The study of Anomalous Experience
- Created by: Natalie
- Created on: 23-10-13 18:51
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- The study of Anomalous Experience
- Pseudoscience
- Pseudoscience - masquerades as science but lacks important characteristics of science i.e lacks refutable hypotheses.
- In pseudoscience, the burden of proof does not rest with the phenomenon, but it is up to sceptics to disprove their reality.
- Jealous phenomena - paranormal psychologist believe presence of sceptics cause phenomena to 'go away'.
- Reasons to be concerned about paranormal research include : making money out of unfounded claims, not asking for evidence.
- If two competing explanations, simpler one is to be preferred (Occam's razor) - paranormal explanations are extremely complex.
- Scientific Fraud
- Soal had faked results in research on anomalous experience.
- Fraud never confirmed although analysis of results suggests fraud likely.
- Rhine - reported that 12 researchers in his lab had behaved dishonestly to gain significant results.
- Wrong to maintain anonymity of fraudulent researchers as means we are unable to identify work they were involved with.
- Sargent - errors and failures to follow protocol during his research.
- Bem and Honorton (1994) review - half of studies were from Sargent's lab and therefore may be flawed.
- Geller - accused of using magic tricks to accomplish 'paranormal' feats.
- Soal had faked results in research on anomalous experience.
- ESP
- ESP = perception of objects or events without any of the known physical senses being involved.
- Ganzfeld technique - subject isolated in conditions of sensory deprivation.
- Analysis of 28 ganzfeld studies - 38% success rate.
- Autoganzfed - similar levels of success.
- Ganzfeld technique - subject isolated in conditions of sensory deprivation.
- Analysis of 28 ganzfeld studies - 38% success rate.
- Autoganzfed - similar levels of success.
- Autoganzfed - similar levels of success.
- Images are complex, and require subjective evaluation of a 'match'.
- Analysis of 28 ganzfeld studies - 38% success rate.
- Ganzfeld technique - subject isolated in conditions of sensory deprivation.
- Autoganzfed - similar levels of success.
- Images are complex, and require subjective evaluation of a 'match'.
- Analysis of 28 ganzfeld studies - 38% success rate.
- Previous lack of success in ESP believed to be because psi drowned out by other stimuli.
- Psi = the process of information transfer or energy transfer in extrasensory perception or psychokinesis that is unexplained in terms of known physical or biological mechanisms.
- 'File-drawer effect' - results of meta-analyses change according to which studies are left out.
- Psychokinesis (PK)
- PK = the movement or manipulation of objects or events without any physical contact.
- Macro PK - effects that are visible to the human eye.
- Batcheldor (1984) - developed technique to show that most people possess this power.
- Validity of claims challenged by frequency with which effects recreated by magicians.
- Micro PK - small effects on probabilistic systems e.g. throw of dice.
- PEAR group uses random event generator to investigate micro PK.
- Jahn et al. (1997) combined test results across all trials over 12 year period - found very large effect size.
- Belief also important - Wiseman and Greening (2005).
- Bierman (2000) - steady decline in effect size over years, suggesting phenomena not real.
- Pseudoscience
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