsychology.

International Consciousness Research Laboratories (ICRL)

Dedicated to understanding consciousness with a view to improving humanity’s future.

London Dialectical Society

19th-century rationalist debating club whose 1871 investigative report showed certain PK activity to be genuine.

Scepticism

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 Alcock

Canadian psychology professor, amateur magician and career psi sceptic, member of the Executive Council for the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry.

Reincarnation Case Studies: Criticisms

This article addresses objections critics have raised to the reincarnation case research of Ian Stevenson and others.

Fraud in Parapsychology and Other Sciences

The assumption that psi researchers are more likely to commit fraud than other scientists is wrong.