The Streetlight Effect and paranormal research
Not to be confused with Street Light Interference (SLI), the Streetlight Effect is a cognitive bias where people tend to look for answers in the easiest of places, meaning the results are not always accurate. Let's look at how this affects the way we conduct paranormal research
A cognitive bias is one of the annoying human traits we all have that affects us on a daily basis. It is relevant in so many ways to the way we conduct paranormal research. By being aware of these bias', we actually become better investigators and researchers, which is why I like to explore them in this blog.
What is cognitive bias?
A cognitive bias is an error in the way that we think. It means we are not necessarily thinking with a 'clear mind'. Our experiences, our beliefs, and our intentions all influence the way we think, the way we make decisions, and the way we interpret our surroundings. Just the fact that we believe in the paranormal makes us bias. It means we are more prone to 'self-fulfilling prophecy' where our brain is likely to interpret certain things to be paranormal when they are not. We go in looking for the paranormal and our 'brain' makes us find it even if it is not really there. At the other end, a full sceptic is also biased and will tend to look for a rational explanation, discounting any sort of ambiguous event without even looking into the possibility it could be something we don't quite understand. No one is immune, however by applying critical thinking and taking a moment to really think things through instead of reacting or responding rashly can make a huge difference.
Psychology itself is full of 'effects'. They all demonstrate the different ways we are influenced by our brains. Whether we see things that aren't there, hear things that aren't there, misinterpret information right through to how we behave, can all be tied back to one of these 'effects'. While you may think they seem irrelevant, they can be beneficial tools when it comes to investigating the paranormal. While a lot of people complain about electronic equipment not being reliable during an investigation, the same thing could be said about our brains. Knowledge is power and just knowing about these things makes us more aware and in turn, makes us better paranormal investigators. An experience could so much more significant when we can in fact rule out all the little things that trick us into thinking something is happening and we can truly start asking questions.
To make us even more unreliable, there are actually 188 different cognitive biases with new ones popping up all the time. You can read more about this in my article Cognitive Bias and the Paranormal
Image Source: Sketchplanations
Streetlight Effect
The Streetlight Effect is also known as the drunkard search principle. It plays on a story of a drunk man who has dropped his keys in a carpark. He looks for the keys at a distance away from the carpark underneath the street light because it is easier to see. When he was asked why he was there, the answer was "It is easier to see in the light". So you kind of get the gist. As humans, we want to save time, we are busy or maybe we are even impatient. We have supercomputers now at our fingertips in the form of a smartphone and we can literally now just ask an AI program to answer any question we have. Super easy. The problem is, how reliable is this?
Big companies often refer to this when it comes to data collection. As an example, people now tend to gather information through online surveys that are not necessarily under controlled conditions, meaning that the dataset they receive could be compromised. It is just easier for them to post a link or call out rather than run dedicated focus groups. While it may get results and even a higher response rate, is the data as valuable than if the harder road of using focus groups or hitting the ground to go out and talk to people would?
Streetlight Effect and Paranormal Research
Collecting data is a really important part of paranormal research if that is what your aim is. Equipment is now purpose built that it can do several things as once, hence the easier way. Our efforts are often unconsciously focused on the easiest way to do this. Using the usual pieces of equipment and hitting the rooms said to have the most activity. The techniques used are often those seen on TV, and it is all melded together by what we think a paranormal investigation should be based on what a lot of what other people are doing. We copy this because it is easy. We copy it and then adapt it but are we inventing or reinventing? Just like the man searching for his keys, where it is easier for him to see (in the light), we might be overlooking where answers could potentially lie simply because it is harder or more work for us to look there. Maybe it takes too long to set up data loggers or locked off cameras so we use a hand device that measures it all and film on a POV camera instead. While there is nothing wrong with this approach, but could we get better data and information by putting the work in? Maybe the locked off cameras and data loggers will paint more of a picture of what is actually going on, the areas we are not seeing? We could be unintentionally ignoring other possibilities simply because we are failing to look because it is too much work. In full transparency, I for one can get very lazy so this is really a wake up call for me too. If I can't be bothered, do I take shortcuts? You bet I do but now this makes me wonder ... what is the cost? What am I missing out on? Is there a location you visit often and you think, "nothing really happens in this area so I am not going to waste my time I will go to the room I know I get the most activity?" Are we potentially missing out by not putting in just that little bit more time and thought? There are so many different thought processes I can apply this to, but I want to hand it over to you to think and reflect. Is it easier to reach for a piece of equipment with the flashing lights and go to that 'active area' or will we find more with out pen and paper and collect actual data that may tell us something more meaningful?
By recognising the Streetlight Effect and our own cognitive biases, we can start to look at our habits and potentially look beyond the familiar, and approach our investigations with a more critical and open-minded lens.
Sometimes in the darkness, you find the light!
References
https://www.formpl.us/blog/streetlight-effect-definition-implications-examples
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7829028/
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