ArticlePDF Available

The Possible Effects on Bereavement of Assisted After-Death Communication during Readings with Psychic Mediums: A Continuing Bonds Perspective

Authors:
  • Windbridge Research Center
  • The Windbridge Institute, LLC / Windbridge Research Center

Abstract and Figures

Unresolved, complicated, prolonged, or traumatic grief can have detrimental effects on mental and/or physical health. The effects of traditional grief counseling, with its focus on the client's acceptance of separation and integration of loss, are unclear. Within the model of continuing bonds, however, grief resolution includes an ongoing relationship between the living and the deceased. Spontaneous and induced experiences of after-death communication (ADC) have been shown to be beneficial in the resolution of grief by demonstrating these continued bonds. Presently, many bereaved individuals are experiencing assisted ADCs by receiving readings from psychic mediums and though little is known about the effects of this selfprescribed treatment option, anecdotal reports and exploratory data posit a positive outcome. This article aims to inform those who work with the bereaved about the relationships between grief, spontaneous, induced, and assisted ADC experiences, and the continuing bonds paradigm. Suggestions for future research are also included.
Content may be subject to copyright.
THE POSSIBLE EFFECTS ON BEREAVEMENT OF
ASSISTED AFTER-DEATH COMMUNICATION
DURING READINGS WITH PSYCHIC MEDIUMS:
A CONTINUING BONDS PERSPECTIVE*
JULIE BEISCHEL
CHAD MOSHER
MARK BOCCUZZI
The Windbridge Institute for Applied Research
in Human Potential, Tucson, Arizona
ABSTRACT
Unresolved, complicated, prolonged, or traumatic grief can have detrimental
effects on mental and/or physical health. The effects of traditional grief
counseling, with its focus on the client’s acceptance of separation and inte-
gration of loss, are unclear. Within the model of continuing bonds, however,
grief resolution includes an ongoing relationship between the living and the
deceased. Spontaneous and induced experiences of after-death communi-
cation (ADC) have been shown to be beneficial in the resolution of grief by
demonstrating these continued bonds. Presently, many bereaved individuals
are experiencing assisted ADCs by receiving readings from psychic mediums
and though little is known about the effects of this selfprescribed treat-
ment option, anecdotal reports and exploratory data posit a positive out-
come. This article aims to inform those who work with the bereaved about
the relationships between grief, spontaneous, induced, and assisted ADC
experiences, and the continuing bonds paradigm. Suggestions for future
research are also included.
*This research was supported by members of the Windbridge Institute.
169
Ó2014, Baywood Publishing Co., Inc.
doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.2190/OM.70.2.b
http://baywood.com
OMEGA, Vol. 70(2) 169-194, 2014-2015
Presently, many grieving individuals in the United States are choosing to
receive readings about their deceased loved ones from psychic mediums. As of
this writing (May 2, 2013), a Google search of the phrase “psychic medium
readings” garnered more than 1.6 million results. With the widespread use of
this self-prescribed “treatment,” it would be beneficial for healthcare providers,
counselors, caregivers, social workers, mental health professionals, chaplains,
grief workers, palliative and hospice care professionals, volunteers, and other
supportive individuals to be aware of the basics regarding the relationship between
mediumship readings and grief in order to best serve the bereaved population. This
is especially relevant within a “continuing bonds” perspective (discussed below).
Previous researchers have made similar suggestions regarding phenomena
analogous to receiving a reading about the deceased from a medium: spontaneous
experiences of communication with the deceased by the bereaved. For example,
Berger (1995) stated that, “The inability of survivors to turn to skeptical profes-
sional counselors to disclose their important experiences ...isinimical to their
well-being and, if the goal is to help them, inexcusable” (p. 4). Barbato, Blunden,
Reid, Irwin, and Rodriquez (1999) made this suggestion:
For palliative care workers who witness or are told of parapsychological
experiences, the most important step is to listen attentively and to validate the
experience as normal. This is both cathartic and therapeutic for the experient
and therefore aids the grieving or dying person’s journey. (p. 35)
In her discussion of these spontaneous experiences, Daggett (2005) indicated that:
Health care professionals have an important role in caring for the bereaved;
therefore, it is important for them to be aware of the phenomenon, its various
manifestations, and its effects on the survivors. In particular, it is key
that clinicians who employ a holistic approach to health and healing and
who recognize the link between mind, body, and spirit understand this
dimension of the bereavement experience to intervene effectively with the
bereaved. (p. 192)
Sormanti and August (1997) found that grieving parents experiencing spiritual
connections with their deceased children wanted healthcare professionals
to be open, respectful, and nonjudgmental of their bereavement experiences
and to allow and encourage them to talk openly about their experiences and
beliefs. Parents want staff to know that these connections do exist, are
reassuring to them, and help them in their grieving process. (p. 467)
These authors also noted that, “In the context of mental health work, the need
for carefully constructed definitions of spirituality not linked to any particular
psychological, religious, or cultural belief system is evident” (p. 461). Similarly,
Nowatzki and Grant Kalischuk (2009) noted that an understanding of post-
death encounters “could allow human services professionals to build a sup-
porting and understanding atmosphere for the bereaved . . . regardless of their own
170 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
beliefs regarding the authenticity or source of the reported encounter” (p. 106).
Regarding spontaneous experiences with the deceased, Barbato et al. (1999)
noted that, “Even if we cannot understand the basis for these parapsychological
phenomena, the weight of evidence suggests we cannot continue to ignore
them” (p. 36).
Several authors have emphasized that the primary issue regarding the experi-
ences of the bereaved is not whether or not they reflect actual communication
with the deceased, but rather how the experience can be used to aid in coping
with the loss (e.g., Drewry, 2003; Klugman, 2006; LaGrand, 2005; Parker,
2005; Sanger, 2009). According to Dannenbaum and Kinnier (2009), even
“imaginal” communication with the deceased can produce therapeutically
beneficial effects including “feeling cared about and loved, experiencing
resolution of grief and relationship conflicts with the deceased, and experiencing
increased confidence in problem solving and decision making” (p. 109), though
the authors maintain that
. . . although the modifier imaginal is used, we are not insisting that such
conversations can only be imaginal. Some people do believe that com-
munication between the living and dead is a reality, and we do not have
evidence to the contrary. Out of respect to all clients, we would not attempt
to refute a client’s belief that the conversations might be real. (p. 111)
In their work, Nowatzki and Grant Kalischuk (2009) assume “that encounters
with the dead have been defined as real and important by those who experi-
enced them, are real in their consequences and, therefore, are a reality to be
studied” (p. 93).
We suggest that a similar unbiased awareness regarding assisted post-death
experiences gained during readings with psychic mediums—one based on
current research rather than historical stereotypes or popular culture depictions—
would be equally helpful in clinical settings. Through his study of British
Spiritualist church services and clinicians’ responses to the bereaved who attend
them, Walter (2008)
was told that only about one in fifteen clients had spoken about visiting
a medium, but these clients did so with great passion, and it was something
the counsellors were keen to discuss with me. The counsellors tended
to be person-centred, and described their clients’ stories about the dead
without pathologising them or interpreting them within a fixed framework.
(p. 47)
Our intention is that the information contained herein provides a basis for
willing professionals from various backgrounds to begin to understand the
phenomenon of mediumship and its potentially therapeutic relationship to grief.
Suggestions for future research are also provided.
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 171
GRIEF AND TREATMENT OPTIONS
Grief is a ubiquitous and natural experience among people of every culture as
well as throughout the animal kingdom (reviewed in Worden, 1991, pp. 8-9). In
humans, grief can manifest through feelings of sadness, anger, guilt, anxiety,
loneliness, fatigue, helplessness, shock, yearning, numbness, and even
emancipation and relief and these feelings are often accompanied by specific
physical sensations, behaviors, and cognitions (Hensley, 2006; Worden, 1991).
However, grief “often surfaces as the underlying cause of various physical and
mental aberrations” (Worden, 1991, p. 1). Indeed, a number of studies have
demonstrated increased morbidity and mortality as a result of grief (e.g., Schaefer,
Quesenberry, & Wi, 1995; Shahar, Schultz, Shahar, & Wing, 2001; Stroebe,
Schut, & Stroebe, 2007).
Although most people have the natural ability to heal from grief—that is, to
integrate their experiences of loss and bereavement (e.g., Jordan & Neimeyer,
2003)—on their own or by seeking solace with family members, community
members, and/or spiritual leaders/clergy, unresolved and nonintegrated
bereavement can lead to chronic depression in approximately 10-15% of
individuals (Hensley, 2006). In addition, if individuals do not find relief, they may
develop a clinically significant syndrome known as complicated grief, traumatic
grief, or prolonged grief disorder which differs from major depressive disorder
and involves a heightened risk of distress and dysfunction (Prigerson, Horowitz,
Jacobs, Parkes, Aslan, Goodkin, et al., 2009).
A discrepancy exists, however, between the potentially serious risks of
complicated grief and the presence of effective treatments that may be offered to
the grieving. Despite its widespread acceptance and use, the effectiveness of
traditional grief counseling interventions is suspect (e.g., Breen & O’Connor,
2007; Currier, Neimeyer, & Berman, 2008; Jordan & Neimeyer, 2003; Larson &
Hoyt, 2007; Neimeyer, 2000; Schut, Stroebe, van den Bout, & Terheggen, 2001).
Outcome studies have yielded mixed results regarding the effectiveness of grief
therapy ranging from positive, neutral, and negative outcomes to the therapeutic
process and have been hampered by numerous methodological issues including
lack of control groups and improper participant assignment procedures (reviewed
in Schut et al., 2001).
Larson and Hoyt (2007) pointed to the popular yet pessimistic consensus
within the grief and bereavement literature that grief counseling was at best
ineffective while at worst harmful to clients seeking help. Similarly, in a recent
meta-analysis of the literature regarding psychotherapeutic interventions for
the bereaved, Currier, Neimeyer, and Berman (2008) reviewed “a total of 61
outcome studies reported in 64 papers, which included 48 published peer-
reviewed articles and 16 unpublished dissertations” (p. 650). Their findings
revealed a “discouraging picture for bereavement interventions” (p. 656) which
172 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
they found added “little to no benefit beyond the participants’ existing resources
and the passage of time” (p. 657).
The “general lack of understanding of grief in the service professions, which
is at least partly explained by the discord between grief researchers and service
providers” (Breen & O’Connor, 2007, p. 204) as well as the paradox between the
commonly used definitions of grief and currently used interventions have also
recently been called into question (e.g., Breen & O’Connor, 2007). For example,
models of grief counseling have stemmed from traditional psychotherapeutic
approaches and tended to focus on pathological conditions of traumatic grief
(Wass, 2004). Furthermore, some theories of grief posit a linear, predictable
pattern of bereavement experiences that are not sensitive to individual, cultural,
or developmental differences. Finally, psychotherapeutic interventions for grief
are not as effective as traditional psychotherapy and clients do not experience
the reduction in subjective grief that grief counselors may anticipate (Currier
et al., 2008).
Additionally, pharmaceutical antidepressants are often ineffective for acute
grief responses due to the extended time it takes for them to reach full efficacy.
Besides the lack of strongly established findings regarding psychopharmacologic
treatments, it is ill-advised to provide potentially lethal quantities of medications
to those in the midst of a grief response (Worden, 1991). Taken as a whole, the
tools the mental health community has to offer the bereaved for recovery from
acute experiences of grief are limited.
ALTERNATIVE EXPERIENCES AND INTERVENTIONS
In contrast to psychotherapeutic and pharmaceutical therapies, non-traditional
interventions and experiences have been repeatedly demonstrated to positively
and dramatically impact grief in individuals after the death of a loved one.
These include both spontaneous and induced phenomena. Though these types of
after-death experiences have been described with words like “paranormal” and
“extraordinary” or even associated with delusion and psychopathology, the reality
is that spontaneous experiences of after-death communication are quite common.
Estimates reveal that nearly a third of American adults (Newport & Strausberg,
2001), approximately 70 million people (LaGrand, 2005), have had contact
with the deceased. People “from all walks of life have experienced the extra-
ordinary when mourning” (LaGrand, 2005, p. 6), and 35-97% of grieving indi-
viduals experience the deceased in some way after the death (Klugman, 2006).
Spontaneous experiences with the deceased are “universal in nature; that is,
they occur in all socioeconomic and religious groups, types of death, and at
various times after the death” (Houck, 2005, p. 124).
Dannenbaum and Kinnier (2009) have brought attention to the ubiquitous
nature of these experiences and beliefs:
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 173
From Hamlet to Star Wars, literature and the media are replete with repre-
sentations of communication between the living and the dead. Real-life
public displays include baseball players who point to the sky as they round
the bases, presumably celebrating their home run with a deceased parent,
and Oscar winners who tearfully thank a deceased grandparent from the
podium. (p. 101)
The terms used to identify spontaneous experiences of contact with the
deceased, used interchangeably here to reflect the referenced authors’ preferred
terms, include: after-death communications (ADCs); extraordinary experiences
(EEs); ideonecrophic experiences (IEs); post-death encounters (PDE); and post-
death contact (PDC). These experiences with the deceased “occur along a
continuum of intensity and emotional impact” (Drewry, 2003, p. 75) and are
“common, natural, non-pathological, mostly beneficial and comforting, helpful
in facilitating the grieving process, and sometimes extraordinarily spiritually
healing to a bereaved individual” (p. 75).
These spontaneous after-death phenomena include a wide variety of experi-
ences for the bereaved including: sensing the presence of the deceased; visual,
olfactory, tactile, and auditory (voices or sounds) phenomena; conversations;
powerful dreams; hearing meaningfully timed songs on the radio or music asso-
ciated with the deceased; messages from objects; lost-things-found; communi-
cation through electric devices (e.g., flickering lights); natural phenomena; sym-
bolic messages; synchronicities; and other unusual incidents or unexplainable
phenomena (e.g., Barbato et al., 1999; Conant, 1996; Daggett, 2005; Drewry,
2003; Haraldsson, 1988-89; Houck, 2005; Klugman, 2006; LaGrand, 2005;
Normand, Silverman, & Nickman, 1996; Nowatzki & Grant Kalischuk, 2009;
Sanger, 2009; Sormanti & August, 1997). These post-death communications and
experiences seem to be a natural part of the grieving process (e.g., Barbato et al.,
1999; Klugman, 2006; LaGrand, 2005).
Several researchers have specifically investigated the effects of these spon-
taneous experiences on the grieving processes of the bereaved (reviewed in
Krippner, 2006). In a phenomenological study of ADC experiences in the
bereaved, Drewry (2003) found that all 40 experiences she examined “resulted
in varying degrees of spontaneous healing or resolution of grief” with one
“complete release of grief” (p. 78). Similarly, Parker (2005) found that EEs fulfill
“specific grief, bereavement, and/or other needs for individuals such as con-
solation, comfort, reassurance, and encouragement” (p. 272) and “facilitate a
sense of psychological wellbeing” (p. 277). In a study of widows, Conant (1996)
found that the experients were “often left with emotional peace, a conviction
of ongoing spiritual life for the deceased and of resolution of [their] internal
conflict over the death” (p. 188). LaGrand (2005) noted that EEs “spawn personal
and/or spiritual growth, reduce existential fear, and generate new perspectives
and purpose in life through the questions they suggest and the obvious answers
provided” (p. 9). Sormanti and August (1997) examined the experiences of
174 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
bereaved parents and found that “the parents who experienced continued con-
nection to their dead child derived psychological benefits from the connection”
(p. 468). In addition, Nowatzki and Grant Kalischuk (2009) found that, “Quali-
tative differences in the grieving process were evident in the participants’ accounts
of their post-death encounters, as they described grieving before and after their
experiences” (p. 101). They also noted that
When a loved one dies, grievers may experience feelings of hopelessness
and despair. However, post-death encounters suggest the existence of an
afterlife, and establish a bond with the deceased. [They] can have a posi-
tive and therapeutic effect on the griever, and can be an important part of
healing. (p. 103)
They also reported that “post-death contact appeared to lend meaning to the
participants’ losses, and a sense of connection to the deceased played a prominent
role in healing and personal growth” (p. 107).
Though there is “a paucity of literature that integrates research on EEs of the
bereaved with current grief models” (Parker, 2005, p. 260), the mainstream grief
therapy community has begun to acknowledge these sorts of experiences as
ordinary and seems accepting of their usefulness in the grieving process. For
example, Sanger (2009) found that 21 social workers interviewed believed
“there is nothing inherently abnormal or pathological about IEs” (p. 87) and had
several recommendations for those in clinical practice which included exploring
spiritual issues, being aware of psychic phenomena, and honoring the continued
connection to the deceased. In his discussion of normal grief reactions, J. William
Worden in his text Grief Counseling and Grief Therapy: A Handbook for the
Mental Health Practitioner (1991) lists both “sense of presence” and visual and
auditory “hallucinations” as normal cognitions in the grieving process (p. 26).
Referring to hallucinations, he states:
Although disconcerting to some, many others find these experiences helpful.
With all of the recent interest in mysticism and spirituality, it is interesting
to speculate on whether these are really hallucinations or possibly some
other kind of metaphysical phenomena. (p. 26)
However, it was later noted that “to describe these grief experiences as
‘hallucinations’ can limit and stigmatize what may prove to be a common
bereavement experience” (Sormanti & August, 1997, p. 461; similarly, Barbato
et al., 1999). Indeed, in a study of 10 widows who experienced feeling the
presence of their deceased husbands, Conant (1996) found that 9 reported no
feelings “of control over these events. The vividness of the experience amazed
them. The comparison to hallucinations was voiced spontaneously five times
and was always denied. These were not hallucinations” (p. 186) (the remaining
participant meditated to induce visits).
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 175
Unfortunately, not all clinicians are accepting of spontaneous experiences of
the deceased. In a study of the counseling experiences of bereaved people who
sense the presence of the deceased, Taylor (2005) found that 62% of participants
had “totally unsatisfactory” experiences (p. 60). They “all described feeling
unaccepted, abnormal, not understood, unable to connect to counselors, and that
they had received no empathy” (p. 60).
In general, post-death communications and experiences such as ADCs, EEs,
IEs, and PDCs maintain the bond and develop new, meaningful relationships
between the bereaved and the deceased (e.g., Klugman, 2006; Sanger, 2009;
Walliss, 2001). In addition to these spontaneous experiences, it appears that
induced after-death experiences also positively affect the resolution of grief.
Through the use of eye-movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR)
techniques in his clinical practice of treating patients with post-traumatic stress
disorder, Allan L. Botkin (2000) observed that patients were reporting spon-
taneous ADCs during the EMDR sessions and discovered that a particular
sequence of psychotherapeutic events could be used to induce the experience
in any patient. In the initial 83 patients for whom Botkin attempted the ADC
induction, 81 (98%) achieved an ADC, which he defined as “any perceived
sensory contact with the deceased” (p. 198), and of that subset, 96% reported
“full resolution of grief following the ADC” (p. 198). Botkin also discovered,
in the hundreds of cases he has observed, that “the difference in subjects’ prior
beliefs systems is of little consequence” (p. 199).
The second well-documented method for the induction of after-death experi-
ences involves a mirror gazing procedure developed by Raymond Moody
(1992) which he called a Psychomanteum. Participation in the Psychomanteum
process involves spending time in a “dimly lit room in which a sitter gazes with
open eyes into a mirror, with the intention of contacting a deceased individual”
(Hastings, Ferguson, Hutton, Goldman, Braud, Greene, et al., 2002, p. 212) and
has been studied for over a decade at the Institute of Transpersonal Psychology
(ITP; now Sofia University) in Palo Alto, California. A study from ITP from
2002 studied the phenomena, experiences, and effects on bereavement of 27
Psychomanteum participants. The participants reported a variety of experiences
including physical sensations, external phenomena in the room, imagery that
appeared in the mirror, sense of presence, communications and dialogue, and
auditory, visual, and olfactory phenomena (Hastings et al., 2002). It was dis-
covered that people reporting contact as part of their experience showed sig-
nificant self-reported changes in needing to improve the relationship and needing
to communicate as well as in the feelings of grief and loss. Even those participants
who did not experience contact reported significant improvements in feelings
of grief and sadness and the need to communicate (Hastings et al., 2002).
As a whole, participants also reported significant alterations in unresolved
feelings, missing the person, and feelings of grief, loss, sadness, guilt, and fear
(Hastings et al., 2002).
176 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
This extensive body of research demonstrating the positive effects of spon-
taneous and induced ADCs on the bereaved implies a potential for similar effects
after assisted ADCs during readings with psychic mediums.
PSYCHIC MEDIUMS
Amedium is an individual who regularly experiences communication with
the deceased. Conversely, a psychic regularly experiences information about
or from living people, distant locations or events, and/or times in the past (that
they did not originally experience) or in the future. (However, one or several
mediumistic or psychic experiences do not a medium or a psychic make; the
definition requires the “regularly.”) It is often stated that all mediums are
psychics but not all psychics are mediums.
Mental mediumship (also called “clairvoyant” mediumship) “occurs in a con-
scious and focused waking state” (Buhrman, 1997, p. 13) and reflects the type
of reading that will be encountered most often by contemporary clinicians and
other professionals interacting with the bereaved. In mental mediumship, “the
medium acts as an active intermediary between the living and the deceased by
gathering super-sensory information from the spirit, translating and selecting
from this and then presenting their interpretation” (Walliss, 2001, p. 132). In
contrast, trance mediumship involves amnesia on the part of the medium and
occurs in a “sleep-like state” (Sher, 1981, p. 108) in which
the medium is passive and is possessed by the particular spirit for whom
(s)he becomes an “instrument.” In this condition, the spirit manifests through
the medium who adopts, for example, the mannerisms, posture and in some
instances the voice and/or facial characteristics of the deceased. (Walliss,
2001, p. 132)
Finally, physical mediumship can include phenomena such as independent
voices, the levitation or movement of objects, and raps on walls or tables
(Fontana, 2005).
The process during which a mental or clairvoyant medium experiences and
conveys information from a deceased person is called a reading. During research,
the living people requesting the communication are called sitters and the deceased
communicators are called discarnates. The sitter’s experience of hearing from
deceased loved ones during a mediumship reading is an assisted ADC.
Mediumship Research
Although mediumship has been examined scientifically by such great minds as
William James and Oliver Lodge since the 1880s (reviewed in Blum, 2006),
the current body of research involving mediumship (reviewed in Rock, 2014)
includes studies of the accuracy of mediums’ statements under controlled
conditions (e.g., Beischel, Biuso, Boccuzzi, & Rock, 2011; Beischel & Schwartz,
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 177
2007; Kelly & Arcangel, 2011; Roy & Robertson, 2004) as well as examinations
of their psychology (e.g., Roxburgh & Roe, 2011), physiology (e.g., Beischel,
2013a, Chapter 5), phenomenology (e.g., Beischel & Rock, 2009), and neuro-
biology (e.g., Hageman, Peres, Moreira-Almeida, Caixeta, Wichramasekera, &
Krippner, 2010). This research has demonstrated that certain mediums are able
to report accurate and specific information about the deceased using research
protocols that eliminate fraud, cold reading, and similar “sensory” explanations
for the source of their information (e.g., Beischel, 2007). Though experiences of
non-sensory communication may be a symptom in a variety of ailments, research
has indicated that at least some of the individuals who experience regular com-
munication with the deceased are not suffering from delusions or other psy-
chological issues (reviewed in Beischel, 2014).
The mediums who participate in research at the Windbridge Institute have
been screened, tested, and trained to serve specifically in research studies and
as part of the research team. Though these Windbridge Certified Research
Medium (WCRMs) are unique in this respect and we can only report on our
experiences with them, the WCRMs are potentially representative of the larger
population of secular American mediums in their histories, practices, experi-
ences, and beliefs. Because fraud has been prevalent throughout the practice of
mediumship in Western cultures, we will focus here on modern mediums’ ethics
and reading styles.
Ethics
Upon certification, each WCRM agrees to standards of conduct that were
assembled with feedback from mediums and based on the code of ethics in use by
many modern mediums. These standards include: being drug- and violence-free,
consuming minimal to no alcohol at least 12 hours prior to a research reading,
demonstrating confidentiality of readings, and not performing readings outside
of those specifically requested (i.e., not offering unsolicited readings).
Reading Style
Most WCRMs report that during the non-research readings from their own
practices, they prefer receiving as little information as possible from sitters.
(During research, WCRMs receive no access to or information about sitters prior
to readings and no feedback from any sensory source during readings.) Because
the mediumship process appears to be more of a “rightbrained” or intuitive
task, outside information including all visual, verbal, and other data from the
sitter can engage deductive reasoning or the “left brain” to make assessments
and judgments; this can disrupt the mediumship process. This is why some
mediums prefer phone readings and why some mediums close their eyes during
in-person readings.
178 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
Mediums have very little control over who communicates and what infor-
mation is conveyed during readings; their experience is that the right discarnates
find them and not vice versa. Sitters should be aware of this in order to create
accurate expectations prior to readings. Previous quantitative research has
shown that mediums’ volitional control, self-awareness, and memory are all
significantly lower during a reading compared to a control condition (Rock &
Beischel, 2008). Similarly, in an examination of British Spiritualist church
services in which Walter’s (2008) aim was “simply to describe what visiting
a medium means to mourners” (p. 47), he reports, “Though mediums emphasise
that they cannot call up a particular spirit to order, they say that a receptive
medium may well be contacted by the relevant spirit” (p. 48).
Messages
In our experience, there are three types of information that are reported most
often during mediumship readings and our research reflects these topics by
specifically requesting this information from mediums during research readings.
The first type of information reported by mediums is that identifying of the
discarnate. This can include descriptions of the person when s/he was living
such as his/her physical appearance (e.g., hair and eye color, height, build, unique
scars or birthmarks, and typical clothing preferences), personality characteristics,
other deceased people or animals with him/her, and favorite activities, foods,
events, places, etc. The purpose of this information seems to be for identifica-
tion of the discarnate so the sitter feels confident that the information is coming
from his/her loved one.
The second type is information about events in the sitter’s life that have
occurred since the death. A medium may convey statements such as “She saw
the photo album you put together,” “He likes the color you painted the kitchen,”
or “He walked you down the aisle.” The purpose of this information seems to
be providing evidence for the sitters that the discarnates continue to observe
and participate in their lives.
The third type of information is messages specifically for the sitters. LaGrand
(2005) found that spontaneous ADCs may give advice, be inspirational or sup-
portive, or let the bereaved know the deceased are still involved in their lives.
The information reported in mediumship readings appears to be similar. This
can include simple messages like “I love you” to messages seemingly intended
to alleviate guilt or sorrow such as “There was nothing you could have done to
prevent my death” or “I didn’t feel any pain.” Messages can also offer advice
(e.g., “It’s time to sell your house”), reprimand (e.g., “Why hasn’t my head-
stone been installed yet?”), or encourage (e.g., “It’s time to start dating again”).
Walliss (2001) describes similar messages provided by mediums during group
readings in British Spiritualist churches:
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 179
part of the message could be the spirit telling the congregation member
that they’re “OK” and that they’re settling into their new existence. Linked
to this, (s)he may also want to let them know that, for example, their death
was peaceful, that they were aware of their love and help towards the end
of life (this is often the case with those who were not lucid towards the end)
or that any ailments that they suffered from in life are now absent. In
addition, (s)he may also speak of family and friends who had “passed
over” beforehand with whom they have met up again. Indeed, it is often the
case that mediums can relay a set of messages to an individual from a
number of spirits, a phenomenon that may be likened to, for example,
the image of relatives passing around the telephone receiver on a special
occasion. . . . The other dominant theme in the messages may be expressed
as “I’m still here for (or with) you and. . . .” In other words, the spirit will
affirm their continued interest in, and relationship with, the living and seek
to assist in a number of ways. (p. 134)
Walter (2008) also reports comparable messages conveyed during his own
observations of British Spiritualist services:
In contemporary spiritualism in England, the messages are remarkably
similar. The vast majority say: “S/he’s okay. Don’t shed any tears. You
can get on with life without worrying about him/her. S/he’s with you,
watching you. And s/he sends you love.” The message is that the dead are
watching us, or are for a generation or so, and they want us to move on.
The sitter need not feel guilty that she has taken a new husband; the
deceased knows, and approves. The deceased do not want to be disturbed
by our tears. (p. 48)
Walter (2008) goes on to observe,
Whether or not they resonate with current bereavement theories and thera-
peutic practices, the messages that mediums impart do resonate with a
popular culture that celebrates love, especially parental love, as eternal,
yet expects mourners to get on with their lives. (p. 50)
Sitters can choose to heed or ignore advice or direction from discarnates just
as they would comments from any well-meaning loved one. (The dead are still
just people.) One medium Walliss (2001) interviewed noted, “They can’t tell
you what to do because that’s your choice, that’s your free-will” (p. 136). Walliss
described the relationship between the living and the dead as “in many ways
a continuation of the lived one, with the deceased offering support and advice
which the living can then either act on or not” (p. 142).
The collection of information reported during mediumship readings assists
sitters in recognizing that their relationships with their discarnates still exist
and assures them that their bonds continue.
180 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
CONTINUING BONDS
A major paradigmatic shift occurred within bereavement theory, research,
and practice over the past several decades. Previously, an emphasis was placed
on severing the bonds with the deceased and the view was held that continued
attachments to the deceased were unhealthy and pathological (e.g., Bowlby,
1969-1980; Jackson, 1957; reviewed in Silverman & Klass, 1996). By the
1980s, it was becoming clear that this model “was developed in the face of data
that suggested its inadequacy” and “based on inadequate assumptions about
the nature of self” as well as “in inappropriate social scientific methodology
used to study bereavement” (Silverman & Klass, 1996, p. 22). The pathologies
defined by this “old model of grief were not based on research or clinical
experience, but were based on the cultural values from which that model of
grief emerged” (Silverman & Nickman, 1996, p. 353).
The model that replaced it was one of continuing bonds (reviewed in Klass,
Silverman, & Nickman, 1996) in which “the resolution of grief involves a con-
tinuing bond that the survivor maintains with the deceased” and in which “the
bereaved remain involved and connected to the deceased” (Silverman & Klass,
1996, pp. 3, 16, respectively). This model may include experiences in which
contact with the deceased occurs (e.g., Field, Gao, & Paderna, 2005; Klugman,
2006; Sanger, 2009; Walliss, 2001).
Field, Gao, and Paderna (2005) found that continuing bonds with the deceased
may “represent a transition from a corporeal attachment to a spiritual attachment.
Whereas earlier on after the death there is a keen sense of the deceased as missing,
later on the deceased has been recovered as a spiritual being” (p. 295). Silverman
and Klass (1996) note that,
While the intensity of the relationship with the deceased may diminish with
time, the relationship does not disappear. We are not talking about living
in the past, but rather recognizing how bonds formed in the past can inform
our present and our future. (p. 17)
They suggest “a process of adaptation and change in the postdeath relationship
and the construction and reconstruction of new connections” (p. 18) as well as
encouraging attempts to locate modern “rituals that facilitate continuing bonds
with the dead” (p. 20). Silverman and Nickman (1996) point out that when new
models of grief arise, “our culture develops new rituals of helping to match
the new model” (p. 354) and name several “mutual-help and self-help organi-
zations” that
have formed in part because their members’ experience was not legitimized
in the larger society. As part of their shared resolutions, they have developed
the folk psychology and “folk remedy” to match their lived experiences.
They find comfort, acceptance, and legitimation of their feelings. (p. 354)
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 181
Perhaps readings from psychic mediums currently serve as one of these
“folk remedies.” The formation of Forever Family Foundation (FFF; a secular,
not-for-profit organization; www.foreverfamilyfoundation.org) in the early 2000s
developed from a need in individuals experiencing and finding value in spon-
taneous and assisted ADCs. FFF maintains a list of mediums online that they
or other organizations have tested for accuracy. The mission of FFF includes
establishing the existence of the continuity of the family, even though a
member has left the physical world and providing a forum where individuals
and families who have suffered the loss of a loved one can turn for support,
information, and hope through state-of-the-art information and services provided
by ongoing research into the survival of consciousness (Forever Family Foun-
dation, n.d.). The existence and growth of FFF demonstrates the expanding
interest in and adoption of assisted ADCs as a treatment for the bereaved.
THE INTERSECTION OF GRIEF, CONTINUING BONDS,
ASSISTED ADCs, AND CLINICAL PRACTICE
The effects of mediumship readings on bereavement are not clearly understood.
The relationship between bereavement and involvement in public Spiritualist
group mediumship demonstrations has been analyzed (Walliss, 2001) and
numerous anecdotal reports exist regarding the positive and profound effects
a reading with a psychic medium can have on the bereaved. For example, one
participant in our initial mediumship research reported, “After the devastating
loss of two sons, mediumship has proven to me that we survive the death of
our bodies, and has made my life not only bearable but worthwhile again.”
However, to date and to the best of our knowledge, no systematic, empirical
studies have been published investigating the effects of a personal reading from
modern-day, secular medium.
The profound effects a reading with a mental medium may have on the bereaved
warrants a serious look at this phenomenon, particularly within the continuing
bonds paradigm. A reading may be more accessible to individuals who may
experience fear associated with the idea of a personal after-death contact that
occurs unexpectedly (e.g., with spontaneous ADCs) or through induction (e.g.,
with the EMDR or Psychomanteum methods). The concept of the deceased being
once-removed from the individual and the medium serving as the go-between
for the deceased’s messages may be more palatable to some. In addition, it
has been demonstrated that both “extremely positive” and “extremely negative”
experiences during spontaneous ADCs are “related to poor adaptation and lack
of coping with bereavement”; both were associated with “high levels of anxiety
and lack of trust in future coping capacities” (Lindstrõm, 1995, p. 19). Thus,
a more controlled environment during which contact can be experienced may
have more positive effects on the bereaved.
182 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
Alternatively, a reading may be preferred in cases in which an individual longs
for contact but has not experienced it. In his interviews with social workers,
Sanger (2009) found that this scenario occurred with “several clients” (p. 78).
For example, an individual hoping to experience an ADC to aid in their process
of healing from grief may seek out a medium. Walter (2008), in his discussion
of the motives of those wanting ADCs, found that
There may have been guilt. A middle aged woman had felt guilty about
her fraught relationship with her mother, which, after her mother’s death,
led to her contacting the spiritualists. She was comforted to be told by a
medium that her mother was all right. This one session was speedier than
the multiple visits a counsellor would probably have needed to deal with
her guilt. And it seems to have been more effective than praying to God for
forgiveness: God might forgive the daughter, but her mother’s soul might
continue to suffer the consequences of their poor pre-mortem relationship.
It was not her own guilt but her mother she was worried about. (p. 48)
Because mediums focus on the discarnate rather than the sitter (Walter,
2006), they
may have something to offer mourners denied them by those bereavement
counsellors who focus on the client’s feelings. Mourners typically think
about the dead as much as about their own feelings, and it is this that
mediums recognise and cater for. (Walter, 2008, p. 50)
Additionally, a medium may also serve as a like-minded participant without
disparaging, disbelieving, or ridiculing the experiences or worldviews of the
bereaved—a risk that exists when speaking about or sharing ADC experiences
with others. Walter (2008) observed, “Consulting a medium certainly can
cause difficulties within families, but so can religious experience or zeal of any
kind (including zeal for counselling) when not shared by other family members”
(p. 49).
Mediumship readings also involve potential disadvantages that should be
acknowledged. In situations which induce communication with the deceased
(including Botkin’s EMDR method and the use of a Psychomanteum), a trained
facilitator participates in the process or is actually present during the experience;
this is not necessarily the case for a mediumship reading. As stated above,
research has demonstrated that mediums’ experiences of communication may
include alterations in some aspects of their phenomenology including volitional
control, selfawareness, and memory (Rock & Beischel, 2008). Thus, mediums
may not be in a psychological position to facilitate the reading experience for
the bereaved sitter; their role, instead, is simply to convey what they experience
regarding the discarnate to the sitter. This issue, as well as Lindstrõm’s (1995)
finding described above that more extreme ADC experiences were related to
poor adaptation and coping (p. 19), suggest that follow-up visits with a qualified
facilitator may be necessary for some sitters.
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 183
In the pilot study described below, survey responses from a group of
mourners who received readings from mediums and a subset who also worked
with mental health professionals indicate a therapeutic effect worthy of further
examination.
EXPLORATORY STUDY
In order to assess the potential therapeutic benefit of assisted ADCs in the
treatment of grief, data were collected via an anonymous, online survey to
investigate individuals’ recollections of their experiences of grief in relation
to receiving a mediumship reading. We also asked about the perceived effect
work with a mental health professional (MHP) had on the subset of participants
who had engaged in both. Overall, the data demonstrated the need for future
studies using randomization schemes, control groups, a standard grief instrument,
and appropriate statistical tests to analyze the therapeutic effects of a personal
mediumship reading from a credentialed, secular mental medium [i.e., a medium
whose abilities have been tested by an independent third party that does not
stand to gain (e.g., financially) from the certification; this includes organi-
zations like the Windbridge Institute (Beischel, 2007; www.windbridge.org/
mediums.htm) and Forever Family Foundation (www.foreverfamilyfoundation.
org/site/certified_mediums)]. The basic methods used and data collected in this
exploratory study are described in more detail below. Data are reported as
mean ± standard error of the mean.
Methods
Online Survey
An anonymous, online, automated survey (www.formsite.com) was used
to collect participant responses. No identifying information was requested and
standard participants’ disclosure information was provided. Each participant
provided information including his/her gender and age, the discarnate’s gender
and age at passing, and the approximate dates of the discarnate’s passing and the
reading with the medium.
Regarding their mediumship readings, participants were asked: “Please rate
the level of grief you felt BEFORE receiving a reading (or readings) from the
medium.” The possible Likert-type responses participants chose from were:
I felt no grief.
I felt some grief but a very low level of grief.
I felt a somewhat low, manageable level of grief.
I felt a somewhat high level of grief.
I felt a very high, almost unbearable level of grief.
184 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
The participants were then asked to rate the level of grief they felt after the
reading (or readings) from the medium using the same response choices listed
above. For analysis, the responses regarding levels of grief were assigned
numerical values from zero to four, respectively.
Participants also responded to the following question: “Did you work
with a mental health professional (that is, a therapist, counselor, psychologist,
psychiatrist, social worker, etc.) during your grief? (This could include either
talking with your regular mental health professional about your grief or going
to see someone specifically about your grief.)” Those who answered “yes”
were redirected to questions about work with the MHP. Similar to the medium-
ship reading questions, these asked about the participants’ levels of grief before
and after the work with the MHP using the same scale. Participants were also
asked if they had ever talked to the MHP about their reading with a medium
and the MHP’s response.
Finally, participants were asked the following open-ended question: “Do you
have any other comments about your grief that you would like to share with
the investigators?”
Recruitment of Participants
An e-mail briefly describing the purpose of the study (i.e., “collecting infor-
mation about the way people who have received a reading from a medium
cope with grief after the death of a loved one”) and including a link to the online
survey was sent to WCRMs and mediums certified by the Forever Family Foun-
dation. The mediums were asked to forward a message requesting participation
to their e-mail lists, include the request in an upcoming newsletter, etc. The
instructions to the mediums also included the following:
Please do NOT hand-pick the people that you invite to fill out the grief
survey. We want a true representative sample of the population, so we
don’t want to exclude people who had a bad experience with their reading
just as we don’t want to exclude people who had a good or healing experience.
We want an accurate representation of all of the different fractions of people.
A total of 83 participants completed the survey in full. Over 90% of the
participants were female and their mean age was 52 ± 1.5 years (range: 30 to
78 years).
The participants were also asked about the discarnates they were grieving.
The discarnates were 65% male and their mean age at passing was 56 ± 3.2 years
(range: 17 weeks to 99 years). The mean time between the discarnate’s death
and the participant receiving a mediumship reading was 36 ± 8.6 months (range:
2 days to 34 years). A subset (35%, n= 29) of participants also worked with a
MHP as part of their approach to dealing with their grief.
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 185
Results
Recollected Changes in Levels of Grief
Because of the methodological limitations of the survey data collected
(described below), it was not appropriate to analyze the survey responses using
statistical tests, but the trends are described and graphically represented here
in order to demonstrate the general reported changes.
Using the scale of 0 = “I felt no grief” to 4 = “I felt a very high, almost
unbearable level of grief,” participants reported a mean level of grief of
3.13 ± 0.10 before a reading and 1.96 ± 0.11 after a reading (n= 83, D= 1.17;
see Figure 1). This finding is congruent with previous research into the effects of
ADCs on grief considering, as discussed above, that the messages received
during assisted ADCs during mediumship readings are similar to those received
during spontaneous ADCs.
The mean reported level of grief before work with a MHP was 3.69 ± 0.10
and 2.93 ± 0.15 after the work (n= 29, D= 0.76). In response to the question
about informing the MHP about the reading, 17 of the 29 participants (59%) told
their MHP about their reading. This fraction may be lower than the portion of
186 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
Figure 1. Participants’ retrospectively reported levels of grief
(mean ± SEM) before and after a mediumship reading
(Reading, n= 83) and work with a mental health professional
(MHP, n= 29). (See text for full rating definitions.)
individuals who talk about spontaneous ADCs with their MHPs. For example,
Sanger (2009) noted that 17 of the 19 (89%) social workers he interviewed
“reported clients who brought IEs into the client/social worker relationship”
(p. 76). In 58% of the subset of participants in our study who told their MHP
about their reading (n= 11), the MHP used the information the participant
received during the reading to steer the progress of the work. The following items
about the MHP’s response to hearing about the reading were chosen by one
participant (5%) each:
The MHP ignored the mediumship reading as important in your work.
The MHP suggested that you do NOT receive further mediumship readings.
The MHP suggested that you receive further mediumship readings.
None of the participants chose the following response: The MHP had suggestions
on how to best choose a medium.
Representative Participant Comments
Perhaps most indicative of the potential therapeutic benefit of assisted ADCs in
the treatment of grief were the participants’ responses to the final open-ended
survey question: “Do you have any other comments about your grief that you
would like to share with the investigators?”
The following representative comments were provided regarding the short-
and long-term effects of a mediumship reading on the experience of grief:
After the reading I felt tremendously upbeat. This euphoria lasted the whole
day. It was very amazing.
Before my reading with [the medium], I still had a low level of grief . . . that
I accepted as the loss that will always be there. After the reading, I felt
as though that “weight” was lifted and I had a different definition of my
relationship with my mom that was more special than I could ever expect.
When I am approached by my loved one that has passed, I am much more
accepting of her presence and look forward to the joy instead of the pain. . . .
I wish I had had the reading 16 years ago!
[The medium] and her gift of mediumship has had a profound effect on
my life and my grieving process. ...Ithashelped me in a way I never would
have imagined.
It is very healing for me to use mediums for help in this process.
I believe going to a good medium is an untapped resource for faster grief
management.
[The medium] helped me manage the grief that has been with me for more
than 20 years.
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 187
I feel a reading with a medium is an excellent tool for helping to decrease
grief....Iwould recommend it to anyone that is considering it.
I don’t know what I would have done without [the medium].
In addition, several participants spontaneously provided negative feedback
regarding their experiences with a MHP:
For me, the various grief support groups were not the answer.
I only went to a grief counselor for four sessions. I did not continue because I
didn’t feel that she was helping me either way.
When my first MHP negated the reading I had with a medium, I switched
to someone who understood and supported “my new reality” and therefore
received much more constructive help with my grief.
We feel the last comment above is very important in demonstrating the poten-
tial of clients to seek out and employ counselors accepting of and knowledgeable
regarding mediumship readings and supports the need for new training modalities
for counselors (described below).
Several participants also specifically commented on the importance of the
combination of the two interventions—mediumship readings and work with a
MHP—on their recovery:
I believe the combination of assistance from a MHP and a medium to be
of significant value in processing grief and corroborating one’s belief in
life on the “other side.”
I can’t begin to express how helpful my readings have been in my healing
journey. I know that I personally needed to go through counseling as well.
However, the level of healing was accelerated by getting readings.
The medium reached my heart, the social worker my mind.
Finally, participants also commented on the relief they felt knowing that this
topic was being researched and validated. For example:
I get great comfort from visiting afterlife websites and knowing that people
who are much more intelligent than me actually believe in an afterlife.
I have tried so hard to let friends understand how helpful the medium was to
me but they think I am wrong, that I shouldn’t see a medium.
. . . consciousness research is important for me in using mediumship readings
as a tool in grief recovery.
The idea of data from parapsychological research serving as a tool that may
be used to validate the experiences of the bereaved and “help [them] live after the
death of a loved one and restructure their lives” is one that has been previously
asserted (Berger, 1995, p. 1).
188 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
Limitations
It is important to keep in mind that these data were collected for the purpose
of determining if this line of inquiry warrants further study and they should
not be viewed as demonstrative of an effect. The participants were self-selected
to include individuals who already held a belief that a mediumship reading
could be helpful and were, therefore, predisposed to finding the experience
beneficial. The participants’ reports of their experiences of grief were retro-
spective. This methodology cannot control for inaccurate and/or incomplete
self-reports due to false memory impressions and memory loss. Additionally,
the number of participants who received a mediumship reading and the subset
who also worked with a MHP were relatively small (n= 83 and n= 29, respec-
tively). Finally, a general questionnaire was used rather than a standard, estab-
lished measure of grief. However, it seems probable that these positive findings,
even considering these limitations and the exploratory nature of the study, could
be extrapolated to at least a portion of the population actively receiving medium-
ship readings as a “folk remedy” for their grief; this warrants further study.
CONCLUSIONS
Although grief is experienced across cultures and is ubiquitous to the human
experience, unresolved, complicated, prolonged, or traumatic grief can have detri-
mental effects on mental and/or physical health and wellness. Traditional grief
counseling approaches, with a focus on the client’s acceptance of separation and
integration of loss, may be ineffective. Conversely, therapeutic approaches that
incorporate a continuing bonds perspective exhibit positive results for the bereaved.
Methods of healing from grief outside of a therapeutic scenario include ADCs,
whereby the bereaved experience communication with the deceased. Both spon-
taneous and induced ADCs have been repeatedly demonstrated to diminish or
even entirely alleviate grief. Other bereaved individuals seek out assisted ADCs
through readings with psychic mediums, and anecdotal reports posit the positive
effects of this practice.
No systematic studies have been published investigating the effects of a
personal mediumship reading from a credentialed, secular medium on grief.
The pilot study described here demonstrated recollections of noteworthy relief
from grief after mediumship readings. The trends from these exploratory data
warrant further study into the benefits of assisted ADCs within the field of
grief psychology.
FUTURE DIRECTIONS
With objective research on this topic, investigators and counselors may be
able—at the very least—to offer suggestions to the large population of individuals
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 189
choosing to receive mediumship readings and—ideally—to become part of the
decision-making process and follow-up. We suggest a scenario in which cre-
dentialed mediums work together with licensed MHPs in addressing the acute
grief experiences of the bereaved who may benefit from readings. This cross-
collaboration will require research assessing who may benefit most from
mediumship readings—and for whom it might be detrimental—regarding factors
including, for example, gender and age of the sitter, gender and age of the
discarnate, time since the death, type of death, psychological and personality
characteristics of the sitter, level of adaptation to bereavement, etc. In his field-
work with British Spiritualist services, Walliss (2001) found that
it is not so much bereavement per se but rather specific forms of bereave-
ment that may lead to individuals consulting mediums for evidence of
survival or in order to say goodbye. Typically this was the case where
the deceased was young and/or where the death was sudden or tragic, for
example through an accident, murder or suicide. (p. 141)
As a first step in discerning who might and might not benefit from readings,
we have designed a randomized clinical trial [called the Bereavement And
Mediumship (or BAM) Study] utilizing a standard randomization scheme, waiting
list control group, group assignment method, quantitative grief instrument, and
statistical analysis to examine the impact of a reading on the sitter’s recovery
from grief over the loss of a loved one (Windbridge Institute, 2013). Only with
controlled research such as the BAM Study can the grief community effec-
tively determine if receiving mediumship readings is helpful, harmful, or neither
for different fractions of the bereaved.
With the results from this, similar, and subsequent research, an effective
collaboration can develop between clinicians and mediums that will best serve
the bereaved population. The role of the mediums will be to assist sitters who
may benefit in beginning work with MHPs. Likewise, the role of the MHP will
be to suggest readings to select individuals and to assist them in integrating
the information provided by mediums into their lives. Though many individual
MHPs may be including mediumship readings in the suggestions they offer to
their clients (as we have heard anecdotally), an organized dialogue and list of
agreed-upon standard practices is only in its infancy (see, for example, the work
of the American Center for the Integration of Spiritually Transformative Experi-
ences, ACISTE, www.aciste.org). Furthermore, this collaboration should include
an open dialogue between researchers and those directly interacting with the
bereaved: the MHPs and mediums. The experiences of those groups regarding
the effects of readings on the bereaved are invaluable.
This collaboration between MHPs and mediums will require training for both
halves. The training of MHPs may include information about the basics of
mediumship processes, including the topics of ethics and reading styles dis-
cussed above as well as general error rates and where to find reputable, certified, or
190 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
credentialed mediums and how to best prepare for a reading (e.g., Beischel,
2013b). Mediums should be provided with information gained from research
regarding which sitters may require further work with a MHP after a reading. In
addition, a list of licensed MHPs trained regarding mediumship processes should
be distributed to credentialed mediums for the purpose of sharing with their
clients. This is particularly important considering that a large portion of mediums
provide phone readings to sitters who may be in other states or countries which
may make establishing local relationships with MHPs somewhat ineffective.
We believe this scenario is a necessary and practical solution to the increasing
use of mediumship readings by the general public and the limited demonstrable
efficacy of traditional grief therapy. We are currently working on bringing it
to fruition through controlled research and training material development.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors wish to acknowledge Angelina Loetschert for the term “assisted
after-death communication.”
REFERENCES
Barbato, M., Blunden, C., Reid, K., Irwin, H., & Rodriquez, P. (1999). Parapsychological
phenomena near the time of death. Journal of Palliative Care, 15, 30-38.
Beischel, J. (2007). Contemporary methods used in laboratory-based mediumship research.
Journal of Parapsychology, 71, 37-68.
Beischel, J. (2013a). Among mediums: A scientist’s quest for answers. Retrieved from
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00B1MZMHM/
Beischel, J. (2013b). Meaningful messages: Making the most of your mediumship reading.
Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FE910V0/
Beischel, J. (2014). Advances in quantitative mediumship research. In A. J. Rock (Ed.), The
survival hypothesis: Essays on mediumship (pp. 177-195). Jefferson, NC: McFarland.
Beischel, J., Biuso, M., Boccuzzi, M., & Rock, A. (2011, June). Anomalous information
reception by research mediums under quintupleblind conditions: Can the mind exist
without the body? 30th Annual Meeting of the Society for Scientific Exploration,
Boulder, Colorado.
Beischel, J., & Rock, A. J. (2009). Addressing the survival vs. psi debate through process-
focused mediumship research. Journal of Parapsychology, 73, 71-90.
Beischel, J., & Schwartz, G. E. (2007). Anomalous information reception by research
mediums demonstrated using a novel triple-blind protocol. EXPLORE: The Journal
of Science & Healing, 3, 23-27.
Berger, A. S. (1995). Quoth the raven: Bereavement and the paranormal. Omega: Journal
of Death and Dying, 31, 1-10.
Blum, D. (2006). Ghost hunters: William James and the search for scientific proof of
life after death. New York, NY: Penguin Press.
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 191
Botkin, A. L. (2000). The induction of after-death communications utilizing eye-movement
desensitization and reprocessing: A new discovery. Journal of Near Death Studies, 18,
181-209.
Bowlby, J. (1969-1980). Attachment and Loss, Vols. 1-3: Attachment, Vol. 1, 1969;
Separation: Anxiety and anger, Vol. 2, 1973; Loss: Sadness and depression, Vol. 3,
1980. New York, NY: Basic Books.
Breen, L. J., & O’Connor, M. (2007). The fundamental paradox in the grief literature:
A critical reflection. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 55, 199-218.
Buhrman, S. (1997). Trance types and amnesia revisited: Using detailed interviews to
fill in the gaps. Anthropology of Consciousness, 8, 10-21.
Conant, R. D. (1996). Memories of the death and life of a spouse: The role of images
and sense of presence in grief. In D. Klass, P. R. Silverman, & S. L. Nickman
(Eds.), Continuing bonds: New understandings of grief (pp. 179-196). Washington,
DC: Taylor & Francis.
Currier, J. M., Neimeyer, R. A., & Berman, J. S. (2008). The effectiveness of psycho-
therapeutic interventions for bereaved persons: A comprehensive quantitative review.
Psychological Bulletin, 134, 648-661.
Daggett, L. M. (2005). Continued encounters: The experience of after-death communi-
cation. Journal of Holistic Nursing, 23, 191-207.
Dannenbaum, S. M., & Kinnier, R. T. (2009). Imaginal relationships with the dead:
Applications for psychotherapy. Journal of Humanistic Psychology, 49, 100-113.
Drewry, M. D. J. (2003). Purported after-death communication and its role in the
recovery of bereaved individuals: A phenomenological study. Proceedings of the
Annual Conference of the Academy of Religion and Psychical Research, 74-87.
Field, N. P., Gao, B., & Paderna, L. (2005). Continuing bonds in bereavement: An
attachment theory based perspective. Death Studies, 29, 277-299.
Fontana, D. (2005). Is there an afterlife? A comprehensive overview of the evidence.
Blue Ridge Summit, PA: NBN.
Forever Family Foundation. (n.d.). Mission statement. Retrieved from http://www.forever
familyfoundation.org/index2.html
Hageman,J.H.,Peres,J.F.P.,Moreira-Almeida,A.,Caixeta,L.,WickramasekeraII,I.,
& Krippner, S. (2010). The neurobiology of trance and mediumship in Brazil. In S. Krippner
&H.L.Friedman(Eds.),Mysterious minds: The neurobiology of psychics, mediums,
and other extraordinary people (pp. 85-111). Santa Barbara, CA: ABC-CLIO.
Haraldsson, E. (1988-89). Survey of claimed encounters with the dead. Omega: Journal
of Death and Dying, 19, 103-113.
Hastings, A., Ferguson, E., Hutton, M., Goldman, A., Braud, W., Greene, E., et al. (2002).
Psychomanteum research: Experiences and effects on bereavement. Omega: Journal
of Death and Dying, 45, 211-228.
Hensley, P. L. (2006). Treatment of bereavement-related depression and traumatic grief.
Journal of Affective Disorders, 92, 117-124.
Houck, J. A. (2005). The universal, multiple, and exclusive experiences of after-death
communication. Journal of NearDeath Studies, 24, 117-127.
Jackson, E. N. (1957). Understanding grief: Its roots, dynamics, and treatment. New
York: Abingdon Press.
Jordan, J. R., & Neimeyer, R. A. (2003). Does grief counseling work? Death Studies, 27,
765-786.
192 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
Kelly, E. W., & Arcangel, D. (2011). An investigation of mediums who claim to give infor-
mation about deceased persons. Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease, 199, 11-17.
Klass, D., Silverman, P. R., & Nickman, S. L. (Eds.). (1996). Continuing bonds: New
understandings of grief. Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
Klugman, C. M. (2006). Dead men talking: Evidence of post death contact and con-
tinuing bonds. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 53, 249-262.
Krippner, S. (2006). Getting through the grief: After-death communication experiences
and their effects on experients. In L. Storm & M. A. Thalbourne (Eds.), The survival
of human consciousness: Essays on the possibility of life after death (pp. 174-193).
Jefferson, NC: MacFarland & Company, Inc.
LaGrand, L. E. (2005). The nature and therapeutic implications of the extraordinary
experiences of the bereaved. Journal of Near-Death Studies, 24, 3-20.
Larson, D. G., & Hoyt, W. T. (2007). What has become of grief counseling? An evalu-
ation of the empirical foundations of the new pessimism. Professional Psychology:
Research and Practice, 38, 347-355.
Lindstrõm, T. C. (1995). Experiencing the presence of the dead: Discrepancies in “the
sensing experience” and their psychological concomitants. Omega: Journal of Death
and Dying, 31, 11-21.
Moody, R. (1992). Family reunions: Visionary encounters with the departed in a modern-
day psychomanteum. Journal of Near Death Studies, 11, 83-121.
Neimeyer, R. A. (2000). Searching for the meaning of meaning: Grief therapy and the
process of reconstruction. Death Studies, 24, 541-558.
Newport, F., & Strausberg, M. (2001). Americans’ belief in psychic and paranormal
phenomena is up over last decade: Belief in psychic healing and extrasensory percep-
tion top the list. Retrieved October 6, 2009 from http://www.gallup.com/poll/4483/
americans-belief-psychic-paranormal-phenomena-over-last-decade.aspx
Normand, C. L., Silverman, P. R., & Nickman, S. L. (1996). Bereaved children’s changing rela-
tionships with the deceased. In D. Klass, P. R. Silverman, & S. L. Nickman (Eds.), Contin-
uing bonds: New understandings of grief (pp. 87-111). Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
Nowatzki, N. R., & Grant Kalischuk, R. (2009). Post-death encounters: Grieving, mourn-
ing, and healing. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 59, 91-111.
Parker, J. S. (2005). Extraordinary experiences of the bereaved and adaptive outcomes
of grief. Omega: Journal of Death and Dying, 51, 257-283.
Prigerson, H. G., Horowitz, M. J., Jacobs, S. C., Parkes, C. M., Aslan, M., Goodkin, K., et al.
(2009). Prolonged grief disorder: Psychometric validation of criteria proposed for DSMV
and ICD11. PLoS Medicine, 6, e1000121. doi: 10.1371/journal. pmed.1000121
Rock, A. J. (Ed.). (2014). The survival hypothesis: Essays on mediumship. Jefferson, NC:
McFarland.
Rock, A. J., & Beischel, J. (2008). Quantitative analysis of mediums’ conscious experi-
ences during a discarnate reading versus a control task: A pilot study. Australian
Journal of Parapsychology, 8, 157-179.
Roxburgh, E. C., & Roe, C. A. (2011). A survey of dissociation, boundary-thinness, and
psychological well-being in spiritualist mental mediumship. Journal of Parapsy-
chology, 75, 279-299.
Roy, A. E., & Robertson, T. J. (2004). Results of the application of the Robertson-Roy
protocol to a series of experiments with mediums and participants. Journal of the
Society for Psychical Research, 68, 18-34.
ASSISTED ADC AND BEREAVEMENT / 193
Sanger, M. (2009). When clients sense the presence of loved ones who have died. Omega:
Journal of Death and Dying, 59, 69-89.
Schaefer, C., Quesenberry, C. P., & Wi, S. (1995). Mortality following conjugal bereave-
ment and the effects of a shared environment. American Journal of Epidemiology, 141,
1142-1152.
Schut, H., Stroebe, M. S., van den Bout, J., & Terheggen, M. (2001). The efficacy of
bereavement interventions: Determining whobenefits.InM.S.Stroebe,R.O.Hansson,
W. Stroebe, & H. Schut (Eds.), Handbook of bereavement research: Consequences,
coping, and care (pp. 705-737). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Shahar, D., Schultz, R., Shahar, A., & Wing, R. (2001). The effect of widowhood on weight
change, dietary intake, and eating behavior in the elderly population. Journal of Aging
Health, 13, 186-199.
Sher, Rev. F. (1981). Spiritualism and mediumship studies. Lily Dale: National Association
of Spiritualist Churches.
Silverman, P. R., & Klass, D. (1996). Introduction: What’s the problem? In D. Klass, P. R.
Silverman, & S. L. Nickman (Eds.), Continuing bonds: New understandings of grief
(pp. 3-27). Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
Silverman, P. R., & Nickman, S. L. (1996). Concluding thoughts. In D. Klass, P. R.
Silverman, & S. L. Nickman (Eds.), Continuing bonds: New understandings of grief
(pp. 349-355). Washington, DC: Taylor & Francis.
Sormanti, M., & August, J. (1997). Parental bereavement: Spiritual connections with
deceased children. American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, 67, 460-469.
Stroebe, M., Schut, H., & Stroebe, W. (2007). Health outcomes of bereavement. Lancet,
370, 1960-1973.
Taylor, S. F. (2005). Between the idea and the reality: A study of the counseling experi-
ences of bereaved people who sense the presence of the deceased. Counseling and
Psychotherapy Research, 5, 53-61.
Walliss, J. (2001). Continuing bonds: Relationships between the living and the dead
within contemporary spiritualism. Mortality, 6, 127-145.
Walter, T. (2006). Telling the dead man’s tale: Bridging the gap between the living and
the dead. Bereavement Care, 25, 23-26.
Walter, T. (2008). Mourners and mediums. Bereavement Care, 27, 47-50.
Wass, H. (2004). A perspective of the current state of death education. Death Studies, 28,
289-308.
Windbridge Institute. (2013). Can hearing from the dead heal the living? Retrieved from
http://www.afterlifescience.com/
Worden, J. W. (1991). Grief counseling and grief therapy: A handbook for the mental
health practitioner (2nd Ed.). New York, NY: Springer.
Direct reprint requests to:
Julie Beischel
Windbridge Institute
1517 N Wilmot Rd #254
Tucson, AZ 85712
e-mail: beischel@windbridge.org
194 / BEISCHEL, MOSHER AND BOCCUZZI
... Bereavement is a profoundly destructive event that causes individuals to experience short-term and long-term stress (Shear and Shair, 2005), and a minority of individuals experience prolonged and complex grief and behavioural issues (Prigerson et al. 2021). People will use various ways to try to alleviate this existential grief, such as the use of mediums and dream revelations, which have been shown to have certain healing effects (Beischel et al. 2014;Krippner, 2006;Beischel, 2019). ...
... From the perspective of terror management theory (TMT), intimate relationships are one of the core pathways to resist death anxiety (Plusnin et al. 2018). Current research on deathbots has shown that they play an affective scaffolding role in grief over the loss of a loved one by maintaining intimate relationships to resist the burden of death (Beischel et al. 2014;Conant, 2014;Xygkou et al. 2023). ...
... The dilemma of deathbots in the philosophical practice of death: analgesia, dignity of the deceased, and the future The double-edged sword effect of deathbots in alleviating grief. Although deathbots have alleviated our grief in the farewell to death (Beischel et al. 2014), soothed our death anxiety, and shaped our dialogue with death in an entirely new way (Henrickson, 2023), yet the emotional entanglement with deathbots remains a cause for concern. Multiple studies have expressed concerns about the intimate relationship between humans and deathbots (Bao and Zeng, 2024;Fabry and Alfano, 2024). ...
Article
Full-text available
This article adopts an interdisciplinary lens integrating psychology and existentialism to examine how digital resurrection technology, epitomized by deathbots, reshapes human perceptions of death and elevates interaction between us and deathbots into an existential practice. By interrogating the interplay between digital technologies and death, the techno-psychological foundations of deathbots, their therapeutic efficacy in psychological and philosophical frameworks, and the attendant philosophical quandaries, we demonstrate that: (1) The perceived authenticity and meaning co-constructed through human–deathbot interactions endow deathbots with quasi-intersubjectivity, thereby constituting this technologically mediated encounters as existentialist philosophical practice; (2) this co-constructed practice not only delivers therapeutic benefits but also phenomenologically extends the deceased’s presence through an “algorithmic as if” mode of being; (3) the dual-edged sword effect of deathbots’ therapeutic outcomes, coupled with their challenge to the deceased’s dignity, underscores how humanity’s existential perplexity toward death persists in the digital age and continues to generate novel philosophical inquiries.
... To counter this, the continuing bonds model emerged in the bereavement literature and is now a well-established theoretical and practical framing (Klass et al., 1996). Centred around acknowledging an ongoing relationship between the living and the deceased, this continuing bonds framework has become an increasingly accepted part of grief counselling (Beischel et al., 2014). Situated within this mixed picture of a general social reluctance to engage with the topic sitting alongside an increasingly sensitive and open approach to our relationships with the dead, this paper explores everyday mundane -yet inherently otherworldly -encounters. ...
... Over two decades ago, Walliss (2001) noted a gap in the research on continuing bonds in relation to the consultation of Spiritualist mediums by the recently bereaved. Many people seek out readings with mediums following the death of a loved one (Beischel et al., 2014) and Walliss noted that the offering of advice and support from the deceased were the two main functions of messages arising from such interactions. However, he also observed that a desire for further messages was not a significant factor in people's continued involvement with Spiritualist churches. ...
... From 'the classic ineffable "feeling"' that someone is there 'to clear sensory experiences' (Bennett & Bennett, 2000, p. 144), after death communications (ADCs), as they are also known, have been a natural part of the grieving process across time and societies and can play an important role in healing (Nowatzki & Grant Kalischuk, 2009). In a western context there has been a tendency to describe such encounters as 'paranormal' or 'extraordinary', yet the reality is that they are in fact fairly common (Beischel et al., 2014). Whilst they can occur in any context and at any time, they are particularly frequent in end-of-life care, where staff, carers, and patients routinely experience them as natural, comforting, and beneficial in facilitating the grieving process (Drewry, 2003). ...
... Furthermore, ADC and "continuing bonds" [44] are two concepts in the field of grief research that challenge the traditional understanding of grief as a process of detachment and moving on, instead emphasizing the importance of maintaining connections with deceased loved ones [45]. The continuing bonds theory, derived from Bowlby's attachment theory [46], posits that individuals perceive their connection to the deceased as persisting beyond death, albeit transformed, rather than being completely severed [47]. ...
... In general, individuals who believe in an afterlife tend to perceive the deceased as persisting in some form, contributing to the continuation of their emotional bond. This perceived connection provides solace and influences coping mechanisms during the grieving process [45]. Consequently, during the assessment phase, clinicians must identify an individual's personal spiritual or religious beliefs about the afterlife as potential resources for navigating grief and sustaining the emotional bond with the deceased. ...
... Although the previous literature theoretically established a connection between continuing bonds and afterlife beliefs [45,62,63], the exact nature of these relationships and their interactions remain unclear. Future research, particularly within the context of IADC therapy, may contribute to elucidating these aspects by examining whether and how ADC experiences not only impact the severity of mourning symptoms but also influence afterlife beliefs and the feeling of connection with the deceased. ...
Article
Full-text available
IADC (induced after-death communication) therapy is a grief treatment developed by Botkin that is increasingly being acknowledged for its effectiveness in various countries worldwide. In clinical practice, professionals trained in IADC therapy employ a brief evaluation tool called the IADC Grief Questionnaire (IADC-GQ) to determine whether mourning can be disturbed or stopped, resulting in complicated grief. This preliminary research aimed to establish the psychometric properties of the IADC-GQ. The factor structure was analyzed in a sample consisting of 113 participants undergoing psychological treatment who had endured the loss of a loved one for a minimum of six months. The findings revealed a two-dimensional framework comprising two distinct factors: the “Clinical Score”, encompassing the most distressing elements of grief, and the “Continuing Bond” factor, which is associated with feelings of connection to the departed and thoughts regarding the existence of life after death. The IADC-GQ has the potential to be easily and quickly employed in both research and clinical settings. Moreover, it can qualitatively assist therapists during clinical interviews by highlighting the key areas where the grieving process may encounter obstacles.
... (pp. 73-74) Beischel et al. (2014) emphasize the consistent and profound impact, which the ADC experiencers reported on grief stating, "both spontaneous and induced ADCs have been repeatedly demonstrated to diminish or even entirely alleviate grief" (p. 189). ...
... Regardless of the perceptions of the authors of the research, there is overwhelming evidence that ADC provides multiple benefits to grieving individuals, including surviving partners and spouses (Elsaesser et al., 2020). The experience has been found to yield psychological benefits, promoting personal and/or spiritual growth, reducing existential fear, and instigating new perspectives on life (Beischel et al., 2014;Sormanti & August, 1997). ...
Article
This study investigates perceived interactions with the deceased, a phenomenon reported across societies, with 30-34% of individuals likely experiencing at least one ADC in their lifetime. Despite this prevalence, studies examining the impact of ADCs’ on those who have lost partners are limited. We present data from 70 individuals reporting partner ADCs via an online survey. Forty percent reported accelerated recovery and 42.9% confirm the ADCs' significant influence in their grieving, with 61% expressing a desire for continued contact. ADCs, interestingly, didn’t worsen their pain. The influence on grief-related sadness varied: 41% noted no change, while 40% reported reduced sadness. Forty-seven percent acknowledged ADCs eased their loss acceptance. The data highlight ADCs’ substantial, potentially therapeutic role in grief and healing, despite varying effects on sadness and recovery. This study underscores the ADCs’ possible positive influence on bereaved partners, advocating for a deeper understanding of this phenomenon in the grieving process.
... Going further, if we consider the mind as an ontological reality, would we change our perspective on death and invest more in studying interventions such as supporting grieving patients through helping them reconcile with deceased loved ones or reinterpret experiences like dreams or visions of the deceased (Beischel et al., 2014)? Similarly, in the context of suicide, if mind survival after death is considered, could it alter our approach to prevention, potentially emphasizing protective factors rooted in spiritual beliefs or a broader understanding of the mind's existence, as suggested by studies on moral objections to suicide (Bakhiyi et al., 2016;Lizardi et al., 2008)? ...
... From Tramont's notes, it is clear that while in hypnosis or PLR, 'negative entities' would speak either through the hypnotized client or Nancy Tramont as a surrogate. However, and through the available notes and case studies presented, these processes seem much more similar to "channeling" as commonly seen with mediums and psychics (Beischel, Mosher, & Boccuzzi, 2014, 2017Wahbeh, 2023) or in some magical ritual practices (i.e., taking on the God form, Howe, 1985;Regardie, 1998). In the former, the agent channeling the "discarnate agent" has a much greater degree of control over the presence of the purported entity. ...
Article
Full-text available
Abstract Background: Induced after-death communication (IADC) therapy is an emerging approach for addressing grief-related distress, particularly in individuals experiencing complicated grief (CG). Developed from eye movement desensitization and reprocessing (EMDR), IADC therapy aims to change the meanings with which loss is read and to transform acute grief into integrated grief. While spontaneous after-death communications (ADCs) have been widely reported across different cultures, IADC therapy provides a structured procedure for inducing a state of mind in which such experiences can spontaneously arise and develop. Methods: This study employed a prospective observational cohort design with a retrospective analysis, comparing the effectiveness of IADC therapy (experimental group, n = 42) to standard grief interventions combining talk therapy and EMDR (control group, n = 43). Participants completed standardized measures, including the Inventory of Complicated Grief (ICG) and the IADC Grief Questionnaire (IADC-GQ), at pre-treatment (T1), post-treatment (T2), and six-month follow-up (T3). Additional analyses explored the role of spirituality, religious affiliation, and therapist characteristics in grief processing. Results: IADC therapy led to a significantly greater reduction in grief intensity (ICG scores) immediately after the intervention and at the six-month follow-up compared to the control group. The experimental group also showed a more pronounced decrease in distress symptoms (CS scores) and higher ratings of therapeutic satisfaction. Furthermore, participants in the experimental group exhibited a significantly greater increase in their continuing bond (CB) scores, suggesting a more adaptive connection with the deceased. Additional analyses examined therapist characteristics, treatment-related factors, and the nature of ADC experiences, which are further explored in the discussion. Conclusions: These findings highlight the clinical utility of IADC therapy as a brief and cost-effective grief intervention, offering comparable or superior outcomes to traditional grief therapies. The results suggest that recognizing and integrating spontaneous ADC experiences into grief therapy may provide a valuable therapeutic pathway. Future research should further explore the long-term effects, cultural variations, and therapist characteristics to optimize the integration of IADC therapy into mainstream clinical practice.
Article
Continuing bond manifesting as unexplainable experiences reflects bereaved´s attempts to restore connection with the deceased. As an experience unaligned with a person’s overall schemas of meaning unexplainable experiences are a source of anxiety that individuals aim to alleviate by attribution thinking. This study describes how bereaved aim to explain unexplainable experiences related to the death of their loved ones. The study analysed 408 narratives of 181 bereaved individuals. Bereaved individuals (1) described the meaning of their experience to be receaving information, emotions or support by the experience and communicating about crossing the boundary between life and death. As (2) reflections on the cause of their experiences bereaved individuals described certain and uncertain explanations of the phenomenon, ruling out explanations and the compatibility or incompatibility of the experience with their prior worldviews. The process of attribution thinking must be perceived as meaningful regardless of the outcome of the bereaved person’s reflection.
Chapter
Death is an inevitable part of life. But the manner in which we mourn death and memorialize life, both in terms of the promise of our own death, and the inevitable death of others, offers designers and artists an opportunity to creatively reimagine the ways emerging technologies might open up new possibilities for understanding and coping with this essential part of life. Our design research begins with a historical critique of various religious and philosophical traditions related to death and dying. This foundation frames our inquiry, as we apply design research methods to better understand how experts working in hospice and the cemetery industry prepare experiences for death and mourning. Drawing on these insights we present a prototype that demonstrates new modalities for memorializing those who have passed through auditory media eventually proposing future work based on these initial prototypes utilizing a mixed reality experience.KeywordsDeathMixed RealityVirtual realityVR memorialsExperience designInteraction DesignHistoryMemorials
Article
Full-text available
We used a multiteam system approach (MTS) to map the critical and constructive feedback from four invited Commentaries on Rock et al.’s (2023) probabilistic analysis of purported evidence for postmortem survival. The goal was to mine actionable insights to guide future research with the potential for important learnings or breakthroughs about the nature or limits of human consciousness and their relation to transpersonal psychology. The commentators’ input identified only a few measurable variables or empirical tactics that conceivably challenge or refine our latest Drake-S Equation for survival. However, a review of these suggestions using logical and statistical criteria revealed that none immediately upend our previous conclusion that the published effect sizes for various Known Confounds (including hypothetical "living agent psi") do not fully account for the published prevalence rates of Anomalous Experiences traditionally interpretated as survival. However, the commentators proposed several good recommendations for new studies that could eventually alter this calculus. Accordingly, we outline the architecture of a proposed cross-disciplinary research program that extends the present MTS approach and its collected insights and focuses strictly on empiricism over rhetoric in this domain. The results of this coordinated effort should likewise help to clarify a range of psychological and biomedical phenomena that speak to the nature and limits of human consciousness.
Article
Article
As with the study of any natural phenomenon, bringing mediumship into the regulated environment of the laboratory allows for the controlled and repeated examination of anomalous information reception by mediums. It also lends statistically analyzed evidence regarding the survival of consciousness hypothesis and addresses the relationship between consciousness and brain. Ideally, laboratory-based mediumship research includes 2 equally important factors: (a) a research environment that optimizes the mediumship process for bodi the medium and the hypothesized discarnate and (b) research methods that maximize the experimental blinding of the medium, the rater, and the experimenter in order to eliminate all conventional explanations for the information and its accuracy and specificity. The Windbridge Institute for Applied Research in Human Potential utilizes several mediods that build upon historical as well as modern mediumship investigations in order to meet diese 2 research goals. The research mediods discussed include: detailed research reading protocols; the pairing and formatting of readings; experimental blinding; the thorough screening of all research participants; and a specific scoring system used by raters.
Article
The purpose of this study was to explore the personality and psychological wellbeing of Spiritualist mental mediums compared to nonmedium Spiritualists. A total of 159 Spiritualists (mediums = 80, nonmediums = 79) participated in a nationwide cross-sectional survey and completed measures of dissociation, boundary-thinness, psychological wellbeing, fantasy-proneness, and personality. Mediums scored significantly higher than nonmediums on psychological wellbeing, t= 3.80, p <.001, and reported lower psychological distress, t= 3.25, p =.001, but no significant differences were found between the groups on dissociation or boundary-thinness. Secondary analyses revealed significant differences for extraversion, t = 2.01, p =.046, neuroticism, t = 3.59, p = <.001, and openness to experience, t = 3.21, p =.002, but not for fantasy-proneness, agreeableness, or conscientiousness. Findings suggest mat mediumship is not associated with a reported incidence of dissociative experiences or pathology. Results are discussed in relation to previous research that has proposed the mediumship role may serve a therapeutic function.