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Executive Functioning: Assessing the Role of Perceived Paranormal Ability.
Kenneth Graham Drinkwater1, Neil Dagnall1, Andrew Denovan2
1Department of Psychology, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, United Kingdom.
Frontiers in Psychology
|January 10, 2022
Summary
Individuals who believe they have paranormal abilities report more executive function disruptions. This perception of ability, not necessarily the intensity of belief, impacts self-assessed cognitive function.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Psychology
- Parapsychology
Background:
- Executive functions are crucial for cognitive control.
- Self-reported paranormal ability is linked to cognitive styles.
- Previous research suggests a connection between cognitive-perceptual factors and paranormal beliefs.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between self-reported paranormal ability and executive function.
- To compare executive function scores across different levels of claimed paranormal ability.
Main Methods:
- A sample of 499 adults completed online questionnaires.
- Participants were categorized into three groups: practitioners, self-professed ability, and no ability.
- Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to analyze the data.
Main Results:
- Paranormal belief significantly increased with self-professed ability level.
- Significant differences in executive functioning were found between the no ability group and the other two groups.
- No significant differences were observed in Cognitive Reappraisal scores.
Conclusions:
- Perception of paranormal ability influences subjective appraisal of executive functions.
- Awareness of executive functioning disruptions is heightened by the mere perception of paranormal ability.
- The intensity of paranormal conviction did not consistently differentiate between practitioners and self-professed ability groups.
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