Rauf, Betul; Perach, Rotem; Madrid-Valero, Juan J.; Denis, Dan; Sharpless, Brian A.; Farron, Hope; French, Christopher C. and Gregory, Alice M.. 2023. Associations between sleep variables and ostensibly paranormal experiences and paranormal beliefs: A scoping review. British Journal of Psychology, 114(4), pp. 797-818. ISSN 0007-1269 [Article]

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Abstract or Description

Night-time is a period of great significance for many people who report paranormal experiences. However, there is limited understanding of the associations between sleep variables and seemingly paranormal experiences and/or beliefs. The aim of this review is to improve our understanding of these associations while unifying a currently fragmented literature-base into a structured, practical review. In this pre-registered scoping review, we searched for relevant studies in MEDLINE (PubMed), PsycINFO (EBSCO), Web of Science and EMBASE using terms related to sleep and ostensibly paranormal experiences and beliefs. Forty-four studies met all inclusion criteria. All were cross-sectional and most investigated sleep paralysis and/or lucid dreaming in relation to ostensibly paranormal experiences and paranormal beliefs. Overall, there were positive associations between many sleep variables (including sleep paralysis, lucid dreams, nightmares, and hypnagogic hallucinations) and ostensibly paranormal experiences and paranormal beliefs (including those of ghosts, spirits, and near-death experiences). The findings of this review have potential clinical implications such as reducing misdiagnosis and treatment development and provide foundations for further research. Our findings also highlight the importance of understanding why so many people report ‘things that go bump in the night’.

Item Type:	Article
Identification Number (DOI):	https://doi.org/10.1111/bjop.12655
Additional Information:	This work was funded by a WA Sceptics grant to AMG to support the work of BR.
Data Access Statement:	All the data presented in the review are available in academic publications or from the authors of those papers.
Keywords:	anomalous, lucid dreaming, parasomnias, sleep disturbance, sleep paralysis, supernatural
Departments, Centres and Research Units:	Psychology
Dates:	Date Event 29 March 2023 Accepted 18 April 2023 Published Online November 2023 Published
Item ID:	33339
Date Deposited:	12 Apr 2023 13:22
Last Modified:	01 Nov 2023 10:39
Peer Reviewed:	Yes, this version has been peer-reviewed.
URI:	https://research.gold.ac.uk/id/eprint/33339

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