Glossary of Parapsychological Terms
This
is not intended to be a definitive glossary as there will be variations in
meaning depending on the context in which the term is used. However, the
following should help the reader to better understand some of the terminology
used in this website and in parapsychological articles. N.B. any terms used in
a definition which also have a glossary entry are hyperlinked to their entry.
A
recently coined term defined as "a form of information transfer in which
all known sensorial stimuli are absent. That is some individuals are able to
gain access to information by an as yet unknown process. This is also known as Remote
Viewing (RV) and Clairvoyance."
Sometimes used more generally in place of ESP.
Influence by psychokinesis
of a biological system e.g. altering the haemolysis rate of blood cells in a
test-tube, or changing the physiological activity of a living system (see also DMILS).
Clairvoyance (literally
'clear-seeing')
A subset of ESP
covering apparent information transmission as though it were the result of
visual perception. The perception can appear externally - either replacing the
normal visual scene (as in visions) or being incorporated into it (as could be
the case with apparitions) - or internally, in the form of mental imagery and
intuition. It is also used more generally to mean paranormal
acquisition of any information directly from a physical source and not from the
mind of another person (cf. telepathy).
Auditory form
of Clairvoyance.
A general
term covering clairvoyance,
clairaudience,
etc. where information is thought to be gained directly from the physical
location/object.
Abbreviation of
Decision Augmentation Theory. An attempt to reconceptualise psychokinesis
as a precognition-based
selection process rather than one of actual influence (See the
Research/Theoretical/Physical Theories section on the KPU page for details).
Abbreviation of Direct
Mental Interaction with Living Systems. Used to
denote instances where one person is attempting to influence a distant
biological system, usually the physiology (see Electrodermal
Response) of another person. As it is unclear whether this represents
an influence (see Psychokinesis),
a case of ESP
on the part of the influencee or an opportunistic selection process (see DAT), the
term 'interaction' has been adopted (see the Psi / DMILS section on the KPU
webpage).
A measure of skin
conductance or resistance (to a small electrical current) which is related to
sympathetic nervous system arousal. This response can be elicited by external
stimuli (a light, tone etc.), or by internal activity (e.g. emotions). The most
commonly used measure is Skin Conductance.
Rarely used in
modern parapsychology, the popular usage of this term refers to a low-level
form of telepathy
wherein the empath appears to be aware of the emotional state of a distant
person. An empath may also refer tp someone thought able to 'broadcast' their
emotions to others (cf. DMILS,
ESP
and see also the Psi / DMILS section on the KPU webpage).
A general term used for
all forms of psi where
the process of information acquisition appears to be analogous to the
conventional sensory processes of sight, sound, taste, touch and hearing (see
also the Psi / ESP section on the KPU webpage).
Ganzfeld (from German
meaning 'whole field')
A state of mild
sensory deprivation, characterised by the presentation of homogenous sensory
fields . Thus, a person in Ganzfeld will have diffusive plastic hemispheres
over their eyes while in a dimly red-lit room, be listening to white noise
through headphones, and be seated in a comfortable, semi-reclined chair. Its
use in parapsychology
is based on a noise-reduction
model.
Refers to a whole
range of phenomena wherein one or more people attempt to bring about the
well-being of another person. This area is very complex, involving a number of
psychological and physical factors that must be allowed for before a psi
component is looked for (cf. DMILS).
Refers to psychokinesis
effects which are on a very small scale, usually only detectable by statistical
analysis e.g. perturbation of random electronic noise. Laboratory research
tends to be on micro-PK, as this ability is one which can apparently be shown
in a general population (see also the Psi / PK / MicroPk section on the KPU
webpage).
Refers to psychokinesis
effects which are either apparent to the naked eye or which can be deduced
without the need for statistical analysis e.g. levitation, spoon-bending. The
existence of macro-PK is controversial even amongst parapsychologists, having
rarely been demonstrated under controlled conditions and being more susceptible
to the possibility of fraud.
The
idea that psi
information may be more accessible if normal sensory information is reduced to
a minimum (reducing sensory 'noise' to make the psi 'signal' clearer).
Paranormal (literally
'beyond normal')
Term used to
denote any phenomenon which appears to be inexplicable by current scientific
theories.
Parapsychology (literally
'beyond psychology')
The study of
apparent new means of communication, or interaction, between organisms and
their environment (commonly referred to as psi, or psychic
ability), beyond those presently understood by the scientific community.
A placebo is a
supposedly inert substance or ineefectual technique originally used as a
control in an experiment. The 'placebo effect' is that such controls sometimes
show changes as strong or stonger than that seen in the experimental condition.
The nature of the effect is unknown, although it is does demonstrate the power
that an individual's belief can have on their state and performance.
Poltergeist (from
German for 'noisy spirit')
A general term
applied to a variety of site-, or sometimes person-, specific physical
phenomena. These can include temperature variations, anomalous sounds, and
movement of physical objects. The word 'poltergeist' was coined back when such
phenomena were thought to be due to the presence of some sort of mischevious
entity. Currently, poltergeist phenomena are usually considered to be related
either to unusual physical conditions at the affected site, or to be related to
psychokinesis.
Anecdotal reports suggest that many poltergeist focus on an individual under
some form of emotional stress.
The apparent
foreknowledge of as yet undetermined (i.e. unpredictable based on knowledge of
the present which available through conventional sensory channels) future
events.
A general term,
introduced by T.H Thouless and B.P. Wiesner (see SPR Proceedings 47(166): 1-19)
which refers to the factor(s) responsible for parapsychological phenomena.
Originally derived from the use of the greek letter psi to denote the unknown
quantity in an equation (see also the Psi section on the KPU webpage).
Psychic (from Greek
'psyche')
Popular term used
to denote a person who regularly uses, or who appears to be especially gifted
with, psi
abilities. Also refers to general phenomena related to the mind.
The supposed
ability to paranormally perform invasive surgery using no conventional medical
tools. The psychic surgeon uses either an unsterilised knife, or his bare
hands, to appear to make an incision and remove some internal matter. Once the
operation is finished, there is no sign of an incision, nor are there any
unpleasant aftereffects (e.g. infection). Many of the investigated cases have
turned out to be fraudulent, involving sleight of hand tricks to make the
operation appear convincing. However, it is possible that, in some
circumstances, the ritual nature of the 'surgery' could help effect a cure
through the equally mysterious placebo
effect.
Psychokinesis (PK) (literally
'mind-movement')
The apparent
ability to influence the environment seemingly by intention or other mental
activity alone. Parapsychologists usually distinguish between the extremely
small effects of micro-PK
and larger effects of macro-PK.
A system used to
produce unpredictable events for parapsychological (and other) experiments. The
system can either be pseudo-random (whcih approximates a random system but is
actually based on a deterministic algorithm) or true-random, where the system
is theoretically completely unpredictable. The random/rand/rnd function in many
computer languages is a pseudo-random algorithm. The electronic noise found in
circuits is an example of a true random system (see the Psi / PK / Random Event
Generators section on the KPU webpage).
Recurrent Spontaneous Psychokinesis
(RSPK)
See Poltergeist.
A term for
cases of ESP, most
commonly in laboratory studies, wherein a person attempts to describe a remote
location. In some cases there will be a target person at this location
(described as an 'agent' or 'beacon'); in others, the location will be
identified purely by an abstract or coded ID.
A term used to
cover a wide range of divination techniques which parapsychology
would tend to classify as types of ESP. Most
scrying techniques involve some degree of fixation on a surface with a clear
optical depth (e.g. a crystal ball, a pool of ink or deep water) or on an area
which shows random patterns (e.g. flames in a fire, smoke), the idea being that
subconscious information available to the scrying will be manifested in their
interpretation of the imagery or random patterns they see. Techniques using a
clear optical depth are actually very similar to the idea behind the homogenous
visual field used in Ganzfeld
ESP research.
Skin conductance (one
aspect of electrodermal
activity or EDA) is a measure of general arousal, based on the activity
of sweat glands in the skin on the palms of the hands. Whereas most sweat
glands respond primarily to temperature changes, these type of glands respond
primarily to mental changes (i.e. they relate to sympathetic nervous system
activity). As the activity of these glands change, the electrical conductance
of the skin is altered. Note this type of measurement is the basis of polygraph
or so-called lie detector tests, the idea being that you should be more aroused
(i.e. stressed) when you are deliberately lying.
General name given
to the information which it is hoped the the receiver/percipient will gain
access to through psi. For
example, the target in a Ganzfeld
ESP
study would be the video clip which the sender
is watching.
Telekinesis (literally
'distant-movement')
Another term
for psychokinesis.
Sometimes used to denote effects which occur at a distance.
Telepathy (literally
'distant perception/feeling')
The apparent
ability to communicate information from one mind to another.This information
may be 'received' in the same form as that from the visual, auditory,
olfactory, tactile, gustatory or even kinaesthetic senses. It is distinguished
from clairsentience
in that the information is assumed to have originated from the mind of another
person, rather than the target object itself.