1 Return to: Spirituality and Paranormal Phenomena Spirituality and the Capricious, Evasive Nature of Psi

Abstract: Many writers have noted that psi appears to be capricious and actively evasive. The evidence includes the unintended and undesired (a) reversal of direction of psi effects between and within studies, (b) loss of intended effects while unintended internal effects occur, (c) declines in effects for subjects, experimenters, and lines of research, and (d) failure to develop successful applications of psi. These characteristics are inconsistent with the assumptions for statistical research and have not been explained. Investigating the effects that psi experiences have on people may provide insights about the function of capricious, evasive psi. Research studies have found that the primary effect of spontaneous psi experiences is to alter a person’s worldview and increase his or her sense of spirituality and meaning in life. The primary function of psi may be spiritual transformation. The instances of striking psi draw attention away from the material world and the capricious, evasive properties of psi prevent psi from being used for material self-interest. Psi and mystical experiences have several common characteristics that suggest that they derive from a common source. Another factor that complicates psi research is that many people apparently hav