Science, the Self, and Survival after Death: Selected Writings of Ian Stevenson

Description

Ian Stevenson was a prominent and internationally-known psychiatrist, researcher, and well-regarded figure in the field of psychical research. Science, the Self, and Survival after Death is the first book devoted to surveying the entirety of his work and the extraordinary scope and variety of his research. He studied universal questions that cut to the core of a person’s identity: What is consciousness? How did we become the unique individuals that we are? Do we survive in some form after death? Stevenson’s writings on the nature of science and the mind-body relationship, as well as his empirical research, demonstrate his strongly held belief that the methods of science can be applied successfully to such humanly vital questions. Featuring a selection of his papers and excerpts from his books, this collection presents the larger context of Stevenson’s work and illustrates the issues and questions that guided him throughout his career.

Emily Williams Kelly (PhD University of Edinburgh) is research assistant professor in the Division of Perceptual Studies, Department of Psychiatric Medicine, at the University of Virginia.

Contents

Introduction
General Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
1. “Some of My Journeys in Medicine” (1989)
Part 1: New Ideas in Science
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
2. “Scientists with Half-Closed Minds” (1958)
3. “What Are the Irreducible Components of the Scientific Enterprise?” (1999)
Part 2: The Nature of Human Personality
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
4. “Why Medicine is Not a Science” (1949)
5. Excerpts from “The End of Patient Abuse in Medical Care” (1985)
6. Excerpts from “Psychosomatic Medicine. Part I. What We Know about Illness and the Emotions” (1954)
7. “Bodily Changes Corresponding to Mental Images in the Person Affected” (1997)
8. “Bodily Changes Corresponding to Another Person’s Mental Images” (1997)
9. Excerpts from “Comments on the Psychological Effects of Mescaline and Allied Drugs” (1957)
10. Excerpts from “Can We Describe the Mind?” (1980)
Part 3: Psychical Research - Principles and Methods
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
11. “Changing Fashions in the Study of Spontaneous Cases” (1987)
12. Excerpts from “Comments on Paper by Michael Scriven” (1962)
13. “Thoughts on the Decline of Major Paranormal Phenomena” (1990)
Part 4: Research on the Question of Survival After Death: Reviews
and Representative Case Reports
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
14. “Sources of Evidence Supporting a Belief in Survival” (1969)
15. “Research into the Evidence of Man’s Survival After Death” (1977)
a. Apparitions
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
16. Cases 1- 4 from “Six Modern Apparitional Experiences” (1995)
b. Deathbed Visions
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
17. Cases 5-6 from “Six Modern Apparitional Experiences” (1995)
c. Out-of-Body and Near-Death Experiences
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
18. “Cardiac Arrest Remembered” (1971)
19. Excerpts from “Comments on ‘The Reality of Death Experiences: A Personal Perspective’” (1980)
20. “The Case of Linda McKnight” (1998)
d. Mediumship: Drop-in Communicators
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
21. “A Communicator of the ‘Drop-In’ Type in Iceland: The Case of Gudni Magnusson” (1975)
e. Cases of the Reincarnation Type
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
22. Excerpts from “Reincarnation: Field Studies and Theoretical Issues”(1977)
23. “Some New Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation. IV: The Case of Ampan Petcherat” (1973)
24. “Three New Cases of the Reincarnation Type in Sri Lanka with Written Records Made before Verification” (1988)
f. Cases of the Reincarnation Type with Birthmarks and Birth Defects
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
25. Excerpt from Reincarnation and Biology (1997)
26. “Birthmarks and Birth Defects Corresponding to Wounds in Deceased Persons” (1993)
27. Case of Hanumant Saxena (1997)
g. Cases of Maternal Impressions
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
28. “A New Look at Maternal Impressions: An Analysis of 50 Published Cases and Reports of Two Recent Examples” (1992)
29. “A Case of Severe Birth Defects Possibly Due to Cursing” (1989)
h. Cases of the Possession Type
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
30. “A Case of the Possession Type in India with Evidence of Paranormal Knowledge” (1989)
i. Xenoglossy
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
31. “A Case of Secondary Personality with Xenoglossy” (1979)
Part 5: Implications
Introduction (Emily Williams Kelly)
32. Excerpts from “The Explanatory Value of the Idea of Reincarnation” (1977)
33. Excerpts from “Comments on ‘Is Outcome for Schizophrenia Better in Nonindustrial Societies? The Case of Sri Lanka’” (1979)
34. “The Significance of Survival for Our Present Life” (1969)
35. “Assumptions of Religion and Psychiatry” (1955)
Conclusion: Toward a Tertium Quid (Emily Williams Kelly)
Appendix: Publications of Ian Stevenson