Approved For Release 2003/09/10 : CIA-RDP96-00792R000700890001-3 ° 176 The Journal of Parapsychology of parapsychology, some may see little value in monitoring publi- cations and research in these countries, perhaps because they doubt that the material produced by such researchers would be of suffi- cient quality to make an important contribution to the field (Alva- rado, 1989a). This lack of atten parapsychology presenta serious prgblem for English-speaking parapsychologists, who o&en receive chological conferences in e of thse countries where there are groups whose commitment dmic parapsychology is doubtful g their invitations is to legitim- chology in these communities of specific groups who idenff David Hess (1990) has pointg ian parapsychology: A) facilitate evaluation of the goals hemselves as parapsychologists. the following concerning Brazil- 110) Although it is te that such groups bxist, it is important to men- and researchers who for many years havefarried out important ork—work that deserves recognition everfthough the language if rrier has hindered its re- ception in theQinternational parapsychBlogical arena. Efforts to bridge this lacifof attention and to increage cooperation with Ibero- ing countriesfto better understand culturalWafferences and national elirch practice, but also help the researchers in the Ibero- American w@ld to improve the quality of their work. Therefore, I have selected the following countries for a general survey of the re- search that has been conducted in parts of Ibero-America: Argen- tina, Brazil, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Spain. Spain There has never been a serious attempt to organize the history of psychical research in Spain, and information is scarce on early attempts to study psychic phenomena seriously. It was not until the Parapsychology in the Ibero-American World 177 created under the presidency of the Count of Gimeno, member of the Royal Academy of Sciences and Medicine. The Society pub- lished a journal called Revista de Estudios Metapstquicos (Fernandez Briones, 1981b). The research orientation of the Society was to study spontaneous cases and psychics, such as the famous Joaquin Argamasilla (expert in dermo-optical perception) whose abilities Houdini attempted to expose (Houdini, 1924). Most of the work of this society, however, was lost after the Spanish Civil War during a period of isolation in which only a few researchers kept the torch burning. Familiar names from this period are Sanchez Herrero, the Marquiz of Santa Clara, J. Palmés, and M. Otero y Acevedo, researchers whose independent efforts contrib- uted to a new generation of investigators such as Ramos Perera Mo- lina, Francisco Gavilan Fontanet, and Luis Fernandez Briones. This latter group, at the beginning of the 1970s, founded the first well- organized society to investigate psychic phenomena in Spain. It was called the Sociedad Espafiola de Parapsicologia (Fernandez Briones, 1981b). From its inception, this Society, under the direction of Ra- mos Perera Molina, had as its main goal to promote the scientific study of parapsychology. To achieve this goal, the Society combined the efforts of experts in experimental design, illusionism, psychol- ogy, medicine, and other fields of science and in 1976 established a research center (De Vicente, 1983). To carry out its research projects, the Society has been divided into several research committees that specialize in different areas embracing field studies as well as experimental projects. Among these committees are those concerned with the development of the- oretical models to enhance ESP, Kirlian photography, experimental research, OBEs, and the medical aspects of psi. More recently, a new committee was established? to investigate anomalous phenom- ena along the lines of the Society for Scientific Exploration. Members of the Society have carried out original research pro- jects in experimental parapsychology as well as research on sponta- neous cases. They have also critically evaluated miracle claims made by the Catholic church in Spain, such as the liquefaction of the blood of Saint Pantaleén (Jordan Pena, 1983). One of the most interesting investigations has been conducted by members of the research committee headed by Francisco Gavilan Fontanet (1976). In this study, the committee investigated identical 2 The goal of the committee is to investigate UFOs, cryptozoology, religious ap- 1920s that the Sociedad Espafiola de AjsprdéivedVFusepMaliae@e 2003/09/10 : CIA-RDP96-00792ReNCREEBSDRUTSSE™ scientifically.