'Psychic sensitivity', mystical experience, head injury and brain pathology.
P Fenwick, S Galliano, M A Coate, V Rippere, D Brown
The British journal of medical psychology March 1985 DOI: 10.1111/j.2044-8341.1985.tb02612.x (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Case-control study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 34 |
| Population | 17 students (sensitives) from the College of Psychic Studies and 17 church-going control subjects matched for age, sex, and approximate intellectual level |
| Measures | shortened WAIS, Benton Visual Retention Test, Wechsler Logical Memory, Rey-Osterreith Test |
| Topics | Mystical experience |
| Key findings | The sensitive group contained more single or divorced people and more people who had consulted a psychiatrist, and reported more head injuries and serious illnesses than controls. Sixty-six per cent of sensitives showed evidence of right hemisphere and right temporal lobe dysfunction, with 35 per cent of these having poor visual memories. The authors suggest some 'psychic' experiences were associated with brain dysfunction, but found no clear correlation between head injury and onset of 'psychic' sensitivity. |
Abstract
The 'psychic' experiences of 17 students (sensitives) from the College of Psychic Studies were compared with those of 17 church-going control subjects, who were matched for age, sex, and approximate intellectual level. At interview, 67 items of information relating to the medical history, family history, 'psychic gifts', head injuries, and mystical experiences were obtained. The shortened WAIS, the Benton Visual Retention Test, with tests of both dominant (Wechsler Logical Memory) and non-dominant temporal lobe function (the Rey-Osterreith Test) were given. The results showed that the sensitive population contained more single or divorced people, and people who had sometime consulted a psychiatrist. They had experienced more head injuries and serious illnesses than the controls. Sixty-six per cent showed evidence of right hemisphere and right temporal lobe dysfunction and, of these, 35 per cent had poor visual memories. There was evidence to suggest that some 'psychic' experiences were associated with brain dysfunction. Despite an increased occurrence of head injury, no clear correlation with the onset of 'psychic' sensitivity was found. Mystical experiences showed a trend towards being related to non-dominant hemisphere dysfunction. Vagueness about the position of the sensitive's 'psychic helper' in physical space was also associated with non-dominant hemisphere dysfunction.