By chance we would expect participants to select the target stimuli (otherwise known as a ‘hit’) on 25 per cent of trials.Įarly ganzfeld experiments produced highly significant results, well above what chance would predict for performance. After the session the receiver is presented with four stimuli (one is the target and the other three serve as decoys) and asked to select which of the four was most similar to their mentation. During this time the receiver provides a continuous verbal report of any imagery or thoughts. It is the sender’s job to concentrate on the target and attempt to mentally send it to the receiver. A computer randomly selects a stimulus or ‘target’ (typically a photograph or video) from a large pool. Participant 2, otherwise known as ‘the sender’, is located in a different room. The reasoning behind such procedures is that anecdotal reports of ESP often occur during altered states of consciousness. These measures are taken to reduce external noise and place participants in a comfortable ‘dreamy state of awareness’. Translucent ping-pong ball halves are taped over their eyes, and a red floodlight shone over them while white noise is played through headphones. Participant 1, known as ‘the receiver’ is seated in a comfortable chair in an acoustically isolated room. The ganzfeld experiment A typical ganzfeld experiment involves two participants. The most common experimental design that has been used to examine the ‘ESP hypothesis’ is the ganzfeld procedure. Parapsychology scientifically investigates the possibility of ESP, and has collected a large body of evidence which some suggest support such a remarkable claim (Bem & Honorton, 1994 Sherwood & Roe, 2003). What we are dealing with is a question of fact’ (1940/2003, p.29). Those that believe in the possibility of ESP are also in good company William James, Carl Jung and Nobel Prize winner Charles Riche to name but a few great minds.Īlthough many feel antipathy towards proposed paranormal and occultist suggestions such as ESP, Freud wrote that ‘This disinclination must ultimately be overcome. Indeed, education level has even been shown to be positively correlated with belief in ESP (Rice, 2003).

Yet the assumption that belief in ESP is related to lower IQ and poorer reasoning skills has been shown to be inaccurate (Roe, 1999).

Alternatively it may just be pure coincidence how many times is a distant friend thought of and they don’t call? If we also consider fraud and mistakenness, anecdotes are reduced to something only vaguely resembling scientific evidence. For example, thinking of a friend you have not spoken to for sometime and then receiving a telephone call from that very person may be seem too much of a coincidence, best explained by some form of ESP. Furthermore, the laws of probability mean that weird coincidences that may well appear ‘ESP-like’ can’t help but happen. Extensive research has shown us that memory can be unreliable, and that cognitive biases result in events regularly and easily being misinterpreted (Henkel & Mather, 2007 Kahneman et al., 1993).

However, our knowledge of the human mind raises considerable doubts over the accuracy of such anecdotal evidence. Additionally, psychologists and sociologists have collected thousands of retrospective case reports of alleged ESP phenomena (Irwin & Watt, 2007). Although unexplained by current scientific thought, surveys continually indicate that belief in ESP is extremely common (Moore, 2005) and many individuals are adamant that they have experienced ESP at first hand (Greeley, 1987). Yet, to the surprise of many academics, a significant body of scientific evidence exists which may suggest otherwise.ĮSP has been defined as ‘anomalous processes of information or energy transfer, processes such as telepathy… that are currently unexplained in terms of known physical or biological mechanisms’ (Bem & Honorton, 1994, p.4). Extra-sensory perception (ESP) is a term often scoffed at in psychology and wider science: an alleged ‘paranormal’ or supernatural phenomenon that many believe is best suited to science fiction films.

Inaccurate perception definition