Paranormal events are purported phenomena described in popular culture, folk, and other non-scientific bodies of knowledge, whose existence within these contexts is described as beyond normal experience or scientific explanation.

Proposals regarding the paranormal are different from scientific hypotheses or speculations extrapolated from scientific evidence because scientific ideas are grounded in empirical observations and experimental data gained through the scientific method. In contrast, those who argue for the existence of the paranormal explicitly do not base their arguments on empirical evidence but rather on anecdote, testimony, and suspicion. Notable paranormal beliefs include those that pertain to extrasensory perception (for example, telepathy), spiritualism and the pseudoscience’s of ghost hunting, cryptozoology, and ufology.

PARANORMAL RESEARCH

Approaching the paranormal from a research perspective is often difficult because of the lack of acceptable physical evidence from most of the purported phenomena. By definition, the paranormal does not conform to conventional expectations of nature. Therefore, a phenomenon cannot be confirmed as paranormal using the scientific method because, if it could be, it would no longer fit the definition. (However, confirmation would result in the phenomenon being reclassified as part of science.) Despite this problem, studies on the paranormal are periodically conducted by researchers from various disciplines. Some researchers simply study the beliefs in the paranormal regardless of whether the phenomena are considered to objectively exist. This section deals with various approaches to the paranormal: anecdotal, experimental, and participant-observer approaches and the skeptical investigation approach.

ANECDOTAL APPROACH

Charles Fort, 1920. Fort is perhaps the most widely known collector of paranormal stories. An anecdotal approach to the paranormal involves the collection of stories told about the paranormal. Charles Fort (1874–1932) is perhaps the best-known collector of paranormal anecdotes. Fort is said to have compiled as many as 40,000 notes on unexplained paranormal experiences, though there was no doubt many more. These notes came from what he called “the orthodox conventionality of Science”, which were odd events originally reported in magazines and newspapers such as The Times and scientific journals such as Scientific American, Nature and Science. From this research Fort wrote seven books, though only four survive: The Book of the Damned (1919), New Lands (1923), Lo! (1931) and Wild Talents (1932); one book was written between New Lands and Lo!, but it was abandoned and absorbed into Lo!

Reported events that he collected include teleportation (a term Fort is generally credited with coining); poltergeist events; falls of frogs, fishes, and inorganic materials of an amazing range; crop circles; unaccountable noises and explosions; spontaneous fires; levitation; ball lightning (a term explicitly used by Fort); unidentified flying objects; mysterious appearances and disappearances; giant wheels of light in the oceans; and animals found outside their normal ranges (see phantom cat). He offered many reports of OOP Arts, the abbreviation for “out of place” artefacts: strange items found in unlikely locations. He is perhaps the first person to explain strange human appearances and disappearances by the hypothesis of alien abduction and was an early proponent of the extraterrestrial hypothesis.

Fort is considered by many as the father of modern paranormalism, which is the study of the paranormal.

The magazine Fortean Times continues Charles Fort’s approach, regularly reporting anecdotal accounts of the paranormal.

Such anecdotal collections, lacking the reproducibility of empirical evidence, are not amenable to scientific investigation. The anecdotal approach is not a scientific approach to the paranormal because it leaves verification dependent on the credibility of the party presenting the evidence. Nevertheless, it is a common approach to investigating paranormal phenomena.

PARAPSYCHOLOGY

Participant of a Ganzfeld experiment which proponents say may show evidence of telepathy. Experimental investigation of the paranormal has been conducted by parapsychologists. J. B. Rhine popularized the now famous methodology of using card-guessing and dice-rolling experiments in a laboratory in the hopes of finding evidence of extrasensory perception. However, it was revealed that Rhine’s experiments contained methodological flaws and procedural errors.

In 1957, the Parapsychological Association was formed as the preeminent society for parapsychologists. In 1969, they became affiliated with the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Criticisms of the field were focused in the creation (in 1976) of the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (now called the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry) and its periodical, the Skeptical Inquirer. Eventually, more mainstream scientists became critical of parapsychology as an endeavour, and statements by the National Academies of Science and the National Science Foundation cast a pall on the claims of evidence for parapsychology. Today, many cite parapsychology as an example of a pseudoscience. Parapsychology has been criticized for continuing investigation despite being unable to provide convincing evidence for the existence of any psychic phenomena after more than a century of research.

By the 2000s, the status of paranormal research in the United States had greatly declined from its height in the 1970s, with the majority of work being privately funded and only a small amount of research being carried out in university laboratories. In 2007, Britain had a number of privately funded laboratories in university psychology departments. Publication remained limited to a small number of niche journals, and to date there have been no experimental results that have gained wide acceptance in the scientific community as valid evidence of the paranormal.

PARTICIPANT-OBSERVER APPROACH

A ghost hunter taking an EMF reading (Electro Magnetic Field), which proponents claim may be connected to paranormal activity.

While parapsychologists look for quantitative evidence of the paranormal in laboratories, a great number of people immerse themselves in qualitative research through participant-observer approaches to the paranormal. Participant-observer methodologies have overlaps with other essentially qualitative approaches as well, including phenomenological research that seeks largely to describe subjects as they are experienced, rather than to explain them.

Participant-observation suggests that by immersing oneself in the subject being studied, a researcher is presumed to gain understanding of the subject. Criticisms of participant-observation as a data-gathering technique are similar to criticisms of other approaches to the paranormal, but also include an increased threat to the objectivity of the researcher, unsystematic gathering of data, reliance on subjective measurement, and possible observer effects (observation may distort the observed behaviour). Specific data gathering methods, such as recording EMF readings at haunted locations have their own criticisms beyond those attributed to the participant-observation approach itself.

The participant-observer approach to the paranormal has gained increased visibility and popularity through reality television programs like Ghost Hunters, and the formation of independent ghost hunting groups that advocate immersive research at alleged paranormal locations. One popular website for ghost hunting enthusiasts lists over 300 of these organizations throughout the United States and the United Kingdom.

SKEPTICAL SCIENTIFIC INVESTIGATION

James Randi is a well-known investigator of paranormal claims. Scientific skeptics advocate critical investigation of claims of paranormal phenomena: applying the scientific method to reach a rational, scientific explanation of the phenomena to account for the paranormal claims, taking into account that alleged paranormal abilities and occurrences are sometimes hoaxes or misinterpretations of natural phenomena. A way of summarizing this method is by the application of Occam’s razor, which suggests that the simpler solution is usually the correct one. The standard scientific models give the explanation that what appears to be paranormal phenomena is usually a misinterpretation, misunderstanding, or anomalous variation of natural phenomena, rather than an actual paranormal phenomenon.

The Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI), formerly the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal (CSICOP), is an organization that aims to publicize the scientific, skeptical approach. It carries out investigations aimed at understanding paranormal reports in terms of scientific understanding, and publishes its results in the Skeptical Inquirer magazine.

CSI’s Richard Wiseman draws attention to possible alternative explanations for perceived paranormal activity in his article, The Haunted Brain. While he recognizes that approximately 15% of people believe they have experienced an encounter with a ghost, he reports that only 1% report seeing a full-fledged ghost while the rest report strange sensory stimuli, such as seeing fleeting shadows or wisps of smoke, or the sensation of hearing footsteps or feeling a presence. Wiseman makes the claim that, rather than experiencing paranormal activity, it is activity within our own brains that creates these strange sensations.

Michael Persinger proposed that ghostly experiences could be explained by stimulating the brain with weak magnetic fields. Swedish psychologist Pehr Granqvist and his team, attempting to replicate Persinger’s research, determined that the paranormal sensations experienced by Persinger’s subjects were merely the result of suggestion, and that brain stimulation with magnetic fields did not result in ghostly experiences.

Oxford University Justin Barrett has theorized that “agency”—being able to figure out why people do what they do—is so important in everyday life, that it is natural for our brains to work too hard at it, thereby detecting human or ghost-like behaviour in everyday meaningless stimuli.

James Randi, an investigator with a background in illusion, feels that the simplest explanation for those claiming paranormal abilities is often trickery, illustrated by demonstrating that the spoon bending abilities of psychic Uri Geller can easily be duplicated by trained stage magicians. He is also the founder of the James Randi Educational Foundation and its million dollar challenge that offered a prize of US$1,000,000 to anyone who could demonstrate evidence of any paranormal, supernatural or occult power or event, under test conditions agreed to by both parties. Despite many declarations of supernatural ability, the prize was never claimed.

PSYCHOLOGY

In “anomalistic psychology”, paranormal phenomena have naturalistic explanations resulting from psychological and physical factors which have sometimes given the impression of paranormal activity to some people, in fact, where there have been none. The psychologist David Marks wrote that paranormal phenomena can be explained by magical thinking, mental imagery, subjective validation, coincidence, hidden causes, and fraud. According to studies some people tend to hold paranormal beliefs because they possess psychological traits that make them more likely to misattribute paranormal causation to normal experiences. Research has also discovered that cognitive bias is a factor underlying paranormal belief.

Chris French founder of the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit. Many studies have found a link between personality and psychopathology variables correlating with paranormal belief. Some studies have also shown that fantasy pronenesscorrelates positively with paranormal belief.

Bainbridge (1978) and Wuthnow (1976) found that the most susceptible people to paranormal belief are those who are poorly educated, unemployed or have roles that rank low among social values. The alienation of these people due to their status in society is said to encourage them to appeal to paranormal or magical beliefs.

Research has associated paranormal belief with low cognitive ability, low IQ and a lack of science education. Intelligent and highly educated participants involved in surveys have proven to have less paranormal belief. Tobacyk (1984) and Messer and Griggs (1989) discovered that college students with better grades have less belief in the paranormal.

In a case study (Gow, 2004) involving 167 participants the findings revealed that psychological absorption and dissociation were higher for believers in the paranormal. Another study involving 100 students had revealed a positive correlation between paranormal belief and proneness to dissociation. A study (Williams et al. 2007) discovered that “neuroticism is fundamental to individual differences in paranormal belief, while paranormal belief is independent of extraversion and psychoticism“. A correlation has been found between paranormal belief and irrational thinking.

In an experiment Wierzbicki (1985) reported a significant correlation between paranormal belief and the number of errors made on a syllogistic reasoning task, suggesting that believers in the paranormal have lower cognitive ability. A relationship between narcissistic personality and paranormal belief was discovered in a study involving the Australian Sheep-Goat Scale.

De Boer and Bierman wrote:

In his article ‘Creative or Defective’ Radin (2005) asserts that many academics explain the belief in the paranormal by using one of the three following hypotheses: Ignorance, deprivation or deficiency. ‘The ignorance hypothesis asserts that people believe in the paranormal because they’re uneducated or stupid. The deprivation hypothesis proposes that these beliefs exist to provide a way to cope in the face of psychological uncertainties and physical stressors. The deficiency hypothesis asserts that such beliefs arise because people are mentally defective in some way, ranging from low intelligence or poor critical thinking ability to a full-blown psychosis’ (Radin). The deficiency hypothesis gets some support from the fact that the belief in the paranormal is an aspect of a schizotypical personality (Pizzagalli, Lehman and Brugger, 2001).

A psychological study involving 174 members of the Society for Psychical Research completed a delusional ideation questionnaire and a deductive reasoning task. As predicted, the study showed that “individuals who reported a strong belief in the paranormal made more errors and displayed more delusional ideation than skeptical individuals”. There was also a reasoning bias which was limited to people who reported a belief in, rather than experience of, paranormal phenomena. The results suggested that reasoning abnormalities may have a causal role in the formation of paranormal belief.

Research has shown that people reporting contact with aliens have higher levels of absorption, dissociativity, fantasy proneness and tendency to hallucinate.

Findings have shown in specific cases that paranormal belief acts as a psychodynamic coping function and serves as a mechanism for coping with stress. Survivors from childhood sexual abuse, violent and unsettled home environments have reported to have higher levels of paranormal belief. A study of a random sample of 502 adults revealed paranormal experiences were common in the population which were linked to a history of childhood trauma and dissociative symptoms. Research has also suggested that people who perceive themselves as having little control over their lives may develop paranormal beliefs to help provide an enhanced sense of control.

Gender differences in surveys on paranormal belief have reported women scoring higher than men overall and men having greater belief in UFOs and extraterrestrials. Surveys have also investigated the relationship between ethnicity and paranormal belief. In a sample of American university students (Tobacyk et al. 1988) it was found that people of African descent have a higher level of belief in superstitions and witchcraft while belief in extraterrestrial life forms was stronger among people of European descent.[74] Otis and Kuo (1984) surveyed Singapore university students and found Chinese, Indian and Malay students to differ in their paranormal beliefs, with the Chinese students showing greater skepticism.

According to American surveys analysed by (Bader et al. 2011) African Americans have the highest belief in the paranormal and while the findings are not uniform the “general trend is for whites to show lesser belief in most paranormal subjects”.

Polls show that about fifty percent of the United States population believe in the paranormal. Robert L. Park says a lot of people believe in it because they “want it to be so”.

A 2013 study that utilized a biological motion perception task discovered a “relation between illusory pattern perception and supernatural and paranormal beliefs and suggest that paranormal beliefs are strongly related to agency detection biases”.

A 2014 study discovered that schizophrenic patients have more belief in psi than healthy adults.

NEUROSCIENCE

Some scientists have investigated possible neurocognitive processes underlying the formation of paranormal beliefs. In a study (Pizzagalli et al. 2000) data demonstrated that “subjects differing in their declared belief in and experience with paranormal phenomena as well as in their schizotypal ideation, as determined by a standardized instrument, displayed differential brain electric activity during resting periods.” Another study (Schulter and Papousek, 2008) wrote that paranormal belief can be explained by patterns of functional hemispheric asymmetry that may be related to perturbations during fetal development.

It was also realized that people with higher dopamine levels have the ability to find patterns and meanings where there aren’t any. This is why scientists have connected high dopamine levels with paranormal belief.

CRITICISM

Some scientists have criticised the media for promoting paranormal claims. In a report (Singer and Benassi, 1981) wrote that the media may account for much of the near universality of paranormal belief as the public are constantly exposed to films, newspapers, documentaries and books endorsing paranormal claims while critical coverage is largely absent. According to Paul Kurtz “In regard to the many talk shows that constantly deal with paranormal topics, the skeptical viewpoint is rarely heard; and when it is permitted to be expressed, it is usually sandbagged by the host or other guests.” Kurtz described the popularity of public belief in the paranormal as a “quasi-religious phenomenon”, a manifestation of a transcendental temptation, a tendency for people to seek a transcendental reality that cannot be known by using the methods of science. Kurtz compared this to a primitive form of magical thinking.

Terence Hines has written that on a personal level, paranormal claims could be considered a form of consumer fraud as people are “being induced through false claims to spend their money—often large sums—on paranormal claims that do not deliver what they promise” and uncritical acceptance of paranormal belief systems can be damaging to society.

BELIEF POLLS

While the validity of the existence of paranormal phenomena is controversial and debated passionately by both proponents of the paranormal and by skeptics, surveys are useful in determining the beliefs of people in regards to paranormal phenomena. These opinions, while not constituting scientific evidence for or against, may give an indication of the mindset of a certain portion of the population (at least among those who answered the polls). The number of people worldwide who believe in parapsychological powers has been estimated to be 3 to 4 billion.

A survey conducted in 2006 by researchers from Australia’s Monash University sought to determine what types of phenomena that people claim to have experienced and the effects these experiences have had on their lives. The study was conducted as an online survey with over 2,000 respondents from around the world participating. The results revealed that around 70% of the respondents believe to have had an unexplained paranormal event that changed their life, mostly in a positive way. About 70% also claimed to have seen, heard, or been touched by an animal or person that they knew was not there; 80% have reported having a premonition, and almost 50% stated they recalled a previous life.

Polls were conducted by Bryan Farha at Oklahoma City University and Gary Steward of the University of Central Oklahoma in 2006. They found fairly consistent results compared to the results of a Gallup poll in 2001.

The study discussed above makes it clear that all paranormal activities to the mind games or should be said some illusions related to the mind disorders of seeing someone close whose is dead it happens when you think allot about them and the affection of them create an image of them in your head which you are forced believe it that its true but in reality there is no one.

Highlighting the pragmatic and success seeking aspect of the today’s ensembles shouting out with the overrated to the core tag “brand conscious”. The companies believe that being brand conscious is the ultimate solution for all the queries raised and skepticism asked. Very value sensitive factors effect in the choice of product growth and creates glitch in the views about the company which raises the expectations. There opens an interesting window of opportunity that will stay sane and perpetual while longer for companies to establish dominant positions in the masses of Indian markets and their statistics. But at the same time Indian markets are capable of seizing their own golden opportunities by focusing on phony subjects like brand and price consciousness , they lose their powerful and authentic market and consumers who are genuinely into their ensembles. Brand consciousness has just become the need to have a gradual repetition as a social obligation whereas , there’s a lot of gambling and brands aren’t even been scrutinized about their pricing levels which aren’t monetary friendly. There’s so much beyond brand conscious aspect which benefits the stakeholders in a non ethical way.

FRAMEWORK OF BRANDING & PRICING – There’s a lot of statistical date and math involved in the very clean process of pricing which involves the hint of branding. Many companies are reluctant enough to retest the “tried-and-tested” business tactics to make sure that brand conscious actually works. Modest-sized and family strategies are no more a healthy choice of building or laying a stronger foundation to the business economics , it’s all bad money and gambling which brings glory according to the business magnates. Since the class market strategies are the subtle yet rapid growing market consumer groups in the economy all the influential and wealthy business groups stared to follow and take the brand conscious as a must which is apparently just an obligation. Therefore , there are so many other money deprived magnates who try brand conscious just like it and they are up for the grabs.

–By Shivam Pathak
At some point of time almost all countries had faced invasions and colonization, whether it is England (Invaded by Normans), China (Invaded by Mongolians), India (Invaded by Britishers), USA (Invaded by Britishers), etc. But in this article I would shed light only on the invasion and colonization of Brazil by Portugal. Before getting down to my topic I would like to answer one of the questions cultivating in your mind that- why it is so important to study about other countries history of independce from colonization. I will tell you why. I think scrutiny on
other countries history of independence is required for a comparative study of history. If we go deep into this topic we would uncover that the way each country fought against their enemies is quiet distinctive with each-others counterparts. For instance Mexico got indepence from Spain after a lot of bloodshed and armed conflict, but in case of Brazil, the way was rather peaceful and simple. Hope at the end of the topic you will be able to understand this topic in a laconic way.
Portugal, identical to Netherlands was a nation of seafarers and traders. So they always look for opportunities to trade. By following their underlying policy the estado of Portugal recognized that colonialism had bigger merchant capitalist elements, so in 16th century a Portuguese nobleman, Pedro Alvares Cabral hold sovereignty over the aboriginal
lands, part of what is now the territory of the Federative Republic of Brazil, under the sponsorship of the kingdom of Portugal. The expansion
of Portuguese colonization in Brazil took high pace when the monarchy of Portugal sensed constant threat of Spanish invasion of Portugal. Portugal started establishing itself in Brazil with a small trade post, which was then expanded by the considerable efforts of the Portuguese personnel. Early Brazil was divided into 15 colonies and granted to worthy elite
Portuguese. In the first century of settlement, it became evident that it was laborious to use Indians as slave labors because they were not docile, had high mortality when exposed to western diseases, could run away and hide quite easily. So the Portuguese turned to imported Africanslaves for manual labor. The ultimate fate of Brazilian Indians
was pretty like that of North American Indians. They were pushed beyond the boundaries of colonial society. In 1807 when imperial French corps and Spanish military troops invaded Portugal, Prince
Regent Joao 4th fled to Rio to escape the French invasion of the motherland. He brought about 10,000 of the mainland establishment with him- the aristocracy, bureaucracy and some of the military who set government and court in Rio and Petropolis running Brazil and Portugal as joint kingdom. In 1809, the forces under Arthur Wellesley, a British expeditionary (later the Duke of Wellington), expelled French forces from Portugal. In the meantime the status of Brazil was elevated from a
colony to a kingdom. When Portugal was liberated Joa 4th decided to return to his motherland,Portugal ,but his son Dom Pedro 1st denied to accompany him and decided to be in Brazil as its King. So, in 1822 Portuguese crown prince became the emperor of Brazil. Dom Pedro remained heir to the Portuguese throne after Portugal’s acknowledgement of Brazil’s independence in 1825, so that when his father Dom Joao died in 1826, he succeeded to the Portuguese throne. He was unable to wear both crowns according to the terms of the constitution he has vested upon Brazil in 1824. He abdicated in favor of his daughter Dona Maria and promulgated a constitution in 1826, Carta Constitucional, which he inflicted on Portugal. The Carta later marked the uncertain death of the Portuguese Empire. The Brazilian Empire became a Republic in 1889 without any fierce struggle. Later in 1831 Dom Pedro abdicated from the throne due to military takeover. Thereafter, Brazil maintained its status as a Republic.

Sources of information employed in this article entails- an article written on “Brazilian Development Experience from 1500 to 1929” by Angus Maddison, and an article on “In the shadow of Independence: Portugal, Brazil and Their Mutual Influence after the End of Empire (late 1820s-early1840s)” by Gabriel Paquette.

–By Shivam Pathak
At some point of time almost all countries had faced invasions and colonization, whether it is England (Invaded by Normans), China (Invaded by Mongolians), India (Invaded by Britishers), USA (Invaded by Britishers), etc. But in this article I would shed light only on the invasion and colonization of Brazil by Portugal. Before getting down to my topic I would like to answer one of the questions cultivating in your mind that- why it is so important to study about other countries history of independce from colonization. I will tell you why. I think scrutiny on
other countries history of independence is required for a comparative study of history. If we go deep into this topic we would uncover that the way each country fought against their enemies is quiet distinctive with each-others counterparts. For instance Mexico got indepence from Spain after a lot of bloodshed and armed conflict, but in case of Brazil, the way was rather peaceful and simple. Hope at the end of the topic you will be able to understand this topic in a laconic way.
Portugal, identical to Netherlands was a nation of seafarers and traders. So they always look for opportunities to trade. By following their underlying policy the estado of Portugal recognized that colonialism had bigger merchant capitalist elements, so in 16th century a Portuguese nobleman, Pedro Alvares Cabral hold sovereignty over the aboriginal
lands, part of what is now the territory of the Federative Republic of Brazil, under the sponsorship of the kingdom of Portugal. The expansion
of Portuguese colonization in Brazil took high pace when the monarchy of Portugal sensed constant threat of Spanish invasion of Portugal. Portugal started establishing itself in Brazil with a small trade post, which was then expanded by the considerable efforts of the Portuguese personnel. Early Brazil was divided into 15 colonies and granted to worthy elite
Portuguese. In the first century of settlement, it became evident that it was laborious to use Indians as slave labors because they were not docile, had high mortality when exposed to western diseases, could run away and hide quite easily. So the Portuguese turned to imported Africanslaves for manual labor. The ultimate fate of Brazilian Indians
was pretty like that of North American Indians. They were pushed beyond the boundaries of colonial society. In 1807 when imperial French corps and Spanish military troops invaded Portugal, Prince
Regent Joao 4th fled to Rio to escape the French invasion of the motherland. He brought about 10,000 of the mainland establishment with him- the aristocracy, bureaucracy and some of the military who set government and court in Rio and Petropolis running Brazil and Portugal as joint kingdom. In 1809, the forces under Arthur Wellesley, a British expeditionary (later the Duke of Wellington), expelled French forces from Portugal. In the meantime the status of Brazil was elevated from a
colony to a kingdom. When Portugal was liberated Joa 4th decided to return to his motherland,Portugal ,but his son Dom Pedro 1st denied to accompany him and decided to be in Brazil as its King. So, in 1822 Portuguese crown prince became the emperor of Brazil. Dom Pedro remained heir to the Portuguese throne after Portugal’s acknowledgement of Brazil’s independence in 1825, so that when his father Dom Joao died in 1826, he succeeded to the Portuguese throne. He was unable to wear both crowns according to the terms of the constitution he has vested upon Brazil in 1824. He abdicated in favor of his daughter Dona Maria and promulgated a constitution in 1826, Carta Constitucional, which he inflicted on Portugal. The Carta later marked the uncertain death of the Portuguese Empire. The Brazilian Empire became a Republic in 1889 without any fierce struggle. Later in 1831 Dom Pedro abdicated from the throne due to military takeover. Thereafter, Brazil maintained its status as a Republic.

Sources of information employed in this article entails- an article written on “Brazilian Development Experience from 1500 to 1929” by Angus Maddison, and an article on “In the shadow of Independence: Portugal, Brazil and Their Mutual Influence after the End of Empire (late 1820s-early1840s)” by Gabriel Paquette.

The attention to people analytics has increased enormously over the last few years. Many organizations have established people analytics teams, and several promising start-ups have developed software that can help HR with people analytics.

The assumption is that if we have access to the right data, if we have the right analysis tools and clever people to interpret the data, we will be able to predict human behavior – and that these predictions will be used in a sensible way in organizations. I have some doubts.

It is time to have a closer look at the psychology of people analytics.

Inspiration

Two books were a great inspiration, and a must-read for HR professionals and people analytics specialists.

On number one “Thinking, fast and slow” of Nobel prize winner Daniel Kahneman. Looking at the numbers that were sold of this book, you would expect almost everybody has read this book (or at least: has bought this book). When I studied experimental psychology (from 1975-1981) Kahneman was already famous. I still remember the famous article he published in 1974 with his colleague Amos Tversky: Judgment under uncertainty – heuristics and biases. I quote from this article: “The reliance on heuristics and the prevalence of biases are not restricted to laymen. Experienced researchers are also prone to the same biases when they think intuitively. For example, the tendency to predict the outcome that best represents the data, with insufficient regard for prior probability, has been observed in the intuitive judgments of individuals who have had extensive training in statistics”.

On number two “The art of thinking clearly”, written by Rolf Dobelli. His book is less scientific, but certainly a worthwhile read with many good lessons. In 99 chapters, he describes the most common thinking errors, with interesting examples.

I also used the list of cognitive biases on Wikipedia. A great and extensive list. This list inspired Buster Benson to cluster these cognitive biases in categories, which he describes in his excellent article Cognitive bias cheat sheet. Based on this article John Manoogian made a very interesting and informative infographic, the Cognitive Bias Codex.