Neurophysiological And Psychological Assessment Of An Individual Experiencing Anomalous Mental Phenomena: A Second Case Study

This research was conducted at the Institute for Parapsychology.

ABSTRACT: Brain electrical activity (19 channels EEG) data were recorded during baseline conditions, psi tasks, and control periods from BSJ, a 53-year-old female participant who had reported previously experiencing anomalous mental phenomena. The raw eyes-closed baseline data were edited for artifacts and then compared with Sterman's adult normative database. The results of this analysis showed positive statistically significant deviations from the reference database in the sensory motor rhythm (12-14 Hz), Betal (15-18 Hz), and Beta2 (18-24 Hz) bands. This suggests that BSJ has a more active mind and experiences a higher state of physiological arousal than other adults during this condition. Paired t tests were computed on the psi data for the first remote viewing trial and its associated control period. The magnitude and peak amplitude means for each artifact-free epoch for 19 different electrode sites and for 4 different frequency bands (delta: 0-4 Hz, theta: 4-8 Hz, alpha: 8-13 Hz, and beta: 13-20 Hz) wer e compared. The results of the t tests indicated that BSJ has increased electrical activity in the frontal and temporal regions of the left hemisphere, indicative of increased cognitive activity in these regions during the remote viewing trial. The finding of beta activity in the left frontal region, F7, also corresponds with a previous finding by Alexander of activity in this same area by another selected participant during a psi task. A psychological assessment of BSJ and prior research suggest that the following are associated with individuals who score well on laboratory tests of psi: a belief in psi and a belief in scoring well on a laboratory test of psi, prior psi experiences, practice of a mental discipline, participation in creative activities, a Myers-Briggs Type Indicator NF (intuitive-feeling) or NFP (intuitive-feeling-perceiving) categorization, a high score on the Complex Partial Epileptic Sign Scale, and a high score on the Highly Sensitive Person Questionnaire. The results presented in this ar ticle are exploratory, based on a single participant. Further research with other selected participants using these same analytic techniques are required to determine if these results can be replicated.

This case study was undertaken as part of a larger, ongoing data collection effort involving topographic brain mapping of gifted individuals during remote viewing trials. BSJ was recommended for psi testing because of her many different acclaimed psi abilities and subsequently participated in 2 days of EEG and psi testing at the Institute for Parapsychology in Durham, North Carolina.

Eyes-open and eyes-closed EEG baseline data were collected from BSJ for comparative purposes with a normative reference database. EEG data were also collected from BSJ during the following psi tasks and their respective control periods: remote viewing, automatic writing, and during a "laying on of hands" healing. These data were collected to determine the dominant brain electrical activity during different psi tasks. In addition, these data were obtained to ascertain if various parameters of the dominant brain electrical activity could differentiate the psi task periods from their respective control periods. The methods, procedures, and data analyses used in this case study were similar to and an expansion on those used in previous work with selected participant Sean Harribance (Alexander; Alexander, Persinger, Roll, & Webster).

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