Some years ago I had the pleasure of attending a lecture by the eminent physicist and parapsychologist Dr. Bernard Carr. My understanding of his opinion at that time was that the so-called paranormal is those incidents which at this stage of our scientific knowledge can be explained by no curent scientific model or theory. It is these 'exceptions' to normal physics which provide clues as to where the current models are weak, and by examining anomalies we can progress, creating better and better models - the task of Science. He predicts that as science advances, less and less will be left in the 'paranormal', and things which seemed 'paranormal' become accepted science. (I must admit I tried to think of an example at the time, and the closest I came was hypnotism).
Of course, there is a great deal which will probably turn out to have nothing to do with the inadequacy of current scientific theories, and more to do with the gullibility of human beings or the misinterpretation of normal events, (as Dr Carr readily admits), and in these cases the psychologist is better equipped than the physicist. The nonsense which is endlessly peddled in paranormal circles comes from a number of sources, not least from authors and parapsychologists who repeat stories and cases without actually checking the facts - and it is embarassingly left to the sceptics to do this work for us.
So am I saying that only physicists can gain from a study of parapsychology, and that psychologists are only useful in debunking? Of course not! In 1993 I set up a paranormal research group, who specialised in what are called spontaneous cases - those which arise in the field, unlooked for, such as hauntings, premonitions etc. We investigated some 30-odd cases as a group, and in that time I needed the skills of -
professional investigators (police), psychologists, archivists, historians, builders, surveyors, plumbers, geologists, psychiatrists, electricians, vets, doctors, statisticians and a rock musician! (among many others...)
The paranormal manifests in every field of human endeavour, as well as in the natural world, and noone individual can ever have all the skills required. That is why all parapsychologists must learn to research in every discipline, and very quickly find sympathetic experts from every field to provide expert advice. You can't possibly ever know it all, but with enough friends to help out it can seem that you do!
Back to the opening idea - that Science is developing, and will one day embrace the paranormal. Since Thomas Kuhn's groundbreaking work On the Nature of Scientific Revolutions introduced the idea, many historians of science have used the term paradigm to describe a theoretical model. At one time the dominant paradigm in astronomy was terracentric - the earth was the centre of the universe nad the sun and planets revolved around it, perhaps in crystal spheres. Then came Copernicus, and the heliocentric model, in which the earth went round the sun, took over. Ironically paradigms tend to change only when the older scientists who were trained in the old model die, and the new orthodoxy of the next generation means they are as conservative to change. The next paradigm comes along, and when they die, it becomes the new 'truth'.
In my opinion there are three paradigms in our modern thinking that all attempt to explain the paranormal. Each is based in philosophy, and each has vocal adherents who rubbish the work of those in the other schools, and provide scientific evidence to support their position. I have argued from each perspective at different times, and you may well identify strongly with one of these positions. They are -
1. The Dualist or Spirit Hypothesis.
This holds that every human, and perhaps animal and plant, has a unique and eternal soul, which survives bodily death. You, the essence of you, not your body, which we most comfortably associate with as our minds, will not die. Your mind is not the same as your brain. This is the position held by Spiritualists and most of the world religions, and there is much evidence for it. Paranormal events are caused by spirits or supernatural forces.
This is a very basic statement of the hypothesis, which might also include natural spirits and other non-human intelligences in the spirit world. it may well include the demonic hypothesis, magic, and endless variations depending on the theology of the believer. It is also the most common belief of most people, as a look at alt.folklore.ghost-stories newsgroup will affirm.
In this theory a ghost or poltergeist is usually interpreted as an 'earthbound spirit' or 'demonic force
2. The Epiphenomenalist Position
- a. The Psi Hypothesis.
Epiphenomenalism is the belief that your mind (you) is a result of brain function, and that when brain death occurs, you die with it. It is a non-survival hypothesis. It is a materialist, reductionist hypothesis. (Hint: It can help to look up some of these words - materialist, reductionist, etc in a Dictionary of Philosophy by the way, even if you know what they mean...)
So if spirits don't exist, how do we address the evidence for paranormal events such as poltergeists? Many paranormal events seem to revolve around people, and the psi hypothesis holds that the paranormal are as yet unknown but completely natural powers associated with human brain function - it includes theories such as telepathy, psycho-kinesis, and precognition, all of which are grouped together under the heading General ESP (extra-sensory perception). A poltergeist might be explained in this paradigm by a build up of stress and frustration which could not be manifested by the victim through usual channels manifesting as a nervous breakdown outside their heads - they literally haunt themselves! This is a paradigm which has gained considerable credence in parapsychological circles - in fact and much to my irritation it is the 'common sense' of modern parapsychology, or the hegemony.. It is knowledge of this paradigm and it's ramifications which differentiates parapsychologists from spiritualists and ghosthunters - which does not (necessarily) mean it is correct or any more useful as a model, simply that it is the orthodoxy of modern parapsychology! So now you know how to be a parapsychological heretic!
b. Scepticism.
This is quite simply the position it's all rot. Actually there are two types of sceptic, the sceptic who keeps an open mind and can be persuaded by sufficient evidence, and the sceptic who a priori refuses to accept the possibility of the paranormal.
So which of these positions do your investigations lead you towards? It is quite possible that the truth may include some aspects of all of them, and that different phenomena have different causalities.
A Theory of Everything
At which point a caveat. It is common for people in this field to try to develop a single revolutionary idea which explains all paranormal phenomena. This is a ludicrous endeavour, as they tend to stretch it to include the yeti, Bermuda triangle, UFO's and ghosts. Beware these people - they will send you stark raving mad! It is a very human thing to assume that we can solve all problems with a single panacea, but I doubt it will ever happen.
CJ '98