Exploring Cognitive Styles: How Psi Researchers and Skeptics Think Alike

A recent study published in Frontiers in Psychology offers intriguing insights into the cognitive styles of psi researchers compared to skeptics and lay believers in the dynamic field of parapsychology. The study compares the thinking styles of academic researchers who study these phenomena, skeptics who doubt them, and ordinary people who either believe in or doubt such phenomena. Study Objectives The primary goal of the study, conducted by researchers at the Division of Perceptual Studies, Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia School of Medicine, was to compare cognitive styles, specifically actively open-minded thinking (AOT) and the need for closure (NFC), among four distinct groups: academic psi researchers, lay psi believers, academic skeptics, and lay skeptics. Understanding these cognitive patterns provides a deeper look into how different groups approach the concept of psi phenomena. Methodology To achieve its objectives, the study involved 144 participants divided into four target groups. Each participant completed self-report questionnaires designed to measure their levels of AOT and NFC, along with their beliefs in psi phenomena.…

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