Consciousness - An Introduction (ch21)

What does the paranormal all encompass? - Chapter 21

There are at least two good reasons for studying the paranormal phenomenon:

1. paranormal experiences are common and many people believe in it;             

2. when paranormal experiences occur they have many implications for science as a result.             

The popular view of the paranormal is that physical phenomena are the proof of the 'power of consciousness'. Consciousness is independent of time and space. Within parapsychology, terms such as 'awareness', 'abnormal effects of conscious intention', 'awareness interactions' and 'awareness-related anomalies' are common.

In the event that paranormal claims are wrong, the extended beliefs and frequent reports of physical experiences must be explained in a different way. When paranormal claims are correct, it is important to further investigate the implications for the science of consciousness.

Spiritualism

Often, ideas about the paranormal are used to undermine materialistic visions about consciousness. Accepting that something supernatural exists means that not everything can be explained by means of brain processes. Between 1800 and 1900 there was a lot of attention for spirits and people who could communicate with them. Spiritualism was very popular during that period. People who say they can communicate with spirits are also called mediums. It has often happened that mediums used all sorts of tricks and thus pretended they were clairvoyant. Cheating is not the only alternative to a paranormal interpretation. People can also misinterpret things they see for many other reasons, such as hallucinations and delusions.

Parapsychology

J. B and L. Rhine tried to find evidence against materialism and behaviorism.

Behaviorism used to be very popular and emphasized observable and measurable outcomes. Rhine and Rhine wanted to show that an independent mind exists. J.B. Rhine wrote a book and used the term ' extrasensory perception' (ESP) for the first time . This term covered three types of communication that require no senses. First there is (1) telepathy , where information is passed on from one person to another. In addition there is such a thing as (2) ' clairvoyance' . In this case, infor mation comes from objects or events that are remote. To examine these terms, Rhine did several experiments. He stated that everyone had paranormal skills, even if this was very weak for some people. To accomplish this, subjects in his experiments were normal people and not people who claimed to possess specific physical powers.

Finally, J. B. Rhine spoke about (3) ' precognition' : information coming from the future. These terms are still used in parapsychology. Rhine and Rhine described experiments to test the existence of these three communication methods. They believed that everyone has paranormal skills, no matter how weak these skills are. Rhine and Rhine carried out the experiments and found significant results. Now we know that these results were not correct, as there was a good chance that someone would by chance choose the right alternative in an experiment. They also believed in the existence of psychokinesis (PK) . Psychokinesis would be the case when someone with his mind can influence when a wheel will stop turning, for example. Rhine and Rhine used the term ' psi' when they talked about paranormal activities. 'Psi' therefore consists of both ESP and PK. All forms of psi are described as communication without the use of senses. One consequence is that hypnosis is no longer seen as psi, because psychology has been able to explain hypnosis.

Much criticism was expressed on the methods Rhine and Rhine used to prove that paranormal activity exists. The main problem was that there was no randomization in the Rhine and Rhine experiments. It is then easier to attribute the results to an effect if that is not true in reality. People seemed to be telepathic, for example, because they knew the person they were getting information from.

Since people were allowed to choose which information they wanted to "send" to another, it seemed that there was  telepathy, because people who knew each other well were thinking about the same subject. Nowadays parapsychologists try to use randomization.

'Extrasensory perception', ESP

When people have to choose from cards, it is possible that they happen to choose the right card. You can then easily find a statistically significant effect, while this effect does not exist. Other studies have been carried out to avoid this pitfall.

With ' remote viewing' it is the case that someone (the target ) for example goes to a randomly selected location and looks around for a while. Meanwhile another person ( subject ) is going to sit down and relax. This person tells you which impressions or images come to him or her. Afterwards the subject tries to match the impressions with a set of possible target locations and to choose the right one. This research method was also criticized because people would be sent too far towards the right match.

Suppose that this type of research proves that telepathy exists, for example. What consequences does this have for the discussion around consciousness? If ESP exists, this does not mean that this skill can be practiced voluntarily. In principle, it does not say anything about the mind or consciousness. In addition, it has never been proven that 'good' answers during this kind of experiment are caused by a change in consciousness. There is no direct evidence that consciousness plays a role in ESP.

'Psychokinesis', PK

Psychokinesis (PK) stands for the ability to influence objects or events without touching them or using a different force. Nowadays PK's research is mainly about micro-PK, the so-called effect of the human mind on microscopic or mechanical systems. The observational theories are derived from quantum physics and do not describe psi in terms of a force occurring at a specific moment, but as a change in the chances caused by conscious observation of the results. PK would occur when feedback is given, not when particles are released. The parapsychologists who are convinced of the existence of PK make explicit claims that the consciousness is involved. Some of them are dualists and they believe that the non-physical mind, or consciousness,acts as a force on the physical universe. Other theories, based on quantum physics, claim that consciousness is independent of time and space.

The power of coincidences

People often interpret random phenomena incorrectly and think that there is a real effect. Because people rarely believe in coincidence, they try to find explanations for the results found. If no good explanation for an event is found, paranormal activity is soon discussed. People who are better at probability believe less often in paranormal activity. It is also true that people remember details that come true, but forget the rest.

Implications

Paranormal activity probably does not exist. Many significant results from parapsychological research often prove to be incor- rectable in other studies. Despite the fact that a lot of research has been done, we still can not give certain information about this subject. If psi exists, then there is only a very small effect. The rejection of paranormal activity does not mean that someone by definition no longer believes in spirituality.

Resources:Blackmore; Susan. (2010). Consciousness, Second Edition An Introduction. Abingdon, Oxon: Taylor & Francis.