The capacity to read minds and foresee the future is not often associated with the human race. Despite this, evidence indicates that many individuals really believe in psychic skills.
Instances of verified psychic fraud throughout the years would seem to diminish the credibility of psychic claims. Lajos Pap, a spiritualist medium from Hungary, was shown to have fabricated animal sightings during seances. Recently, self-proclaimed psychic James Hydrick was proven to be a con artist. Hydrick said that his paranormal displays were prison-learned tactics.
The televangelist Peter Popoff is another noteworthy example. His wife utilized a wireless transmitter to convey sermon-attendee information to him through an earphone. Popoff said that he received this knowledge via paranormal ways and came to prominence by conducting a nationally broadcast show in which he performed what seemed to be miraculous treatments on audience members.
However, despite such occurrences, there are still a significant number of individuals who believe in psychic abilities. For instance, according to a Gallup study conducted in the United States, more than a quarter of individuals think that humans possess psychic powers, such as telepathy and clairvoyance.
The Faithful
A new survey may give insight into why some continue to believe in psychic abilities. Comparing believers and skeptics with the same level of education and academic ability, the research indicated that believers thought less analytically than skeptics. This implies that they see the world from a subjective personal standpoint and fail to evaluate facts objectively.
Psychic claims are often seen as confirming proof by believers, regardless of their empirical foundation. This is shown by the example of Chris Robinson, who calls himself a “dream detective.”
Robinson claims that he has predicted terrorist strikes, natural catastrophes, and celebrity deaths. His claims are supported by little and dubious evidence. Gary Schwartz’s tests at the University of Arizona supported Robinson’s abilities; however, other researchers using comparable methodologies were unable to validate Schwartz’s result.
Vague and general
Numerous individuals believe in the existence of psychic talents since psychic claims are sometimes generic and ambiguous, such as predicting a plane disaster or celebrity death.
This is known as The Barnum effect, a widespread psychological phenomenon in which individuals prefer to accept imprecise, broad descriptions of personality as specifically appropriate to themselves.
A psychic medium is a person who has extrasensory abilities. Shutterstock Research has shown, for instance, that individuals give high accuracy scores to descriptions of their personality that are ostensibly customized to them but are really generic and applicable to a broad spectrum of people. The name is a reference to Phineas Taylor Barnum, a circus performer with a reputation for being a brilliant psychological manipulator.
Impossible to validate
Likewise, many psychic claims have been tough to validate. Uri Geller’s claim that he “willed” the ball to move during a penalty kick in Euro ’96 is a typical example. The movement of the ball happened spontaneously in an uncontrolled context, and Geller afterward made the assertion.
When put to scientific examination, stated skills are often discredited. Derek Ogilvie demonstrated this in the 2007 television documentary The Million Dollar Mind Reader. The investigation revealed that Ogilvie really felt he had supernatural abilities but was unable to read the minds of infants.
And often, when scientists have supported psychic claims, criticism has followed.
Mixed results
The existence of scientific study with favorable discoveries also contributes to the acceptance of psychic abilities. This supports the belief of believers that claims are authentic and phenomena are real while ignoring the reality that published research is often criticized, and replication is required for widespread acceptance.
Mind set
Despite instances of fraud, falsification, and fraudulence, as well as contradictory data, it seems that individuals will continue to believe in psychic phenomena. One-third of Americans believe they have had a psychic moment, and almost half of the American women claim to have sensed the presence of a ghost.
Regardless of whether this is due to a lack of analytical abilities, actual experiences, or a desire to make the world more intriguing, it seems that believers will continue to believe despite scientific evidence to the contrary.