Psi-conducive Variables
Parapsychologists have investigated certain personality traits and characteristics as potential psi-conducive variables, suggesting that most researchers share the view that these variables play an important role in ESP performance. These factors are thought to be positively correlated with increased scores in ganzfeld experiments, as compared to unselected participants. Traits and characteristics of subjects thought to increase the chance of obtaining a successful hit rate in a psi experiment include:
- Positive belief in psi; ESP
- Prior psi experiences
- Practicing a mental discipline such as meditation
- Creativity
- Artistic ability
- Emotional closeness with the sender
While there are a number of reasons that researchers avoid special participants and sample only normal populations, these factors are important considerations in future replications of ganzfeld experiment, and may be useful in predicting the outcome of these studies. An increasing number of researchers have moved towards more process-oriented experiments, and personality factors give the potential for directional, falsifiable hypotheses, a part of the scientific process that critics have argued that parapsychology lacks.
Read more about this topic: Ganzfeld Experiment
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