If you’re a fan of the so-called Ghost Hunter shows that are all over cable television, please move on. There isn’t anything for you to see here. I require a lot of evidence before I will agree there is a possible haunting. This blog article is based on information from established Parapsychologists who have researched the phenomena known as Poltergeist hauntings. Many of them would tell you that there is not a discarnate entity involved in a majority of them, the rest simply may shrug their shoulders and respond “Could be anything.” That’s the fun part of Parapsychology: it’s open to possibilities.
What, exactly, makes a Poltergeist haunting different from any other haunting? Let me borrow from the Psi Encyclopedia for the best answer I’ve read so far:
“‘Poltergeist’, a German term meaning ‘noisy ghost’, is traditionally used to describe the rare but extensively documented phenomenon of anomalous disturbances arising in connection with a particular place or person. The disturbances are characterized by ‘rapping’ or ‘knocking’ noises of unknown provenance, along with the anomalous and often violent movement of furniture and other objects, outbreaks of fires, inundations, and the like. The commotion often appears to have a mischievous intent, hence the traditional tendency to associate it with ghosts or other supernatural beings. However, in many cases it may equally be attributed to a force emanating from a living person, typically a child who exhibits symptoms of repressed emotion. An alternative view, not endorsed by most serious investigators, is that the phenomenon should be accounted for entirely in terms of trickery and natural events such as seismic activity.”
So, the ‘mischievous intent’ part is what gets some of the young people in the center of these phenomena in trouble. It’s common for youth in a Poltergeist haunting to be in a stressful place in their lives. The stress could result from family troubles, physical issues or problems in school. As a result, family members assume that the young person is simply acting out purposefully. For instance, one young man was always blamed when dirt and sand was thrown around but he was never caught actually throwing anything. As a matter of fact, he stood in front of a police officer with his hands in his pockets while sand hit the officer in the face. If no other explanation such as an accomplice or a severe wind could be the culprit, then what could have caused this event? Could the young man have been responsible but unaware of it?
How do Poltergeist hauntings usually manifest? Once again, I’ll refer to the Psi Encyclopedia:
“A study of 500 poltergeist cases by Alan Gauld and Tony Cornell shows that the effects most commonly reported are the movement of small objects (64%), rapping sounds (48%), large object movements, for example chairs and tables (36%), the appearance of a human phantasm (29%) and the presence of a voice or groaning sound (26%). Phenomena reported less often are the mysterious appearance of small objects, sometimes in mid-air, small animals seen or heard, various luminous effects, incendiary effects and inundations of water.”
I can only imagine how frustrated parents would be to have their car keys or glasses constantly misplaced or loud noises occur all hours of the day or night. It would only make tense matters worse. Some of these hauntings appear to be responsive. There is evidence that when questions are asked, there may be a series of knocks or loud bangs answering.
I’ve been describing these phenomena as hauntings, but the more recent agreement amongst parapsychologists is that a majority of Poltergeist activity may be an acute form of psychokinesis. This is the psychic ability also known as “Look ma’ no hands” when it comes to moving objects around. William Roll, a Parapsychologist who studied Poltergeist activity coined the term ‘Recurrent Spontaneous Psychokinesis’. It’s considered acute because the activity only seems to last for a few days or a few weeks at most. This explanation only works for phenomena associated with a person, but not all accounts have been centered around someone living.
As I said before, I don’t think there are entities roaming about houses for the distinct purpose of scaring people half to death. There are definitely things going on that defy explanation but we shouldn’t immediately jump to the conclusion that there may be ghosts. Parapsychologists have claimed that the phenomena that react to questions through sounds do appear to have knowledge that a discarnate may have. Also, those Parapsychologists who have employed tested mediums have their testimony that the energy in the building is from someone who’s passed on. But what does that really mean?
Parapsychologists are looking to the world of physics for answers. Explanation one: it’s due to some sort of radio frequency, seismic motion, electrical output or some other environmental factor. This explanation cleared up quite a few claims of what originally was considered paranormal in origin. Explanation two: “Action at a Distance” or that a psychic has some sort of control over matter from across the room. This appears to be related to the Entanglement theory (Spooky Action at a Distance) posited by Albert Einstein where two particles share attributes though they are far apart. When one particle changes an attribute, the other matches it in an instant. Explanation three: Higher space or dimensional shift. This is a theory that multiple planes or dimensions of reality exist as overlays to our own reality. This means that an action occurs in one plane with the reaction occurring in our plane. Explanation four: Field theory or psi-field theory which is that psychokinesis behaves like a wave that has an effect on an object at a distance. Picture a rock thrown into a calm lake. The ripples move across the water to cause an object on the lake’s surface to bob up and down. Explanation five: emanations from the psychic such as ectoplasm or energy beams. Perhaps the psychic does have a direct action on an object but it is invisible to the casual viewer.
Regardless of the cause of Poltergeist activity, it can have very unsettling effects on a family that may already be undergoing emotional stress. Fortunately, these phenomena tend to be short-lived especially if the child-focus of the event receives help from a professional counselor. For the Parapsychology crowd, these phenomena are fascinating to study because they may provide more information that will eventually help us understand the world of hauntings, phantasms and ghosts.