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AUTONOMIC DETECTION OF REMOTE OBSERVATION:
Two Conceptual Replications 1
Marilyn J. Schlitz
Cognitive Sciences Laboratory,
Science Applications International Corporation
and
Stephen LaBerge
The Lucidity Institute
ABSTRACT: Two experiments were conducted to measure the extent to which
people are able to unconsciously detect another person staring at them from a
distance.
A closed-circuit television set-up was employed in which a video
camera was focused on the experimental volunteer (Observee) while a person
in another room (Observer) concentrated on the image of the distant person as
displayed on
a
color monitor;
this procedure was used
to preclude any
conventional
sensory
contact
between
the
two
people.
During
the
experimental session, the Observee's galvanic skin responses were monitored.
An automated and computerized system was programmed
to record and
average the physiological responses
of the Observee during 32 30-second
monitoring periods. A random sequence was used to schedule 16 periods of
remote observation and 16 control periods when no observation efforts were
attempted.
A within-subjects evaluation was made
for each experimental
session with a comparison between the mean amount of autonomic nervous
system activity during the experimental and control conditions.
Twenty four
sessions were conducted in each of two experiments.
As predicted, both
experiments yielded significantly more autonomic activity during the remote
observation periods as compared to control periods (Experiment
1:
t=1.878,
p<.036,
1-t, es=.36; Experiment 2: t=2.360, p<.014,
1-t, es=.44).
As preplanned,
the two experiments were combined to increase statistical power, yielding a
significant t-value of 2.652 (p<.005, 1-t, es=.36).
1 The authors wish to acknowledge the technical support, design contributions, and general
encouragement of William Braud and the staff of the Cognitive Sciences Laboratory.
For
editorial assistance, we appreciate the useful suggestions offered by Rick Berger and Christian
de Quincey.
Additional support was provided by the Institute of Noetic Sciences.
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INTRODUCTION
The past few decades have witnessed an increasing
interest in the
possibility of direct mental influences on living systems. A diverse range of
experiments have been conducted by researchers within the United States,
Canada, and Europe
(for reviews, see Benor,
1990; Dossey,
1993; May and
Vilenskaya, 1994; Solfvin, 1984).
In a typical experiment, some physiological
activity or other selected behavior
is monitored
in the context of a formal
laboratory experiment.
Efforts
are made by experimental
participants
to
influence
a
distant biological
target system with
a comparison between
experimental
conditions and non-influence or
control conditions.
Target
systems
for
these
experiments
have
included
micro-organisms,
plants,
' animals, and human physiology or motor activity (Schlitz, 1983, 1994).
Based on this database, there
is compelling evidence
to support the
hypothesis that people are able to use intentionality to bring about changes in
distant target systems under conditions that preclude conventional sensory or
motor exchange.
At the
least, the findings are intriguing and worthy of
further research;
at the best, the data have profound
scientific,
social, and
philosophical implications.
One promising
area
of research
involves
the influence
of human
autonomic nervous system activity by a distant person.
Braud and Schlitz
(1992) reported
statistically
significant
differences
across
a
series
of
experiments in which periods of intentionality to affect the physiology of a
distant person were interspersed with counter-balanced control periods.
This
research led to the development of a protocol designed to measure the degree
to which people are able to unconsciously detect someone observing them
from a distance.
Many people have had the experience of being stared at from a distance,
only to turn around and discover a pair of eyes gazing upon them.
Indeed,
survey data support the widespread distribution of these experiences. As early
as 1913, J.E. Coover reported that 68-86% of respondents in California had this
type of experience on
at least one occasion.
A survey of the Australian
population reported that 74% of the respondents had such an experience
(Williams 1983), 85% within a student population at Washington University
in
St. Louis, (Thalbourne and Evans, 1992) 94% of those surveyed in San
Antonio, Texas
(Braud,
Shafer, and Andrews
1990), and 80%
of
those
informally surveyed in Europe and America (Sheldrake 1994).
Several attempts have been made
to explore
these claims within
a
laboratory setting. A review of this literature was reported by Braud, et al.
(1990), who identified four studies.
The first was conducted by E.B. Titchener,
a Cornell University psychologist during the late 1800's.
While a brief article
on the work reported negative results, he did not provide details of his study.
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In a slightly later study, Coover (1913) conducted a study on remote staring m
his initial work as the Thomas Welton Stanford Psychical Research Fellow m
the Psychology Department of Stanford University.
Each of 10 subjects made
100 guesses as to whether or not they were being stared at by an experimenter
seated behind them
in
the same room.
A random schedule
of remote
observation (RO) and non-observation periods was determined by the rolling
of a die. Each observation period was of a 15-20 second duration over a several
hour series of sittings spanning a period of weeks.
Having obtained chance
results, Coover interpreted his findings as support for the belief that staring
detection was empirically groundless.
,
A second study was carried out in 1959 by J.J. Poortman (1959) of Leyden
University in the Netherlands.
In this study, the two people were separated in
two rooms but
still within sensory range.
The experiment spanned a 13-
month period.
The remote /non-remote observation intervals were of 2-5
minute duration based on a random sequence determined by card shuffling.
This resulted in a 59.55% accuracy rate (p=.04 1-t).
A better controlled experiment than the previous two was reported by-
Donald Peterson (1978), a graduate student at the University of Edinburgh.
Following two
informal
pilot
studies,
the
investigator made
use
ot
procedure in which the subjects were positioned in separate, adjacent close
cubicles. One-way mirrors and special lighting provided visual perception in
one
direction
and
button
pushes were
used
to
measure
the
subject s
perception of RO/non-RO periods.
In 36 experimental sessions, each of six
minute duration, there was a significant effect (p=.012, 2-t).
This experimental design was further improved by Linda Williams
(1983), a student in the Psychology Department of the Umversity of Adelaide
(South Australia).
Subjects were positioned in rooms at a 60 foot distance
were monitored
via
a
closed-circuit video camera /monitor arrangement.
Through the use of carefully controlled randomization procedures, the author
reported significant RO detection guesses (p=.04, 1-t).
Based on the four experimental studies, Braud, et al (1990) concluded
that there
is suggestive evidence to support the hypothesis that people can
consciously discriminate periods of RO from non-RO under conditions that
controlled for subtle sensory cues.
The effect size m these studies was not
particularly strong, however.
This, according to Braud and his colleagues, was
due to the^fact that "the testing method used in these studies was not the m
appropriate one"
(p.
17).
In particular, the authors argued that the use of
coSs guessing might be
less relevant to everyday
life experiences, m
which RO detection takes
the form of bodily sensations and spontaneou
behavioral changes.
For example, people frequently report the prickling
neck hairs or the tingling of the skin.
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With these
considerations
in mind, Braud,
et
al (1990) designed an
experimental procedure based on the hypothesis that remote observation may
be detected at the level of sympathetic autonomic nervous system activity.
In
a series of three experiments (Braud, Shafer, and Andrews 1990, 1992), a person
stared at a distant subject through the use of a closed-circuit television system
while
the autonomic nervous
system
activity
of
the
subject was
being
monitored via chart recorder and computer.
The experimental design, like
previous studies involving remote mental influences on human physiology
(e.g., Braud and Schlitz 1989, 1992; Schlitz and Braud, 1986) allowed a within-
subjects evaluation of RO versus non-RO (control) periods. The researchers
reported that the electrodermal properties of receivers correlated significantly
with
the
intense
attention
of the
isolated and remote experimenter
(i.e.,
P~0.009, effect size per session=0.59).
Results were bi-directional, depending on
the attitude of the Observer.
°
In addition to the main effects, Braud et
al (1992) reported a positive
correlational trend between social avoidance and the degree of change in the
subjects electrodermal
activity.
This was measured by administering the
Social Avoidance and Distress (SAD) scale (see below).
Increasing degrees of
social avoidance /distress /anxiety were also found to positively correlate with
introversion.
The present experiments were designed as conceptual replications of the
work by Braud, Shafer, and Andrews.
Further, we extended previous studies
of remote influence on autonomic nervous system
activity by Braud and
Schlitz (1989, 1992).
Two formal predictions were made.
First, we anticipated
a significant difference in the mean rate of autonomic activity in experimental
compared with control conditions across subjects.
Second, we predicted the
direction of the
effect by instructing the remote Observers
to
activate the
distant person.
As such, we predicted an increase
in autonomic
activity
during remote observation as compared with control conditions.
In addition
to the primary hypotheses, we anticipated
a
significant
correlation between social avoidance apd the remote observation effect. On an
exploratory basis, we also examined the social relationship between Remote
Observers and Observees; this included the interaction of gender and cross-
gender pairs.
METHODS
Apparatus
The equipment utilized in this research included silver/silver chloride
palmar electrodes, a skin-conductance amplifier, an analog-to digital converter
interfaced with an IBM microcomputer, a SUN computer with modem, and a
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