Free Paranormality: Why we see what isn't there by Richard Wiseman Page B

what the world looks like when you float out of your body, and also become so absorbed in their imagery that they confused imagination for reality, and that these individuals that would be especially likely to experience OBEs.  
    To test her theory Blackmore carried out several experiments 43 .   In fact, you have already taken part in a version of them. A few pages ago I asked you to imagine yourself being about six feet above where you actually are, and rate the clarity of your imagery and the ease with which you switched from one perspective to another. Sue presented this task to two groups of people – those that had experienced an out-of-body experience and those that had not – and obtained very different results. Those that had previously experienced floating away from themselves tended to report much more vivid images and found it much easier to switch between the two perspectives.  
    Blackmore also speculated that people who reported OBEs would tend to become absorbed in their experiences, so that they found it difficult to separate fact from fantasy. I also asked you to rate the degree to which six statements described you. Five of them are the types of items that you find on standard questionnaires designed to measure the degree to which you become absorbed in your experiences (I added the item about the stoats working too hard for fun). People who obtain high scores on absorption questionnaires tend to lose track of time when they watch films and television programmes, become confused about whether they have actually carried out an action or simply imagined it, and are more easily hypnotized (in the case of the five questions presented at the start of this chapter a total of 20 or more would constitute a high score). In contrast, lower scorers are more down-to-earth, practical and rarely confuse their imagination with reality (a low score would be ten or less). Blackmore’s studies involved asking OBEers and non-OBEers to complete absorption questionnaires: the OBEers consistently obtained much higher scores.
    In short, Blackmore’s data suggests that people who experience OBEs are much better than others at naturally generating the type of imagery associated with the experience, and struggle to tell the difference between reality and imagination. Put these people in a situation where their bodies receive only a small amount of unchanging information about where they actually are and, just like the people taking part in the dummy hand and virtual reality experiments, they can end up believing that they are no longer located inside their bodies.
     
    BOX
     
    HOW TO LEAVE YOUR BODY
     
    Understanding the real causes of out-of-body experiences can help you become a frequent flyer. The first part of the process involves developing three key psychological skills: relaxation, visualization and concentration. Let’s examine each in turn.
     
    Relaxation  
    ‘Progressive Muscle Relaxation’ involves deliberately tensing various muscle groups and then releasing the tension. To try the technique, remove your shoes, loosen any tight clothing and sit in a comfortable chair in a quiet room. Focus your attention on your right foot. Gently inhale and clench the muscles in your foot as hard as possible for about five seconds. Next, exhale and release all of the tension, allowing the muscles to become loose and limp. Work your way around your body performing the procedure in the following order:
    Right foot  
    Right lower leg  
    Entire right leg  
    Left foot  
    Left lower leg  
    Entire left leg  
    Right hand  
    Right forearm  
    Entire right arm  
    Left hand  
    Left forearm  
    Entire left arm  
    Abdomen  
    Chest  
    Neck and shoulders  
    Face
    Each time, tense the appropriate body part for about five seconds and then release the tension.  
     
    Visualization
    Inducing an out-of-body experience requires good visualization skills. If you are naturally good at imagining scenes and pictures in your head then