The Application of Comparative Psychology to Parapsychology: A Recommendation

We propose that the comparative psychological principle of “levels” be used as a new research methodology to investigate psi in humans. Rather than investigate psi in animals, as is sometimes done, we propose to investigate psi in humans using animals as a receptor. Our approach is to start with simple organisms such as protozoans and progress to planarians and honey bees. The behavior of these organisms is well characterized and easily manipulated. Deviations from standard behavior patterns during an experiment on telekinesis can suggest psi effects. A major advantage of using invertebrates for psi research is that if a psi effect is found, the underlying mechanism of the effect can be analyzed using molecular and genetic tools. We provide suggestions on how telekinesis can be studied using this approach and suggest that Observation Oriented Modeling be used to analyze psi data.