43 conduct the intervention in a consistent and faithful Durlak, J. A. (1997). Successful prevention programs for chil- manner. In other words, the current emphasis on de- dren and adolescents. New York Plenum Press. Offers tailed program manuals dovetails with earlier efforts to numerous examples of paraprofessionals in prevention systematically train paraprofessionals in helping skills. programs. Gershon, M., & Biller, H. B. (1977). The other helpers: Para- These two developments are relevant for preparing pro- professionals and nonprofessionals in mental health. Lex- fessionals as well as paraprofessionals to implement dif- ington, MA: Heath. An extensive review of the use and ferent types of therapeutic and preventive interven- effectiveness of paraprofessionals. tions. Greenblatt. M., York, R., & Brown, F. (1955). From custodial to therapeutic patient care in mental hospitals. New York: Summary Russell Sage Foundation. Discusses the history of men- There is no question that the use of paraprofessionals tal hospital care. has increased the quantity and range of services avail- Karlsruher, A. E. (1974). The nonprofessional as a psycho- able to the general public. There never has been nor therapeutic agent: A review of the empirical evidence will there ever be a sufficient number of mental health pertaining to his effectiveness. American Journal of Com- professionals to meet. the need and demand for service. munity Psychology, 2. 61-77. Sobey, F. (1970). The nonprofessional revolution in mental Using paraprofessionals therefore increases the number health. New York: Columbia University Press. Examines of people who can be helped. In some cases, it would how over ten thousand paraprofessionals were used in be impossible to offer programs without paraprofession- federally funded research programs. als. For instance, there are hundreds of suicide preven- Task Force on Promotion and Dissemination of Psycholog- tion and crisis hot lines and call-in centers throughout ical Procedures. (1995). The Clinical Psychologist, 48, 3- the country that could not exist without paraprofes- 23. sional personnel. In addition, many prevention pro- Joseph Durlak grams now follow a model in which professionals func- A. tion in a consultative and collaborative relationship with local community residents (i.e., community gate- keepers and paraprofessionals) and it is the latter per- sonnel who are usually responsible for conducting the PARAPSYCHOLOGY is the branch of psychology that intervention (Durla.k, 1997). In summary, mental studies a group of phenomena collectively known as health care has been enhanced because paraprofession- psi, a term referring to the transfer of information or als have been used in different ways to extend and ex- energy that cannot be explained by known physical or pand the range of services customarily offered by pro- biological mechanisms. Psi phenomena include extra- fessionals. sensory perception (ESP), the acquisition of information without mediation by the sensory system(s), and psy- chokinesis (PK), action with mediation by the motor sys- Bibliography tem. ESP, in turn, is manifested by (thought transference), clairvoyance (perception of objects that Borck, L. E., & Fawcett, S. B. (1983). Learningcounselingand are not present in the sensory field), precognition (per- problem-solving skills. New York: Haworth Press. ception of future events), and postcognition (the percep- Christensen, A., &Jacobson, N. S. (1994). Who (or what) can do psychotherapy: The status and challenge of tion, as opposed to the memory, of past events). nonprofessional therapies. Psychological Science, 5, 8- Parapsychology is a branch of psychology because 14. Reviews the controversy surrounding paraprofes- the phenomena it studies are mental (e.g., perceptual) sionals and updates research findings. or behavioral in nature. It should be understood at the Danish, S. J., & Hauer, A. L. (1978). Helping skills: A basic outset that psi phenomena might well be explained in training program. New York: Human Sciences Press. An terms of normal processes. Thus, what appears to be example of a structured training manual. clairvoyance might simply reflect an individual’s high Durlak, J. A. (1979). Comparative effectiveness of parapro- degree of sensory acuity: what appears to be telepathy fessional and professional helpers. Psychological Bulletin, might reflect cues inadvertently transmitted by one per- 86, 80-92. Offers the conclusion that paraprofessionals son and unconsciously picked up by another; what ap- and professionals obtain comparable therapeutic out- pears to be precognition might merely be coincidence: comes. Durlak, J. A. (1983). Training programs for paraprofession- and what appears to be psychokinesis might be a prod- als: Issues and guidelines. In A. M. Jeger & R. S. Slot- uct of simple fraud. Most psychologists incline toward nick (Eds.), Community mental health: A behavioral- these sorts of explanations for ostensibly paranormal ecological perspective (pp. 445-457). New York Plenum phenomena. Press. Discusses effective training approaches for para- Parapsychologists, however. argue that at the very professionals. least the phenomena of psi represent anomalies of ex- 44 PARAPSYCHOLOGY perience, thought, and action: statistical deviations Carson, a television talk-show host who was himself from chance that cannot be explained in terms of an accomplished stage magician). Additional centers known processes or established theories. Whereas some for parapsychological research were established at the parapsychologists believe that psi phenomena might be Stanford Research Institute (now known as SRI Inter- understood in terms of some hitherto unknown sen- national), Princeton, and other institutions. At SRI, sory modality or physical force, others believe that psi Russell Targ and Harold Putoff conducted a series of constitutes evidence for paranormal processes that lie experiments on remote viewing, in which the “percip- outside the domain of normal science. ient” described his or her clairvoyant impressions of a Parapsychology has its origins in nineteenth- randomly chosen geographical site being visited by a century spiritualism, as represented by the work of target team. Helmut Schmidt, at Boeing Scientific Re- F. W. H. Myers (1843-I~OI),an English writer. Al- search Laboratories, tested volunteers’ ability to predict though Descartes’s dualism proposed that the mind is the output of a machine that generated random num- independent of the body, by the nineteenth century, vir- bers according to emissions from a radioactive source. tually all scientists had adopted some version of ma- At Princeton, Robert Jahn examined volunteers’ ability terialism, which holds that brain processes constitute to influence the output of a different kind of random the biological substrate of mental life. Spiritualism re- number generator based on electronically generated vived dualism by postulating the existence of soul (or, noise. All three researchers reported significant devia- in secular terms, mind) as a nonphysical entity that tions from chance, and thus significant evidence for psi. survived bodily death, and formed the basis for such A great deal of contemporary parapsychological re- fads as the Ouija board, mediums, and seances. In con- search employs the Ganzfeld technique, which resem- temporary psychology, spiritualistic concerns with the bles Rhine’s experiments with Zener cards. Ganzfeld, a soul, life after death, channeling, and reincarnation are term derived from Gestalt psychology, refers to a ho- represented by the field of transpersonal psychology mogeneous sensory field, without any imperfections or and research on so-called near-death and out-of-body boundaries. In the Ganzfeld experiments, participants experiences. relax in a reclining chair, translucent shields are placed In 1882. Myers founded the Society for Psychical over their eyes, and white noise is played through ear- Research in London: along with American psychologist phones. The general idea is that the Ganzfeld should William James and others, he also founded the Amer- increase psi effects by reducing distraction from the ican Society for Psychical Research in 1884. In this sensory environment. And indeed, Ganzfeld experi- context, psychical refers to the dualistic notion of a dis- ments conducted in the late 1970s and early 1980s by embodied mind to mental states, such as clairvoyance, the late Charles Honorton (then affiliated with the Psy- which have no basis in physical reality. In the early chophysical Research Laboratories in Princeton, New twentieth century, Stanford, Harvard, and other uni- Jersey) and others did appear to yield above-chance lev- versities administered funds specifically established to els of psi performance. However, a 1985 review by Ray study spiritualistic and psychical phenomena, initiating Hyman, a psychologist and skeptic of paranormal an era of credulous and skeptical ghost hunting by pro- claims, revealed a number of methodological problems fessionals and amateurs alike. with those studies. For example, many of the experi- At Harvard, J. B. Rhine (1895-1980) conducted psy- ments suffered from inadequate randomization of trials chical research with William MacDougall; in 1927,he or left open the possibility of contamination through and his wife, Louisa Rhine, moved with MacDougall to . In 1986.Hyman and Honorton issued Duke University. The Rhines eventually established the a joint communique setting out minimal methodologi- Duke Parapsychology Laboratory and ushered in an era cal standards for future Ganzfeld research. of controlled, quantitative research on psi. Their re- An obvious problem with evaluating research on psi search on ESP employed a deck of 25 Zener cards, on is that most scientific journals prefer to publish studies which were printed one of five symbols: star, circle, that yield positive, statistically significant outcomes. cross, square, or wavy line: the volunteer’s task was to Therefore, any review of the published research on psi guess which card was being viewed by the experi- is likely to exclude many negative studies that remain menter. When statistical analysis yielded a success rate unpublished. In an attempt to rectify the “file drawer” greater than would be expected by chance, Rhine problem, the Journal of Parapsychological Research ac- claimed to have demonstrated ESP. Unfortunately, other tively solicits both positive and negative studies. Still, it laboratories generally failed to replicate these positive is somewhat disconcerting that failures to replicate psi results, and research on ESP and PK fell into a decline. effects have sometimes been interpreted as positive ev- Interest in parapsychology was revived in the 1970s idence for psi: the argument being that the later exper- by media attention to Uri Geller. an Israeli magician iments involved skeptics whose negative attitudes par- who claimed to be able to bend spoons by mere thought anormally affected the experimental outcomes. Of (though, famously, not in the presence of Johnny course, such a “Heads I win, tails you lose” position PARAPSYCHOLOGY 45 renders parapsychological claims scientifically untesta- ing. Many parapsychologists began their research ble. Interestingly, comprehensive reviews indicate that careers because of some compelling subjective experi- . experiments conducted with participants who believe in ence of clairvoyance, precognition, or the like, that psi are more likely to yield positive results than those seemed to escape mundane explanation. Indeed, this with participants who are skeptical. However, it is not was the source of William James’s fascination with spir- clear whether this “sheep versus goats” effect reflects itualism and psychic phenomena: it is interesting to individual differences in paranormal ability or merely note that James conducted an experimental test with individual difference in acuity to subtle sensory cues. his friend Myers, that whoever died first should attempt Claims that psi abilities are enhanced while dreaming to communicate with the survivor. The test failed. or during hypnosis or sensory deprivation are based on James also arranged a replication with his wife, which, very weak evidence. apparently, also failed. Nevertheless, James felt that the During the 1980s. US. intelligence and military ana- experience of the paranormal was psychologically in- lysts took a national security interest in claims for ESP teresting and should be studied for what it might reveal and PK emanating from the Soviet Union. In 1988,a about normal mental life. committee of the Natjonal Research Council (NRC), the Psychometric surveys indicate wide individual dif- operating arm of the National Academy of Sciences, ferences in paranormal experiences. Almost by defini- examined the literature on psi at the request of the U.S. tion, these subjective experiences occur outside con- Army. The NRC committee determined that the remote trolled laboratory settings. It seems likely that some of viewing, random number generation, and Ganzfeld par- these experiences are artifacts of biases and shortcom- adigms examined were beset by major methodological ings that infect human judgment generally. Thus, we problems, particularly inadequate randomization, sen- may be more likely to notice, and remember, the rare sory leakage. and the use of multiple tests for psi that experience in which we thought about someone just spuriously inflated the probability levels associated with before they called on the telephone, than the many ex- experimental outcomes. As such, the committee con- periences in which this coincidence did not occur. cluded that there was no scientific justification for claims Moreover, it is possible that individual differences in the about ESP, PK, or their practical significance. This re- experience of ESP may be related to a cognitive capacity mains the firm view of the scientific establishment. for absorption in sensory or fantasy experience, a facet In response to the NRC committee, , a of openness to experience, a major dimension of per- psychologist and accomplished stage magician, wrote sonality. Similarly, individual differences in PK, as re- an article with Honorton defending the Ganzfeld ex- flected in the Ouija board, may be related to a capacity periments and reviewed a new set of experiments that for dissociation, which allows people to engage in be- apparently met most of the standards set out by Hyman havioral activities outside conscious awareness. Ab- and Honorton (Bem & Honorton, 1994, is one of the sorption and dissociation probably lie at the heart of few instances where parapsychological research has near-death and out-of-body experiences, as well. As been published in a mainstream psychology journal). William James argued a century ago, it is possible to In reply, Hyman found some persisting methodological take people’s anomalous experiences seriously without difficulties. In his reanalysis, eliminating these problems necessarily embracing claims about the paranormal or- reduced performance to chance levels. A rejoinder by igins of these experiences. Bem (Honorton had died since their joint project began) But one does not have to be a parapsychologist to discounted Hyman’s criticism, but the fact remains that study anomalous experience. It is enough simply to be there have been no independent replications of the a cognitive, clinical, personality, or social psychologist. Ganzfeld effect using the improved methodology outside The central claim of parapsychology goes beyond ex- Honorton’s laboratory. This leaves open the possibility perience and encompasses the claim that the anoma- that, despite Honorton’s efforts to the contrary, some lous phenomena of psi are not mediated by the sensory subtle bias may have contaminated the studies con- or motor systems normally associated with sensation ducted in his laboratory. In fact, Milton and Wiseman and action. In this respect, parapsychology confronts (“Does psi exist?’ Psychological Bulletin, 1999) reviewed the scientist with a difficult conundrum. Science will the results of 30 additional Ganzfeld experiments, not progress unless the investigator is open to new ob- which also apparently met the Hyman-Honorton stan- servations that might challenge established (and cher- dards. lhis database, which was more extensive than ished) theories. At the same time, however, scientists the one reviewed by Bem and Honorton (1994).yielded must approach any startling new claim with an atti- no evidence of psi. tude of skepticism: otherwise, society is left vulnerable Even if parapsychological research fails to reveal to the ravages of junk and pathological science. Justice previously unrecognized sensory modalities, or to chal- is done to both science and society when startling lenge established physical laws, the subjective experi- claims are evaluated according to the most stringent ences associated with psi are psychologically interest- methodological standards. The evidence is not all in, 46 PARASOMNIAS

and it is best to keep an open mind, but when one Recent research and criticism. Behavioral G Brain Sci- removes outright fraud, poor methodology, and capi- ences, 10, 539443. Two proponents review modern ev- talization on chance, there appears to be little or no psi idence for psi (see Alcock, 1987). left to explain. Reed, G. (1972). The psychology of anomalous experience. New York Houghton Mifflin. In the tradition of Wil- liam James, Reed attempted to explain subjective ex- periences of the paranormal in terms of normal cog- Bibliography nitive and personality processes. A similar effort was made by L. Zusne and W. H. Jones in their book, Anom- Alcock, J. E. (1987). Parapsychology: Science of the anom- alistic psychology: A study of extraordinary phenomena of alous or search for the soul? Behavioral G Brain Sciences, behavior and experience (Hillsdale, NJ, Erlbaum. 1982). 10, 539-643. Skeptical review of modern evidence for Rhine, J. B. (1933).. Boston: Society psi accompanied by a more positive review of the same for Psychical Research. The first sustained effort to literature by Rao and Palmer (1987), critical commen- study ESP through controlled scientific experiments. tary on both articles by more than four dozen writers Reprinted, in a revised edition, in 1973; see also Rhine’s on both sides of the dispute, and responses from the Newlrontiers of the mind (New York, Farrar & Rinehart. authors. 1937). Both the British and American societies for psy- Bem, D. J., & Honorton, C. (1994). Does psi exist? Replic- chical research are still in existence, and both publish able evidence for an anomalous process of information scientific periodicals, the Journal for Psychical Research transfer. Psychological Bulletin, 115, 4-1 8. Responds to and the Journal of the American Society for Psychical Re- the NRC‘s critique of the Ganzfeld (see Druckman & search. They have their skeptical counterpart in the Swets, 198 8) by reviewing positive results obtained Committee for Scientific Investigation of Claims of the from more recent experiments that were, apparently, Paranormal, and its journal, The Skeptical Inquirer. methodologically more rigorous than their forebears. Followed by a critical commentary by Hyman (pp. 19 John Kihlstrom 24) and a response by Bem (pp. 25-27), the entire pack- age vividly represents the debate over contemporary parapsychological research. The follow-up study by J. Milton and R. Wiseman (1999) appeared in Psycholog- PARASOMNIAS. See Enuresis; Nightmares; Night Ter- ical Bulletin, 125, 387-391. rors; Sleeptalking; and Sleepwalking. Druckman, D., & Swets, J. A. (1988). Enhancing humanper- formance: Issues, theories, and techniques. Washington, DC: National Academy Press. First report of the NRC‘s Committee on Techniques for the Enhancement of Hu- man Performance. Chapter g presents the committee’s PARENT-CHILD RELATIONSHIP. [This entry provides detailed (and skeptical) methodological review of a broad survey of the parent-child relationship. It is chron- experiments on remote viewing, random number gen- ologically divided into three articles: Childhood Adoles- eration, and the Ganzfeld. It is essential reading for any- cence; and Adulthood.] one who wishes to understand the debate over para- psychology. Childhood James, W. (1902). The varieties of religious experience. Lon- don: Longmans. Green. James’s influential attempt to The parent-child relationship and parenting practices approach the experience of the divine from the stand- point of pragmatic philosophy and experimental psy- have received considerable theoretical and empirical at- chology. Republished by Harvard University Press in tention as important intluences on children’s develop- 1985 as part of Collected works of William James. now ment. Through the study of parenting in diverse cul- out of print; various editions are widely available in tures, Le Vine (1988) advanced the idea that parents used bookstores. James’s view of spiritualist and psy- around the world share three major goals for their chil- chical phenomena is also represented in two books of dren: (a) the survival goal (providing for the health and James’s lectures, reconstructed by historian Eugene safety of their children); (b) the economic goal (ensur- Taylor in William James on exceptional mental states: The ing that their children acquire the skills and resources 1986 Lowell lectures (New York, Scribner, 1982);see also needed to be economically productive adults); and (c) Taylor’s book, William James on consciousness beyond the the cultural goal (ensuring that their children acquire margin (Princeton University Press, 1996). the basic cultural values of the group). Myers, F, W. H. (1903). Human personality and its survival The ways in which these goals are met are obvious- after bodily death (Vols. I & 2). London: Longmans, Green. The founding document of nineteenth-century through parent-child interaction and the parent-child spiritualism, forerunner to both modern parapsychol- relationship. This relationship is a bidirectional one, ogy and to contemporary studies of the near-death ex- with parents influencing their children as their children perience. influence them (Bell, 1968; Lerner, 1994). Beginning in Rao, K. R., & Palmer. J. (1987). The anomaly called psi: infancy, parents both socialize and meet the needs of