The mind machine - Abstract

ABSTRACT: Some researchers have argued that the results of forced-choice ESP experiments provide strong support for the existence of psychic ability However, others have criticised many of the experiments on both methodological and statistical grounds. The authors aimed to help resolve this debate by devising a novel way of carrying out a large-scale forced-choice ESP experiment. The Mind Machine consisted of a specially designed steel cabinet containing a multimedia computer and large touch-screen monitor. The computer presented participants with a series of video clips that led them through the experiment. During the experiment, participants were asked to complete a forced-choice ESP task that involved them guessing the outcome of 4 random electronic coin tosses. Participants were also asked to indicate whether they believed in the existence of psychic ability, were male or female, and how optimistic they were of performing well in the ESP task. Also, in half of the trials the outcome of the coin toss was d etermined prior to the participants' choice (clairvoyance trials), whereas in the other half it was determined after the participants had made their choice (precognitive trials). The Mind Machine incorporated many of the factors that have positively correlated with study outcome in previous forced-choice studies including, for example, testing participants individually and providing them with immediate trial-by-trial feedback. All of their data were stored by the computer during an 11-month tour of some of Britain's largest shopping centres, museums, and science festivals. A total of 27,856 participants contributed 110,959 trials, and thus the final database had the statistical power to detect the possible existence of a very small ESP effect. However, the cumulated outcome of the trials was consistent with chance. The experiment also examined the possible relationship between participants' ESP scores and their gender, belief in psychic ability, and degree of predicted success. The results from all of these a nalyses were nonsignificant.Also, scoring on clairvoyance trials were not significantly different from precognitive trials. The paper discusses competing interpretations of these findings along with suggestions for future research. Despite designing the experiment to incorporate many of the factors that are widely believed to be psi conducive, there were several differences between the Mind Machine experiment and most laboratory studies, including, for example, participants not having any contact with a live experimenter and the experiment taking place in relatively noisy public spaces compared with a quiet laboratory. Alternatively, the study may have failed to find evidence of forced-choice ESP because such an effect does not exist. Given that the study maximised safeguards against the type of methodological and statistical problems associated with many previous forced-choice ESP experiments, the lack of any significant effects would support the notion that the positive findings reported in these previous experiments were spurious. Ot her researchers are urged to use this method to conduct other large-scale studies, as such experiments have the statistical power to detect small effects and are an effective vehicle for promoting greater public understanding of concepts within psychology and parapsychology.

COPYRIGHT 2001 Parapsychology Press
COPYRIGHT 2002 Gale Group