Parapsychology and religion / / Everton de Oliveira Maraldi.

• Superior document: Brill Research Perspectives in Humanities and Social Sciences
• VerfasserIn: Oliveira Maraldi, Everton de,
• Place / Publishing House: Leiden : : Brill,, [2021]; ©2021
• Year of Publication: 2021
• Language: English
• Series: Brill Research Perspectives in Humanities and Social Sciences.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (103 pages)

"Parapsychology and Religion" is perhaps the most controversial research area in the psychology of religion. However, in recent decades, psychology of religion has witnessed a growing literature bearing on ontological issues including parapsychological topics such as distant healing and near-death experiences. This book argues that despite the methodological and theoretical controversies that still surround the field of parapsychology, the findings of research on alleged anomalous processes can inform the study of religious/spiritual experiences. Psychological literature on the paranormal is critically reviewed and it is argued that it became less a scientific endeavor and more an ideological program devised to denigrate paranormal believers and experiencers. This volume explores how an open-minded dialogue between parapsychology and psychology of religion might help us move beyond the present ideological disputes and reviewes the complex relations between parapsychology and religion over time as well as their implications for interdisciplinary research on religion and spirituality.

Table of Contents

Intro -- Contents -- Parapsychology and Religion -- Abstract -- Keywords -- 1 Introduction -- 1.1 Aims of This Work -- 2 Some Considerations on Terminology -- 2.1 Supernormal, Psychic, Parapsychological, and Paranormal -- 2.2 Anomalous -- 2.3 Other Variations -- 2.4 A Sociohistorical Perspective -- 2.5 Experiences and Events -- 2.6 Belief -- 2.7 Religion and the Paranormal -- 2.8 Spirituality -- 2.9 Mystical Experience -- 3 The Psychology of the Paranormal: A Critique -- 3.1 Cognitive Biases and Paranormal Belief -- 3.2 Intelligence and Critical Thinking -- 3.4 Educational Level -- 3.5 Thinking Styles -- 3.6 Ontological Confusions -- 3.7 Delusions and Other Psychotic Symptoms -- 3.8 Conceptual and Methodological Problems -- 4 Parapsychology and Religion -- 4.1 Strengths and Limitations of Personal Experience: Parapsychology's Response -- 4.2 Parapsychologists and Religion over Time -- 4.3 Psi and Religious Variables -- 5 Concluding Remarks -- Acknowledgment -- References -- Index.