A well-researched, well-balanced survey of academic research on anomalous experiences that is destined to become a basic resource for students and researchers in this emerging field. Max Velmans, Professor, Department of Psychology, Goldsmiths, University of London The fascination of psychology is not only in understanding the complexities of normal and abnormal aspects of human nature, but even more so in exploring all those phenomena that are anomalous. It is a joy to read this second edition of Cardeña, Lynn, and Krippner s brilliant compilation of research and theories focused on the side of human nature that does seem to challenge some current tenets of biology and physics. Varieties of Anomalous Experience provides an authoritative, international overview of an area that, besides its intrinsic interest for the clinician, researcher, and layperson, has vast implications for our fuller understanding of human nature. --Phillip Zimbardo, PhD, Professor Emeritus, Stanford University, and Past President of the American Psychological Association This book brings home the importance of understanding human anomalous experience as a developmental phenomenon that goes beyond a potential form of mental illness. As psychologists, if we truly wish to understand the human experience, we need to explore the causes, effects, and cultural legacies of AEs. The editors of this book have taken the first steps to pull this information together for us using the methods that honor the outer truth of scientific evidence but do not disrespect the inner phenomenological truth of individual anomalous experience. --PsycCRITIQUES
About the Author
Etzel Cardeña, PhD, holds the endowned Thorsen Professorship in Psychology at Lund University, Sweden, where he directs the Center for Research on Consciousness and Anomalous Psychology. He has published more than 250 books, articles, and chapters on anomalous experiences, hypnosis, dissociation, and acute reactions to trauma, and in 2011 he coeditied the two-volume Altering Consciousness: Multidisciplinary Perspectives. He was elected president of three different professional organizations and Fellow of APA and the Association for Psychological Science, among others. His empirical, theoretical, clinical, and pedagogical contributions have received multiple awards from the University of Texas and various professional organization. He has also worked in México, the United States, and Sweden as a theater director, actor, and playwright. Steven Jay Lynn, PhD, is Distinguished Professor of Psychology and the director of the Psychological Clinic at the State University of New York at Binghamton. He is a licensed psychologist and a diplomate in both clinical and forensic psychology. Dr. Lynn is a fellow of many professional organizations, and he has received major awards from APA as well as the Chancellor's Award of the State University of NewYork for Scholarship and Creative Activities. Dr. Lynn is a past president of APA Division 30 (Psychological Hypnosis), the founding editor of Psychology of Consciousness: Theory, Research, and Practice, and serves on 11 editorial boards, including the Journal of Abnormal Psychology. He has written or edited 20 books and published more than 290 book chapters and articles. His research has been funded by the National Institute of Mental Health and has been featured in many media venues, including the New York Times and popular magazines, as well as television programs including ABC's 20/20, the CBS Morning Show, Eye to Eye, the Discovery Channel, and an award-winning film documentary, Capturing the Friedmans. Stanley Krippner, PhD, is a professor of psychology at Saybrook University. He was the 2002 recipient of APA's Award for Distinguished Contributions to the Development of International Psychology. He is a fellow of four APA divisions and past president of two. He has received the Ashley Montagu Peace Award and lifetime achievement awards from the International Association for the Study of Dreams and the Parapsychological Association.