For the Paranormal Investigators....?

Question

Last night I was watching Most Haunted.

Even though through the couse of the "investigation" one is hearing whipsers, groans, footsteps, or stones being thrown, ALWAYS at the end of the segment the investigator with the PH.D announces that there was not any significant incidents to conclude the property was haunted.

As researchers, do you feel this show discredits your field of study?

I personally feel this group is a hoax, just like Sylvia Brown.

Answer 1

of'course it is, remember all those boys & girls who cried WOLF but forgot about what the "WOLF" look like in the first place and what the WOLF's purpose was? That show is that reality: "itsthemarkofthebeast" (mankind setting himself up for a great fall). personally, i hope they travel to ROMANIA to cry for a ghost that will forever teach their bold "sOULs" a lesson in LYING on camera through a fixed window of opportunity.

Answer 2

Most Haunted is c**p. I watched some episodes of it, and realized that these people are just like TAPS. I watch Ghost Hunters on SciFi, and I have to say that they were better when they first started out. They used to spend a whole night at a place, but they only spend a couple of hours.

My group, Acworth Afterlife, spends an hour or two on a place, but only because we go to more than one place in a night. The longest we spent anywhere was close to six hours and only because it was such a large area and we covered every inch of it, all twelve of us.

As for Syvlia Brown, I can't say with any kind of certainty that she's either the real McCoy or a fraud. I don't know enough about her.

On the other hand, I DO like A Haunting on the Discovery Channel. I always get a kick out that one.

Answer 3

Yes and No. Allow me to explain.  

Ciaron O'Keeffe holds a Ph.D. in Parapsychology from the University of Hertfordhsire (it's in England). His dissertation was supervised by Richard Wiseman Ph.D. which is a known skeptic about all things paranormal.

In fact the dissertation title of Dr. O'Keeffe reveals the bias

very clearly.

"Assessing the content of advice given by practitioners claiming paranormal ability"

(link below)

However, to both of their credits they are among the VERY few skeptics that actually conduct research in the field of parapsychology.

So, it brings some credible (in the academic world) people to the field of Paranormal Investigations.

At the same time the investigations are conducted so poorly that Dr. O'Keeffe could not draw any other possible conclusions other than no substantial evidence.

I'm not sure if he participates in the show in order to discredit the field and offers no advice on running a proper investigation OR if all of his advice is just ignored by the rest of the crew and the show producers.

In general I think the show has poor investigation techniques and I would not associate myself with it unless I was assured of a more scientific approach.

However, perhaps he is trying to create balance of both perspectives on the show which he does at the cost of not contributing to bettering paranormal investigations or advancing science.

Psi

Answer 4

MH is a joke, just like SB, and they are very unprofessional. You don't need a PHD to tell if a place is haunted or not, but as an investigator, my role is to rule out what can be explained first. were the whispers caused by other people that don't know how to be quiet? rats in the attic can sound like footsteps, did they check the attic? stuff like that. Most Haunted, Vancouver Paranormal, and TAPS make it hard for my group to actually get taken seriously.

Answer 5

OMG.  SB is such a joke.. a multimillion dollar joke.. but a joke none the less.  But.. To answer your question, yes.  I feel that many of the shows discredit what we do.  Most of the techniques you see demonstrated are sloppy.  There is little to no documentation and the shows make it appear that you can do a great investigation by talking and running around pointing EMF meters all over the place and not checking things out.  Not the actors fault I might add, but thrills sell.

Answer 6

Derek Acorah is full of it.

I read a book written by somebody behind the scenes on the show.

Stick to genuine investigators like John Edward and (forget his name) the one who works behind the scenes on The Ghost Whisperer.

Answer 7

These two words "instinct" and "paranoid / para-normal" have never been defined - perhaps not possible.

But 'instinct' is a positive word , have some positive use also for an individual and in individual capacity. Means .. we may not explain it to others ... and even should not.

Further, may be, as we were animals some thousands yrs ago ( sorry for them who do not believe in the "Theory of evolution" by Charles Darwin ), the animal instinct is still with us. Have seen the 'instinct' of a dog ? (again sorry)

Another point is to be mentioned: most of the scientists believe that till to-day we do not know the full power of our brain, to elaborate, the full power of our brain has not yet been explored. It is said that the saints or 'sadhus' in ancient India, by the use of "Yaga" used to activate the un-tapped brain portion to forecast the future ...!! The discussion do not end here ... it may start and go on. Thanks