What is Next in Mediumship/Channeling Research? | Panel Discussion moderated by Helané Wahbeh

Helané Wahbeh, Director of Research at the Institute of Noetic Sciences, moderates a panel to analyze the future of mediumship and channeling research. The panelists are the speakers of the Advances in Mediumship Research symposium: Patrizio Tressoldi (lead researcher of the Science of Consciousness Research Group), Arnaud Delorme (researcher at the Institute of Noetic Sciences), Alexander Moreira-Almeida (chair of the Sections on Spirituality of the Latin American (APAL) and the Brazilian (ABP) Psychiatric Associations), Heberth Paulo de Souza (post-doctor in Spirituality and Health), and Mateus Donia Martinez (Ph.D. candidate at the University of São Paulo).

One of the main endeavors is to reduce independent studies and move towards multi-laboratory and multi-investigator research, including different countries and socio-cultural backgrounds. These projects should be built upon common goals, pre-registered protocols, and with open access outcomes. This will allow better reproducibility, replicability, and generalizability regarding scientific standards.

Another approach is to focus on the studies which give more insights regarding the nature of consciousness, and the relationship between mind and matter. Furthering the knowledge of the generalities of consciousness will offer a clearer path regarding on how consciousness from disembodied entities interacts with the world of the living.

On the other hand, longitudinal studies focused on childhood mediumship may shed more light about the phenomenology and evolution of these experiences, as well as the benefits or hurdles that the experiencers may deal regarding their psychological, physiological, and sociological development. Moreover, using controlled naturalistic, ethnographic, ecological, and qualitative methods, mixed with personality scales and sociocultural roles, instead of just lab research, may open new doors for future investigations.

Finally, with a resurging interest in mediumship studies, looking back to previous research and learning from their results and limitations is crucial for the advancement of the field. Current investigations do not include enough of the methodological and theoretical insights that were derived from the most prominent mediumship researchers from the nineteenth and twentieth century.

Presented at the online PA Symposium “Advances in Mediumship Research” on February 27,2021; program chaired by Helané Wahbeh, Director of Research at IONS. Download the Abstract at https://parapsych.org/articles/66/537/abstracts_advances_in_mediumship.aspx

The Parapsychological Association is an international professional organization of scientists and scholars engaged in the study of psi (or ‘psychic’) experiences, such as telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis, psychic healing, and precognition. The primary objective of the PA is to achieve a scientific understanding of these experiences.

A longer version of this convention video, including the Q&A period, is available to PA members-only at parapsych.org. There is a level of PA membership for everyone interested in the scientific and scholarly advancement of parapsychology. Learn more at: https://www.parapsych.org/join_the_pa.aspx

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Published on May 8, 2021

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