The coverage of parapsychology in introductory psychology textbooks: 1990-2002

Journal of Parapsychology, The, Spring, 2003 by James McClenon, Miguel Roig, Matthew D. Smith, Gillian Ferrier

ANALYSIS STRATEGY

The 1990-1999 review was based on 52 full-length introductory psychology textbooks sent as review copies to Roig, Smith, Ferrier, or their colleagues in their respective psychology departments. For the second review, McClenon collected 57 texts based on Koenig and Griggs's (2002) 58-book compendium of introductory texts available for the 2002 academic year. Six books on this list were "out of print" during the summer of 2002 but five new editions of introductory texts were available. As a result, the fall 2002 sample consisted of 57 introductory psychology textbooks.

Content analysis of the 1990s and 2002 samples followed a procedure similar to that used by Roig et al. (1991) for their 1980s sample. We searched the index of each text for the terms ESP, extrasensory perception, paranormal, parapsychology, psychic, and psychical research to locate relevant page numbers. Our classification criteria for coverage of parapsychology were somewhat less inclusive than those used by Roigetal. (1991). We classified texts as providing coverage of parapsychology if there was some substantive discussion of this subject in any given chapter. If, on the other hand, there was a mere mention of the field or of an ostensible paranormal process (e.g., telepathy) in a context other than a discussion of the field of parapsychology or other parapsychological phenomena, then we classified such texts as not providing coverage. We excluded other topics often classified under the paranormal, such as astrology and near-death experiences.

In each case, we recorded the approximate number of pages discussing the subject, the chapter in which it appeared, and the references used in the discussion. Following Roig et al. (1991), we also estimated the quality of coverage by noting the types of issues discussed (e.g., use of terminology, research areas covered, and criticisms of parapsychological research).

RESULTS: EXTENT AND LOCATION OF COVERAGE

Roig et al. (1991) reported that 67% of the 1980s texts mentioned ESP/parapsychology. During the 1990s, 54% of the texts, and in 2002, 58% of the texts, discussed ESP/parapsychology. These percentages (Table 1) can be compared with the 50% of texts Roig et al. found in Lamal's (1989) sample covering this topic.

Various processes may have contributed to the apparent drop in the coverage given to parapsychology. One variable may be the less inclusive criteria for what constituted coverage of parapsychology used in the 1990s and 2002 analyses. For example, one text (Eysenck, 1998) used the term parapsychology to refer to a short section that actually described a mathematical stunt that magicians sometimes use to appear telepathic. Using the revised standard, we did not consider this discussion as constituting coverage of parapsychology. Indeed, Roig et al. (1991) coded two texts (i.e., Gazzaniga, 1980; Krech, Crutchfield, Livson, Wilson, & Parducci, 1982) as providing coverage, even though they made only a passing reference to parapsychological phenomena. In addition, the 1980s review included one brief version (Goon, 1985) of a full-length text and one other earlier version of a full-length textbook (Baron, Byrne, & Kantowitz, 1980). When we adjusted Roig et al.'s (1991) sample to reflect the revised criteria used in the present study, the previously reported 67% of coverage dropped to 63%. Therefore, the slightly different criteria do not fully account for the differences in coverage over the years.