Recommendations for a general introduction to parapsychology

I have made a wiki page containing the suggestions posted here (omitting my own mentions of the two most expensive books, which I think are beyond the introductory category):
https://psiencequest.net/wiki/Introductory_reading

I haven't added very much in the way of comment, but of course it's open to anyone here to edit the page if they wish to.

I found a free version of Etzel Cardeña's paper, which I've included a link to. But it appears to be unauthorised, so it can be removed if deemed inappropriate.

[Laird]

Nice stuff. I think comments would be worthwhile, and maybe a brief introduction defining parapsychology and its broad areas of study. Am happy to edit those in.

[Laird]

Am happy to edit those in.

Now done. Thanks, Chris, for setting this page up.

I'm wondering whether you might introduce another section for other media such as podcasts, video, etc? For a more academic and/or philosophical discussion, there are the Thinking Allowed and Closer to Truth series of video interviews, the latter perhaps including discussions of consciousness rather than parapsychology, per se.

The trouble is that there are some sources, including books, which for various reasons some of us might trust but are nevertheless less academic in tone or content than, for example, Irreducible Mind (Kelly, Kelly et al). So it might be a difficult editorial decision as to what to include in the Wiki page. Do we, for example, include the Chris Carter books which are somewhat proponent biased though quite thorough summaries of paranormal/parapsychological research? Or Bob Olsen's Afterlife TV shows? Or any of the Rupert Sheldrake books or video lectures?

Then there's Carlos Alvarado who is quite prolific and even has a book reflecting the theme of this thread: Getting Started in Parapsychology.

I'm wondering whether you might introduce another section for other media such as podcasts, video, etc? For a more academic and/or philosophical discussion, there are the Thinking Allowed and Closer to Truth series of video interviews, the latter perhaps including discussions of consciousness rather than parapsychology, per se.

The trouble is that there are some sources, including books, which for various reasons some of us might trust but are nevertheless less academic in tone or content than, for example, Irreducible Mind (Kelly, Kelly et al). So it might be a difficult editorial decision on what to include in the Wiki page. Do we, for example, include the Chris Carter books which are somewhat proponent biased though quite thorough summaries of paranormal/parapsychological research? Or Bob Olsen's Afterlife TV shows? Or any of he Rupert Sheldrake books or video lectures?

Then there's Carlos Alvarado who is quite prolific and even has a book reflecting the theme of this thread: Getting Started in Parapsychology.

I feel books in general, and even podcasts, would be a pretty large area to tackle. Although there aren't many podcasts specialising in experimental parapsychology, there seem to be any number in associated fields, especially if ghosts and UFOs are included.

[Laird]

I'm wondering whether you might introduce another section for other media such as podcasts, video, etc?

That's a possibility. The page could then be retitled from "Introductory reading" to "Introductory resources".

For a more academic and/or philosophical discussion, there are the Thinking Allowed and Closer to Truth series of video interviews, the latter perhaps including discussions of consciousness rather than parapsychology, per se.

Couldn't you say the same about the former as about the latter? Perhaps, then, the page could include resources both for parapsychology proper as well as for general consciousness-related subjects.

One problem with linking to channels/series is that as Chris wrote of the Psi Encyclopedia in his opening post, the sheer number of episodes could be overwhelming. Perhaps these are not so much "introductory" resources as "ongoing/deeper sources of information". Perhaps then we could include both in the page, and retitle it again to something like "Introductory and ongoing resources".

The trouble is that there are some sources, including books, which for various reasons some of us might trust but are nevertheless less academic in tone or content than, for example, Irreducible Mind (Kelly, Kelly et al). So it might be a difficult editorial decision as to what to include in the Wiki page.

For my part, I'd be happy with a liberal inclusion policy so long as we separate or at least indicate the different categories of resource and then categorised each resource:

Introductory versus deeper/ongoing resources.
Parapsychology proper versus general consciousness-related subjects.
Academic versus journalistic/popular.
Proponent-focussed versus impartial versus skeptically-focussed.

Perhaps, too, for the more significant resources we could have individual pages discussing the resource in more depth, potentially to the level of a full review.

Then there's Carlos Alvarado who is quite prolific and even has a book reflecting the theme of this thread: Getting Started in Parapsychology.

Ah. Neat! Perhaps our page is redundant then?

I feel books in general, and even podcasts, would be a pretty large area to tackle. Although there aren't many podcasts specialising in experimental parapsychology, there seem to be any number in associated fields, especially if ghosts and UFOs are included.

How about if we simply stuck with those books/podcasts which PQ members particularly like and find useful?

How about if we simply stuck with those books/podcasts which PQ members particularly like and find useful?

Yes, I think doing it as "members' favourite books," rather than having any idea of making a comprehensive list, would make it much more manageable.

Couldn't you say the same about the former as about the latter? Perhaps, then, the page could include resources both for parapsychology proper as well as for general consciousness-related subjects.


For my part, I'd be happy with a liberal inclusion policy so long as we separate or at least indicate the different categories of resource and then categorised each resource:

Introductory versus deeper/ongoing resources.
Parapsychology proper versus general consciousness-related subjects.
Academic versus journalistic/popular.
Proponent-focussed versus impartial versus skeptically-focussed.

Perhaps, too, for the more significant resources we could have individual pages discussing the resource in more depth, potentially to the level of a full review.

Clearly it is impossible to discuss parapsychology without a discussion of consciousness in general. Not so, the other way around though, obviously. So my view is that any material which discusses consciousness leading to a better understanding of parapsychology would be welcome.

[Laird]

Shall we open the gates then to suggestions of any and all "members' choice" written and audiovisual resources related to both parapsychology in particular and consciousness in general? Once we have a few suggestions we can rework the page (or if anybody wants to do that straight off the bat then they can go ahead?). And perhaps we can ask that each suggestion includes a little comment as to what's to like about the resource, and how to categorise it according to the list in my post above (and any other categories that folks might think would be useful)?

Shall we open the gates then to suggestions of any and all "members' choice" written and audiovisual resources related to both parapsychology in particular and consciousness in general? Once we have a few suggestions we can rework the page (or if anybody wants to do that straight off the bat then they can go ahead?). And perhaps we can ask that each suggestion includes a little comment as to what's to  like about the resource, and how to categorise it according to the list in my post above (and any other categories that folks might think would be useful)?

Beware Kitchen Sink Syndrome (aka scope creep).