For paranormal researchers, the television show Fringe is an indulgence in all things odd and inexplicable. Pieces of brain implanted into other people, time travel, telekinesis… fringe science at its core leaves behind established scientific theory and digs through the taboo piles of “what ifs.”
Ghost-tracking is a popular “what if”… the parapsychology du jour so to speak. Nevertheless, as GHPS delves deeper into the field, even after years of experience under our belts, we too have a thing or two to learn about running an effective investigation.
During the first Murder Most Haunted Investigation, the question of how we would verify information discovered during the investigation with what our case managers have dug up beforehand was raised.
As a researcher and parapsychology specialist, I charged myself with the task to devise a way to prevent investigators from influencing the direction of the mediums during their EVP sessions.
What I first proposed and later revised as the best course of action was to essentially run a double-blind experiment. In its simplest terms, a double-blind experiment is a scientific study where neither the subject nor the persons administering the test/ experiment is aware of its purpose (thesis.) Using the mediums as the subjects and the other investigators with them as the “administrators” of the experiment, the double-blind experiment would involve the investigators asking their questions based only off of the information given to them by the mediums.
In a separate location, the case manager or researcher holding the knowledge of the case would be the keeper of the thesis, or purpose behind investigating that location. It would be their job to take the evidence gathered and compare it to the facts. If this person wants to run EVP sessions or video with a K-2 meter, it would then be done without the presence of a medium to maintain the control of the experiment.
Running a double-blind experiment is unfortunately not as easy as it sounds. It involves careful planning and regulation of information. As it is my hope to implement this procedure throughout our Murder Most Haunted Tour, I will be tracking our progress and keep in toe with my parapsychology roots. After all, every investigation needs just a little science.
