Psychic phenomena, recorded throughout human history, remained a mystery or a matter of faith rather than a subject of serious study until scientists began to investigate them roughly a century and a half ago. Systematic experimentation began with the work of J.B. Rhine at Duke University, resulting in the publication of Extra-Sensory Perception (1934) followed by Extra-Sensory Perception After Sixty Years (1940). Rhine and researchers who came after him struggled to present sufficient evidence to gain scientific credibility for the existence of extrasensory abilities. Yet despite tight experimental controls and numerous significant results the subject remains controversial. Parapsychologists argue that the impasse is not due to a lack of evidence but to the challenge their claims pose to the worldview of science in general. This comprehensive overview of the discipline of parapsychology, written by one of its most notable investigators, offers the reader a full understanding of both its concepts, theories and methods, and its controversies, problems and prospects.

Many people believe that they have experienced paranormal phenomena and others claim to possess psychic abilities. For the past hundred years or so, researchers have undertaken systematic and scientific work into these alleged experiences and abilities. This collection of articles provides readers with a general sense of the methods used in this research, the findings that have been obtained and the controversies generated by this work. They cover a wide range of issues, including the psychology of paranormal belief, investigations into ghosts and hauntings, laboratory research into extra-sensory perception and psychokinesis, and controlled tests of psychics and mediums. An introductory essay sets each of the selected papers in context and provides additional references for those wishing to delve deeper into the issues surrounding each of the areas covered.

Many people have experienced such unusual phenomena as dreams that later seem to correspond with unforeseeable events, thinking of a long-lost friend just before he or she unexpectedly calls, or the ability to "feel" the presence of deceased loved ones. What many do not realize is that these types of experiences have been researched for more than a century by eminent scientists, including Nobel laureates. Most of these researchers have concluded that some of these phenomena do occur, although we are far from explaining them to everyone's satisfaction. This book is the first in almost 40 years to provide a comprehensive scientific overview of research in the field of parapsychology, explaining what we know and don't know about so-called psi phenomena, such as "telepathy," "precognition" or "psychokinesis." Contributors evaluate the evidence for these phenomena, accounting for factors such as selective memory, wish fulfillment and incorrect methods or analyses, in some cases offering psychological, physical and biological theories. Instructors considering this book for use in a course may request an examination copy here.

Grounded in both scientific acumen and constructive inquiry, this anthology shines a rare, clarifying light on the controversial realms of psychical and paranormal research, surveying reports, essays, and arguments from more than a century of investigation into matters such as clairvoyance, telepathy, and past-life regression. In the past one hundred and twenty-five years-despite a relative paucity of funding and the troubling persistence of fraud-serious inquiry into the paranormal, particularly as it relates to clairvoyance and psychical perception, has successfully entered the scientific age. Studies in the modern laboratory, employing rigorous methodology and peer-reviewed oversight, have conclusively detected statistical anomalies that suggest the presence of some not yet understood faculty of the human mind. In The Parapsychology Revolution, Robert M. Schoch, Ph.D.-a scholar widely known for his geological theories that question the conventional dating of the Great Sphinx-and researcher Logan Yonavjak introduce and anthologize core writings that underscore the range and continuing challenges of psychical research. The book's extensive introduction and the editors' commentary on individual essays and sections highlight milestones, feuds, and key players that mark the nascent history of this fascinating and important field of research. Finally, The Parapsychology Revolution addresses and clarifies the all-important question: Is there legitimate evidence for a world beyond the ordinary?