Lance Storm is Visiting Research Fellow in the School of Psychology, University of Adelaide. His research interests include anomalistic psychology, gambling behaviour and attitudes, Jungian analytical theory, and theories of perception, personality and therapy. He is particular interested in the use of emerging approaches in statistics and methodology to reach a deeper understanding of normal and anomalistic psychology.
- Lance Storm helped develop psychopraxia, treating ESP and PK as different aspects of goal-directed action rather than wholly separate processes.
- His reactance work suggested psi disbelievers may score worse when experimental conditions threaten their sense of autonomy or belief commitments.
- Lance’s work in the experimental design known as Imagery Cultivation, which he developed with Adam Rock, has yielded hit-rates comparable to the ganzfeld in a series of studies.
Life and Career
Lance Storm was born 15 September 1958 in Tumby Bay, South Australia. Before pursuing psychology, he worked as a professional photographer. In 1994 he enrolled at the University of Adelaide, earning a BA (Hons) in psychology in 1998 and a PhD in parapsychology in 2002.
In 1995 Storm received the Laurence T Schneider Prize in Art History and Theories from Adelaide. In 2002 he was co-recipient, with Michael Thalbourne, of the D. Scott Rogo Award for Literature. The Parapsychological Association (PA) named him Gertrude R. Schmeidler Student of the Year in 2003 and later gave him its Outstanding Contribution Award in 2012 and its Outstanding Career Award in 2026. Storm was Program Co-Chair of the PA-AIPR Convention 2026, held in Sydney, Australia.
Storm is Chief Editor of the Australian Journal of Parapsychology and a committee member of the Australian Institute of Parapsychological Research (AIPR). He has published in Psychological Bulletin, Journal of Parapsychology, Journal of Scientific Exploration, the Jungian journal Quadrant, and elsewhere. He has supervised Honours students in anomalistic psychology, parapsychology, typology, gambling and symbolic meaning.
Theoretical Development
Psychopraxia
Together with Thalbourne, Storm developed the theory of psychopraxia, which attempts to unify conventional psychology with parapsychology, and normal information acquisition and motor action, so that the usual distinction between ESP and PK is removed. Psychopraxia treats each distinction as aspects of action, that can occur endosomatically (within the body) or exosomatically (outside the body). This action manifests in four ways:
- the self (the common denominator of all experience)
- the pro-attitude (the desire and intentions of an individual)
- the goal-state (what the individual specifically wants)
- a set of conditions operating between the self, pro-attitude and goal-state
The theory was developed during the late 1970s as part of Thalbourne’s PhD and informs much of Storm’s research interests.1Storm & Thalborne (2005).
Reactance Theory
‘Reactance’ is defined as a ‘motivational state aimed at restoring the threatened freedom’. Storm has developed a theory that describes how, when an individual’s perceived freedom is threatened, a reactance to that perception is precipitated. He hypothesized that psi non-believers (goats) are more reactant than believers (sheep) in psi tests because they are predisposed to disproving the psi hypothesis, perceiving it as ego threatening.
To test this reactance theory, Storm adapted the Ball Selection Test, an experimental methodology designed by Suitbert Ertel in which subjects use psi to identify numbered ping-pong balls picked from a pouch. Participants were randomly assigned either to a control condition (n = 42) or to a treatment condition (n = 40) in which they read a statement designed to produce a high level of reactance.. They then performed up to four runs of 60 trials each, attempting on every trial to predict the numbers. The overall group hit rate reached 21.06 %, significantly above the 20 % chance expectation (p = 0.002). As expected, a significant reactance effect was found with goats scoring significantly lower than sheep. Treated goats also scored lower than control goats who did not read a statement, although not to a significant degree.2Storm et al. (2013).
Imagery Cultivation Model
Storm and Rock’s Imagery Cultivation Model posits that certain high energy and spiritual rituals, such as shamanic drumming or religious ecstasy, encourage an active emotional process that is psi conducive. The IC model is hypothesized to create access to possibly archetypal images in the subconscious realm, where psi experiences are thought to originate.
To test this model, Storm and Rock arranged for participants to be randomly assigned to one of two conditions: either sitting quietly with eyes open (control) or an intervention condition that induced a shamanic level of consciousness through drumming. Subjects were asked to describe a target (a line drawing), where the chance hit rate would be 25%. The direct hit rate was significant at 34.5%; the control group scored a little below chance at 23%.3Storm & Rock (2009).
Rock, Storm, Harris, and Friedman replicated these experimental conditions, also tracking what aspects of experience correlated with direct hitting.4Storm et al. (2013).The direct hit rate significantly correlated with the degree of shift in consciousness, an altered time sense, and altered perception. The experimenters concluded: ‘our findings suggest that phenomenology can be changed using a shamanic-like journeying treatment, and these changes are conducive to the generation of source material that can be an aid to psi processes.’
Storm5Storm (2019). simplified the original IC procedure by (a) shortening the guided imagery component to a 9½-minute pre-recorded soundtrack (down from 19 minutes), (b) removing the drumming component from the soundtrack, (c) introducing background tonalities, and (d) altering the wording of the guided imagery. Also, the number of images (actual photographs) in the on-screen array was increased from four to five. As hypothesized, Storm found the direct-hit rate under a pure IC condition was higher (23.7%) than for the controls (15%) where MCE was now 20%. In a follow-up study using the same design, Storm and Goretzki6Storm & Goretzki (2021). reported a significant hit-rate of 25% (p = 0.049) for 200 participants who received the IC treatment.
In a smaller study,7Storm (2022). Storm reported a hit-rate of 25.5% (albeit non-significant given N = 51) for IC participants compared to 20.4% for the control group (N = 49); the IC effect size was on par with results from research using the ganzfeld ESP protocol. In two further studies using the IC treatment alone, Storm8Storm (2023). reported a hit-rate of 21% (non-significant; N = 100), and Storm and colleagues9Storm et al. (under submission). reported a hit-rate of 26.3% (N = 99; marginally significant).
Source-of-psi Problem
The ‘source-of-psi-problem’ refers to the difficulty of establishing the aetiology of ‘big psi’ – phenomena such as mediumship and past life memories. Numerous mediumship studies have reported statistically significant results demonstrating that various contemporary mediums are able to demonstrate psi ability under laboratory conditions, but the source of this ability – whether the medium or discarnate minds – is unknown. Recently developed methodologies might be able to probe this question more effectively than before. Storm and colleagues discuss an approach (yet to be carried out) that investigates whether mediums and well-rehearsed proxy-sitters, working under double-blind conditions, can create telepathic links in such a way that the pattern of their combined responses to inaccurate information about the deceased points to either the psi hypothesis or the discarnate hypothesis.10Storm & Rock (2015).
Meta-Analysis
Storm has carried out meta-analyses of several important databases in parapsychology.
Free-response
Storm et al. reported on three types of free-response experiment for the period 1997-2008: ganzfeld (a psi-conducive procedure), non-ganzfeld altered states (dreams, hypnosis, meditation, relaxation) and normal consciousness. A set of 29 ganzfeld studies yielded a mean effect size of 0.142 (Stouffer z = 5.48, p = 10×10-8). A non-ganzfeld altered states data set of 16 studies yielded a mean effect size of 0.110 (Stouffer z = 3.35, p = 10×10-4). A homogeneous data set of 14 standard free-response studies produced a weak negative mean effect size of 0.029 (Stouffer z = 2.29, p = 0.01). This indicates that altered states (both ganzfeld and non-ganzfeld) are more effective than ordinary waking consciousness in psi testing.11Storm et al. (2010).
An updated meta-analysis by Storm and Tressoldi12Storm & Tressoldi (2020). found a 31.0% ganzfeld hit rate (MCE = 25%), corresponding to a mean effect size of 0.119 (Stouffer Z = 2.56, p < .001), with the expanded 38-study database producing an effect size of 0.133.
Dream ESP
In a comprehensive examination of the psi-conducive aspects of dreaming, Storm and colleagues meta-analysed the dream-ESP literature. They reported results on experimental dream-ESP studies for the period 1966 to 2016. Studies fell into two categories: the Maimonides Dream Lab studies (n = 14), and independent (non-MDL) studies (n = 36). The Maimonides dataset yielded an effect size of 0.33; the non-MDL studies yielded mean ES = 0.14. A combined dataset of 50 studies yielded a Stouffer z = 5.32, p = 5.19 × 10-8). This is strong evidence that dreams are psi-facilitating. There was no relationship between study quality and effect size. However, the authors noted a general decline in effect size over the years, which they attributed to the high success rate of the initial Maimonides work and its use of a dedicated sleep laboratory.13Storm et al. (2017).
Sheep-Goat Effect
The sheep-goat effect is described in detail here. Storm and Tressoldi meta-analyzed studies from 1994 to 2015, continuing the earlier meta-analytic period by Lawrence.They retrieved 49 studies reported by 43 investigators. The mean trial-based SGE was 0.034, resulting in a Stouffer z = 1.67 (p = 0.047), supporting Lawrence’s findings of effect size of 0.029. No relationship was found between study quality and effect size, although Tressoldi and Storm noted a significant incline in effect size over the 21-year period.14Storm et al. (2017).
Divination Experiment
Storm and Thalbourne carried out an experiment with 93 participants using the Chinese book of divination, the I Ching. Scoring was determined by participants correctly predicting their hexagram readings based on personally relevant cognitive and emotional states rather than random guessing typical of most ESP tests. ESP indicative scoring rates were marginally significant. Transliminality, a measure of the ability of psychological material to enter in and out of consciousness, correlated significantly with hitting success. A replication experiment with 107 participants again produced statistically significant psi scoring, but the relationship with transliminality was absent.15Storm & Thalbourne (2001).
Storm’s review of six I Ching studies indicates that hexagram outcomes can be predetermined to a very slight extent: the combined hexagram hit rate across the six studies is a near-significant 27 % (MCE = 25 %). Storm and Rock subsequently altered the design, adopting the Q-Sort method of Roe et al. (2014). In this procedure every one of the 64 possible hexagram readings is rated from –7 to +7 according to personal relevance. The resulting Q-Sort studies yielded complex patterns. In the most recent of these investigations the mean Q-sort score for sheep was higher than that for goats (though not significantly so), a result consistent with the earlier Storm and Rock (2014) finding.
Recent Research
In recent years, Storm has focused on the psychological aspects underlying psi phenomena. A study on the relationship between paranormal belief and gambling attitudes and behaviours revealed a wide range of themes associated with a propensity to gamble. In particular he found that gamblers with a strong but educated interest in the paranormal were far less likely to succumb to the Gambler’s Fallacy – the belief that if something happens frequently in a given period it will happen less frequently later – than disbelievers in the paranormal.16Drinkwater et al. (2018).
Wehrman and Storm investigated retrocausal effects in cueing tasks, published in Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice in 2024.17Wehrman & Storm (2024). Participants completed a forced-choice task in which a cue was presented either before or after the target selection. The results showed significant effects in the retrocausal condition.
Storm received BIAL Foundation support in 2022–24 for a study examining the relationship between temporal lobe lability (TLL) and anomalous cognition.18Storm Adelaide profile (n.d.). The present study administered the Transliminality scale and Michael Persinger’s (1984) Personal Philosophy Inventory in conjunction with the IC task. Two cohorts were examined: IC-only controls and IC + rTMS (repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation) participants allocated to either a Delta (psi-inhibiting) or an Alpha (psi-disinhibiting) protocol. Controls obtained a direct-hit rate of 26 % (MCE = 20 %), with hitting positively related to TLL-linked factors and to Hypomania. Alpha-rTMS participants produced a 20 % hit rate; hitting correlated positively with Intense Meaning and Hypomania and approached significance for Transliminality. Delta-rTMS participants recorded a 14 % hit rate, with hitting negatively associated with several TLL measures. Alpha rTMS proved less psi-inhibitive than Delta rTMS, yet the controls still achieved the highest overall hit rate. Additional work is required to clarify the contribution of TLL to psi performance.
Selected Works
Books
The Enigma of Numbers (2008). Hove, UK: White Crow Books.
Shamanism and Psi: Imagery Cultivation as an Alternative to the Ganzfeld Protocol (2011, with A.J. Rock). [Download PDF.] AIPR Monograph No. 1. Gladesville, NSW, Australia: Australian Institute for Parapsychological Research.
Parapsychology in the Twenty-First Century (2005, ed. with M.A. Thalbourne). Jefferson, North Carolina, USA: McFarland.
The Survival of Human Consciousness: Essays on the Possibility of Life After Death (2006, ed. with M.A. Thalbourne). Jefferson, North Carolina, USA: McFarland.
Parapsychological Investigation of the Theory of Psychopraxia (2010). Saarbrücken, Germany: Lambert Academic Publishing.
A New Approach to Psi: Re-envisioning Paranormal Experience as Meaningful Coincidence (2025). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
A New Approach to Synchronicity (2025). Abingdon, UK: Routledge.
Articles
See under Works Cited for additional articles by Storm.
The effects of imagery-cultivation on phenomenological and paranormal experience (2023). Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 87/1, 1–21.
Assessing 36 years of the forced choice design in extra sensory perception research: A meta-analysis, 1987 to 2022 (2023, with P.E. Tressoldi). Journal of Scientific Exploration 37/3, 517–35.
Meaningfulness in the I Ching using a Q-Sort RNG method (2025). Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 89/2, 65–93.
Michael Duggan
Works Cited
Drinkwater, K., Storm, L., & Jinks, A. (2018). Differences in gambling approaches between informed paranormal believers and quasi-believers: A pilot study. [Abstract.] Australian Journal of Parapsychology 18/2, 153-93.
Rock, A., Storm, L., Harris, K., & Friedman, H. (2012). Shamanic-like journeying and psi-signal detection: I. In search of the psi-conducive components of a novel experimental protocol. [Abstract.] Journal of Parapsychology 76/2, 321-47.
Rock, A.J., Storm, L., Harris, K., & Friedman, H. (2013). Shamanic-like journeying and psi-signal detection: II. Phenomenological dimensions. [Full text.] Journal of Parapsychology 77/2, 249-70.
Rock, A.J., & Storm, L. (2015). Testing telepathy in the medium/proxy-sitter dyad: A protocol focusing on the source-of-psi problem. [Full text.] Journal of Scientific Exploration 29/4, 565-84.
Storm, L. (2019). Imagination and reactance in a psi task using the imagery cultivation model and a fuzzy set encoded target pool. [Full text.] Journal of Scientific Exploration 33/2, 197-212.
Storm, L. (2022). The effects of imagery cultivation on mood and psi performance. [Full text.] Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 86/2, 95-113.
Storm, L., Ertel, S., & Rock, A.J. (2013). Paranormal effects and behavioural characteristics of participants in a forced-choice psi task: Ertel’s Ball Selection Test under scrutiny. [Full text.] Australian Journal of Parapsychology 13/2, 111-31.
Storm, L., & Goretzki, M. (2021). The psychology and parapsychology of spiritual emergency. [Full text.] Journal of Scientific Exploration 35/1, 36-64.
Storm, L., & Rock, A.J. (2009a). Imagery cultivation vs. noise reduction: Shamanic-like journeying as a psi-conducive alternative to the Ganzfeld protocol. [Abstract.] Australian Journal of Parapsychology 9/1, 5-31.
Storm, L., & Rock, A.J. (2009b). Shamanic-like journeying and psi: I. Imagery cultivation, paranormal belief, and the picture-identification task. [Full text] Australian Journal of Parapsychology 9/2, 165-92.
Storm, L., & Rock, A.J. (2014). An investigation of the I Ching using the Q-Sort method and an RNG-PK design: I. Four possible psi predictors. [Abstract.] Australian Journal of Parapsychology 14/1, 29-67.
Storm, L., Sherwood, S.J., Roe, C.A., Tressoldi, P.E., Rock, A.J., & Di Risio, L. (2017). On the correspondence between dream content and target material under laboratory conditions: A meta-analysis of dream-ESP studies, 1966-2016. [Abstract.] International Journal of Dream Research 10/2, 120-40.
Storm, L., & Thalbourne, M.A. (2001). Studies of the I Ching: I. A replication. [Full text.] Journal of Parapsychology 65/2, 105-23.
Storm, L., & Tressoldi, P.E. (2017). Gathering in more sheep and goats: A meta-analysis of forced-choice sheep-goat studies, 1994-2015. [Auto download.] Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 81/2, 79-107.
Storm, L., Tressoldi, P.E., & Di Risio, L. (2010a). A meta-analysis with nothing to hide: Reply to Hyman (2010). [Abstract.] Psychological Bulletin 136/4, 491-94.
Thalbourne, M.A., & Storm, L. (2005). The self accomplishing: The achievements of the theory of psychopraxia. Journal of the Society for Psychical Research 69/881, 213-24.
Wehrman, J., & Storm, L. (2024). Investigations into retrocausal effects in cueing tasks. [Full text.] Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice.