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Belief in psychic ability and the misattribution hypothesis: A qualitative review
- Type
- Study
- By
- Richard Wiseman and Caroline Watt
- Journal
- British Journal of Psychology
- Source
- British Journal of Psychology
- Published
- 2006
A review arguing that belief in psychic ability is largely driven by misattribution: ordinary experiences and coincidences read as paranormal.
Richard Wiseman and Caroline Watt are among the most prominent skeptical psychologists of psychic claims, and this 2006 review in the British Journal of Psychology is their statement of the misattribution hypothesis: belief in the psychic is largely driven by reading ordinary experiences and coincidences as paranormal.
The paper is notable for what it does not do — it does not mock. It takes believers' experiences seriously and sets out to explain them, which is precisely why the skeptical case it makes is persuasive. It is a standard citation for anyone arguing that the experience of coincidence is real while the attribution to a hidden cause is the error.
The meaning
The paper at least takes believers' experiences seriously enough to explain them, rather than dismissing them.
The skeptic
It is a systematic statement of the skeptic's core claim: the experiences are real, but the attribution to the paranormal is the error.
About the research
Two of the most prominent skeptical psychologists of psychic claims.
Key takeaways
- Reviews the evidence that psychic belief rests on misattribution.
- Published in the British Journal of Psychology, 2006.
- A key citation for the skeptical account of coincidence and psi.