An Introduction to Parapsychology [Paperback]

Harvey J. Irwin (Author), Caroline A. Watt (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 21, 2007 | ISBN-10: 0786430591 | ISBN-13: 978-0786430598 | Edition: 5th

This is a thoroughly updated and revised edition of our highly acclaimed university textbook on the science of parapsychology. The objective of this book is to provide an introductory survey of parapsychologists' efforts to explore the authenticity and bases of anomalous, apparently paranormal phenomena. It outlines the origins of parapsychological research and critically reviews investigations of extrasensory perception, psychokinesis, poltergeist phenomena, near-death and out-of-body experiences, and the evaluation of parapsychology as a scientific enterprise.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Irwin (psychology, Univ. of New England in Australia) wrote this book as a textbook, and it shows. Each chapter ends with a list of terms and study questions, and though coverage is similar to many other surveys in the field, the extremely academic style makes it much less readable. Further, the bibliography consists largely of articles in periodicals, many dating from before 1980 and probably unavailable except in universities with a parapsychology department of long years' standing. Surprisingly, many notables are not listed in the Index of Names, including James, Hyslop, Ducasse, Piper, Bro, Garrett, and Cayce. All in all, not of value to public libraries in this country.
- Jeanne Bagby, formerly with Tucson P.L.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

"Excellent...comprehensive...well written...high quality...recommended for public, college and university libraries." --Choice

"Highly recommended...give[s] an intelligent overview…clear...organization is excellent." --The Journal of Parapsychology

"Fills the gap because it is up to date, formally written, and wide in scope...a particularly useful resource for students and teachers alike...as a textbook, Irwin's book is the best of its kind." --Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: McFarland; 5th edition (February 21, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786430591
• ISBN-13: 978-0786430598
• Product Dimensions: 10 x 6.9 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #324,300 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fairly objective overview of the subject..., March 29, 2006

By 

Payman Saghafi - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Introduction to Parapsychology, Fourth Edition (Paperback)

This book is written with an academic, professional and reasonably impartial tone. The book doesn't try to convince you that psychic phenomenon are genuine. If there is an underlying message from the author of this book, it is that many parapsychologists are HONEST scientists, they take their work very seriously, and that parapsychology is not always synonymous with pseudoscience.

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A perfect guide, August 13, 2008

By 

Armand S. Pelosi "Inst. Parspsy. Romano" (Rome, Italy) - See all my reviews

This review is from: An Introduction to Parapsychology (Paperback)

The author is totally unbiased.
He explains the parapsychology cosmos from various angles including science, religion, quantum physics and the occult.
I found this book to be INDISPENSABLE.
All those who are interested in parapsychology SHOULD buy this book.
It is almost perfect.
One of the very best books published in the last ten years.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Parapsychology review, February 15, 2009

By 

Nancy Passage (Caddo, OK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: An Introduction to Parapsychology (Paperback)

This book was pretty middle of the road. It gave a lot of old history about what some unknown scientists did to test theories in the 70s-80s that was pretty boring and dry. It had some good information in it also, but for the most part I could only give it a FAIR score of 3 stars. N. Passage