Mediums’ Experiences
Synopsis
The competing theories for the source of the information mediums report are named survival psi (mediums are communicating with the deceased) and somatic psi (mediums are using psychic functioning to report information about the deceased). Quantitative and qualitative phenomenological research demonstrate that the two are distinct: 97% of mediums report being able to distinguish between mediumistic and psychic experiences. Important qualitative themes include communication as triangulated (deceased – medium – sitter). Also, these findings strongly call into question theoretical frameworks that posit separating mediums’ experiences into categories that do and do not involve communication with the deceased as well as the continued use of terminology reflecting such a separation. It has been proposed that, going forward, language reflect empirical data and the experiences of modern mediums rather than philosophical conjecture. In addition, people who identify as mediums seem to have unique biological, cognitive, psychological, physiological, and experiential characteristics compared to people who self-identify as non-mediums.