Northampton Electronic Collection of Theses and Research

The influence of latent inhibition on performance at a non-intentional precognition task

Hitchman, G. A., Sherwood, S. J. and Roe, C. A. (2015) The influence of latent inhibition on performance at a non-intentional precognition task. Explore: the Journal of Science and Healing. 11(2), pp. 118-126. 1550-8307.

Item Type: Article
Abstract: Context: Many spontaneous cases of extra-sensory perception (ESP) seem to occur without the conscious intent of the experient to manifest any anomalous phenomena. Indeed, Stanford's psi-mediated instrumental response (PMIR) theory, which frames ESP as a goal-oriented function, goes as far as to suggest that such intent may be counterproductive to psi. Objectives: The present study was the latest to build on the successful paradigm developed by Luke and colleagues in testing the non-intentional psi hypothesis and potential covariates of psi task success. This study focused on the ability of latent inhibition—an organism's cognitive tendency to filter out apparently irrelevant information—to predict an individual's sensitivity to psi stimuli. Method: A total of 50 participants completed a two-part auditory discrimination performance measure of latent inhibition; a battery of questionnaires; and a 15-trial, binary, forced-choice, non-intentional precognition task. They were then either positively or negatively rewarded via images from subsets that they had pre-rated, seeing more images from their preferred subsets the better they performed at the psi task and vice versa. Results: Participants scored a mean hit rate of 7.96 [mean chance expectation (MCE) ¼ 7.50], which just failed to reach a statistically significant level, t(48) ¼ 1.62, P ¼ .06, one-tailed, ESr (effect size correlation) ¼ 0.23. However, latent inhibition was found to be unrelated to participants' precognitive performance.
Uncontrolled Keywords: Extra-sensory perception, non-intentional precognition, latent inhibition
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology > BF1228 Spiritualism > BF1321 Extrasensory perception
B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology > BF1228 Spiritualism > BF1431 Precognition
B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology > BF1001 Parapsychology. Psychic research. Psychology of the conscious
Creators: Hitchman, Glenn A, Sherwood, Simon J and Roe, Chris A
Publisher: Elsevier
Faculties, Divisions and Institutes: University Faculties, Divisions and Research Centres - OLD > Research Centre > Centre for the Study of Anomalous Psychological Processes
University Faculties, Divisions and Research Centres - OLD > School of Social Sciences (to 2016)
University Faculties, Divisions and Research Centres - OLD > Faculty of Health & Society > Psychology
Faculties > Faculty of Health & Society > Psychology
Research Centres > Centre for Psychology and Social Sciences
Date: March 2015
Date Type: Publication
Page Range: pp. 118-126
Journal or Publication Title: Explore: the Journal of Science and Healing
Volume: 11
Number: 2
Language: English
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.explore.2014.12.004
ISSN: 1550-8307
Status: Published / Disseminated
Refereed: Yes
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URI: http://nectar.northampton.ac.uk/id/eprint/7481

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