First Sight: ESP and Parapsychology in Everyday Life

by James C. Carpenter

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Author: James C. Carpenter

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers

Paperback:
ISBN 10: 1442213914
ISBN 13: 978-1442213913

Often seen as supernatural, unpredictable, illusory and possibly dangerous, ESP, telepathy, clairvoyance and other parapsychological activities are actually happening all the time and help us make sense of everyday experiences. First Sight provides a new way of understanding such experiences and describes a way of thinking about the unconscious mind that makes it clear that these abilities are not rare and anomalous, but instead are used by all of us all the time, unconsciously and efficiently.

Drawing upon a broad array of studies in contemporary psychology, the author integrates a new model for understanding these unusual abilities with the best research in psychology on problems as diverse as memory, perception, personality, creativity and fear. In doing so, he illustrates how the field of parapsychology, which, historically, has been riddled with confusion, skepticism and false claims, can move from the edges of science to its center, where it will offer fascinating new knowledge about unmapped aspects of our nature. The author demonstrates that the new model accounts for accumulated findings very well, and explains previous mysteries, resolves apparent contradictions, and offers clear directions for further study. First Sight also ventures beyond the laboratory to explain such things as why apparent paranormal experiences are so rare, why they need not be feared, and how they can be more intentionally accessed. Further study of this theory is likely to lead to a “technology” of parapsychological processes while drastically revising our conception of the science of the mind toward a new science more humane and more replete with possibility than we have imagined in the past.

Review

"In First Sight, Dr. James Carpenter shows that there is nothing 'para' about paranormal abilities; they are a normal, natural, and vital part of the human endowment on which we continually rely. In this important book, Carpenter has given us a new vision of what it means to be human. Highly recommended." (Larry Dossey, M.D., author, Reinventing Medicine and The Power Of Premonitions)

“First Sight: ESP and Parapsychology in Everyday Life is written from James Carpenter’s unique dual perspective as both a respected research scientist and a practicing psychotherapist. It is an exciting and elegantly written book that simultaneously makes a major theoretical contribution to the science of psychic functioning while providing an accurate, non-technical overview of the field accessible to the interested general reader.” (Daryl J. Bem, professor emeritus of psychology, Cornell University)

“Beyond the sixth sense and before second sight there simmers a more fundamental First Sight. In this radical reframing of the meaning and mechanisms of psychic phenomena, James Carpenter proposes that where the edges of mind and matter meet all distinctions between inner and outer, subjectivity and objectivity, disappear. First Sight reigns in this strange place where everyday reality blurs, and it is here where extrasensory perception and other psychic effects suddenly make a good deal of sense. A refreshingly novel approach to understanding psychic phenomena.” (Dean Radin, Ph.D., Senior Scientist, Institute of Noetic Sciences)

"Psychic abilities like ESP are usually treated as great mysteries, either to be desperately and illogically explained away since they don't fit into our predominant materialistic world view, or embraced uncritically as a prop for unexamined personal belief systems. While we still don't have (and perhaps won't ever have) a simple, physicalistic explanation for psychic abilities, we have a lot of psychological data on what effects it and how it fits in with the psychology of our minds. This data has been pretty scattered and unconnected, though, so Carpenter's book is a brilliant integration of what we know. I'm supposed to be an expert on the subject, but I know this book is going to take me in whole new directions!" (Charles T. Tart, professor emeritus of psychology, University of California, Davis)

This book is an extremely stimulating alternative to current models of explanation for paranormal phenomena represent, and the book also offers a wide-ranging. . .overview of selected fields of experimental parapsychological research of the last half century. This alone makes it already a worthwhile purchase that should be in every bookcase a parapsychological interested reader. (Zeitschrift für Anomalistik)

First Sight: ESP and Parapsychology in Daily Life makes an enormous contribution to parapsychology—and an even greater contribution to psychology. It belongs in every medical and psychology library. I would love to use this book as a text in a graduate psychology course. Research ideas and hypotheses jump from the pages. . . . Carpenter’s First Sight is an intellectual tour de force that deserves a place in the pantheon of groundbreaking scientific works. (Explore: The Journal of Science and Healing)

Scientifically minded readers will quickly gravitate to First Sight. Carpenter's thorough and technical analysis on a paradoxical topic sheds refreshing enlightenment not only in the field of parapsychology, but also a clearer understanding of the psychic experience in our daily lives. (San Francisco Book Review)

First Sight surely has a place in the future of parapsychology. . . .[I]t is always impressive, and often intriguing, putting it in a league of its own, but hinting at the possibility that only the more serious and able-bodied academics will take it on. First Sight is handsomely presented; the editing and proof-reading is exceptional, leaving a lot to be desired in other textbooks of the same calibre. It is a top-quality book in more ways than one, and a must for any serious parapsychologist. (Australian Journal of Parapsychology)

About the Author

James C. Carpenter is a board-certified clinical psychologist and parapsychologist and has been in private practice for more than 30 years. He is currently Clinical Associate Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of North Carolina, and Research Associate at the Rhine Research Center, where he has also served on the board, including two terms as president. Dr. Carpenter has published numerous research articles, book chapters and professional articles in both parapsychology and clinical psychology and has edited the Bulletin of the American Academy of Clinical Psychology. He has lectured in various public venues on topics related to psychotherapy and parapsychology. He served two terms on the Board of Directors of the American Academy of Clinical Psychology and has also served on the Board of Directors of the Parapsychology Association. In addition, he is a clinical consultant for the Rhine Center, and provides pro bono services for persons who are troubled by ostensive paranormal experiences.
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