This chapter explores Chris French's career studying strange phenomena, focusing on the shift from entertaining paranormal experiences to investigating the psychology behind them. Through anecdotes and experiments, the discussion highlights cognitive biases influencing beliefs in the paranormal and conspiracy theories.
Psychologist Chris French has spent decades studying paranormal claims and mysterious experiences, from seemingly-impossible coincidences to paintings that purportedly predict the future. Ian Sample sits down with French to explore why so many of us end up believing in, what he terms, ‘weird shit’, and what we can learn from understanding why we’re drawn to mysterious and mystic phenomena. Help support our independent journalism at
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