Gender Differences in Sensation Seeking and Paranormal/Anomalous Experiences

Abstract

Sensation seeking is the tendency to pursue sensory pleasure and excitement. A body of research indicates that sensation seeking may contribute to paranormal/anomalous experiences. Examination of relations between sensations seeking and paranormal beliefs has resulted in a limited body of research. This paper hypothesizes that both – sensation seeking and paranormal/anomalous experiences – will be significantly and positively correlated. Two samples of 446 females and 162 males (M_age = 8.60, SD = 4.65) filled two questionnaires, Sensation Seeking Scale and a 10-item self-report inventory designed to collect information on spontaneous paranormal/anomalous experiences. An index of experiences (Index) was constructed to correlate with the sensations seeking. More than half have experienced different types of paranormal/ anomalous experiences, mainly telepathy and déjà-vu. The main hypothesis was supported for both, males (p = .002, one-tailed) and females (p < .001). Factor analysis showed that women tended to score higher than men, explaining the 6.5% of the variance. These findings also suggest that sensation seeking may have some utility in predicting subjects' psi performance.