Parapsychology

3. Scepticism

In addition to the approaches mentioned previously, there is a perception that parapsychologists can be divided into two camps: the believers; and the sceptics. This is fundamentally wrong on two counts. Firstly, the labels are used as though they are at extreme ends of the spectrum, as though a believer would accept, without question, the reality of all paranormal phenomena, and a sceptic would be constantly denying the possibility of phenomena even when confronted face-to-face with proof. The correct terms should be dogmatics and cynics.

Scepticism (or the US spelling – skepticism) is generally described as a doubting or questioning attitude. It can further be defined as follows:

•  It can be regarded as a philosophical stance in which one critically examines whether the knowledge and perceptions that they have are actually true, and whether or not one can ever be said to have absolutely true knowledge; or,

•  It can be a pragmatic position in which one questions the veracity of claims, and seeks to prove or disprove them using the scientific method.