1st Edition
Dark Cognition Evidence for Psi and its Implications for Consciousness
*Winner of the Parapsychological Association Book Award 2021*
Outlining the scientific evidence behind psi research, Dark Cognition expertly reveals that such anomalous phenomena clearly exist, highlighting that the prevailing view of consciousness, purely as a phenomenon of the brain, fails to account for the empirical findings.
David Vernon provides essential coverage of information and evidence for a variety of anomalous psi phenomena, calling for a paradigm shift in how we view consciousness: from seeing it as something solely reliant on the brain to something that is enigmatic, fundamental and all pervasive. The book examines the nature of psi research showing that, despite claims to the contrary, it is clearly a scientific endeavour. It explores evidence from telepathy and scopaesthesia, clairvoyance and remote viewing, precognition, psychokinesis, fields of consciousness, energy healing, out of body experiences, near-death experiences and post death phenomena, showing that not only do these phenomena exist, but that they have significant implications for our understanding of consciousness.
Featuring discussion on scientific research methods, reflections on the fields of dark cognition and end-of-chapter questions that encourage critical thinking, this book is an essential text for those interested in parapsychology, consciousness and cognitive psychology.
1. Introduction
2. Psi as science
3. Telepathy and scopaesthesia
4. Clairvoyance and remote viewing
5. Precognition
6. Psychokinesis
7. Fields of consciousness
8. Energy healing
9. Out of body experiences
10. Near death experiences
11. Post death phenomena
12. Implications for consciousness
Biography
David Vernon is Senior Lecturer in Psychology at Canterbury Christ Church University. His research interests include a wide range of anomalous phenomena and the implications they have for models/theories of consciousness. His research also encompasses techniques used to enhance human performance and creative problem solving.
"David Vernon’s book Dark Cognition is an impressive overview of research in parapsychology. There could be no better guide to the basic issues in this field and the scientific literature on these subjects. Not only does Vernon masterfully summarise and discuss what is known, but just as importantly, points out what is not known. The questions at the end of each chapter should lead to many thoughtful discussions. I strongly recommend this book."— Rupert Sheldrake, PhD, biologist and author of The Science Delusion.
"Dark Cognition is an accurate and comprehensive overview of the scientific evidence, scholarly debates, and implications of psychic phenomena. Anyone interested in this perennially fascinating and controversial topic will benefit by studying David Vernon's book."— Dean Radin, PhD, Chief Scientist, Institute of Noetic Sciences.
"Dark Cognition brings together some of the main research areas within the field of parapsychology. The book covers an interesting range of topics, addressing many issues with a seriousness and clarity that makes them accessible to the non-specialist. David Vernon makes a good job of showing how important these findings are for any theory of consciousness." —Renaud Evrard, Assistant Professor of Psychology, University of Lorraine and President of the Parapsychological Association.
"As a serious, thorough and fair-minded presentation of psi, Dark Cognition should prove a formidable resource in persuading a new generation of open-minded students to reject the old paradigm and adopt a new one." — Michael Prescott, reviewed in Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, 2021, 86(2)
