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Yes, it's a skill that certain individuals seem to have a knack for but it's also sad that they exploit people and for the most part it's a business arrangement, you pay me to tell you what you don't have the ability to understand for yourself. The ones that I find the most offensive are the people who are pretending that they are in contact with a loved one who has passed away. I've seen television documentaries about people who do this for a living and it's disgusting because they're preying on the vulnerabilities of individuals who are a little gullible and they're feeling pain, guilt, and other emotions regarding the loss of someone they love.
I only gave it a cursory glance because I had a fairly good idea of what it would say (no I don't think I'm psychic ). It seems fairly accurate in all but one regard. That is that most "psychics" I have known do not know exactly what it is they are doing or how they are doing it. It is not a premeditated act studied and executed for monetary gain. Most psychics believe they are genuinely helping others and that their information is coming from an outside source. The fact that it is coming from their own natural ability to perceive the imperceptible clues that people give in conversation generally eludes them. For these reasons, I don't see them as deliberately exploiting people or preying on vulnerable people. Undoubtedly there are probably a few out there that have worked out the truth and are dishonest about it, but I don't think that it is generally the case.
The ones on TV are another story altogether, they are first and foremost entertainers and (I think) are absolutely cognisant of what they are doing, I don't like them or what they do.
I like the last line. "Or, better yet, blame your subjects by suggesting they need to try harder."
The entertainment potential of cold-reading and "psychic powers" is lost when these psychics take advantage of the bereaved, the hurt, and the lost. They fill their heads with meaningless praise in order to make a buck. Gah. I enjoyed how the author used the Barnum Effect for establishing a connection with the hapless subject.
well look at that one guy, John Edwards or what was his name?? he had(has) a TV show....He was constantly talking to dead loved ones....I thought how sad is that? These people are hurting so bad that they'll come to those shows and hope for a word or a sentence or a vibe from some stranger and here he is getting rich in the proces..how sick!!!
I just finished (about a week ago) a research report on astrology. It included a lot of research on the Barnem Effect and other studies that prove conclusively that these things have no merit and why it is that people still believe in superstition in the face of hard evidence. It really was very interesting and even more so to me because I used to be into all of that. That is why I know that most of the people out there doing it really believe that they have a gift, they are not evil people preying on others.
An interesting article titled "Superstition and Belief as Inevitable By-Products of an Adaptive Learning Strategy" (Beck & Forstmeier, 2007) that I read went into some detail about how these beliefs evolved through associative learning and how people will fit things into their existing world view rather than changing their world view. If the information does not fit into the world view in any conceivable way they will stretch the world view to fit it, keeping the basic principles in tact or failing that will reject the new information as false (regardless of evidence) and cling to the existing world view. It is well worth a read if you have access to an academic data base and would give some interesting insight into the behaviour and beliefs of some people posting in the R&P forum, I can't link to the whole article because of copyright but here is a link to the abstract...
Hello to the always charming Ms. Ice. Good on yah, drlin!
There was a Tarot Card & psychic reader who operated out of her own pleasant little home across the street from my father. She had an abrupt heart attack a few months ago. I'm just curious why she didn't "see it coming" and do something to at least be closer to the hospital when it happened.
Why? Because it killed her. Oh dang!
These types also seem to be often near-destitute, despite having apparent access to all the winning Lotto numbers, which horse is going to win this afternoon's races, and which stocks are on the rise. (PS: buy gold! I'm psychic!)
I just want to correct part of my previous post, there is a link to the full article on the abstract that I did not notice before, so it is actually available. Here it is and as I said, well worth a read.
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). It seems fairly accurate in all but one regard. That is that most "psychics" I have known do not know exactly what it is they are doing or how they are doing it. It is not a premeditated act studied and executed for monetary gain. Most psychics believe they are genuinely helping others and that their information is coming from an outside source. The fact that it is coming from their own natural ability to perceive the imperceptible clues that people give in conversation generally eludes them. For these reasons, I don't see them as deliberately exploiting people or preying on vulnerable people. Undoubtedly there are probably a few out there that have worked out the truth and are dishonest about it, but I don't think that it is generally the case. 
