Interesting post and a very astute observation. People should understand however, that the average Ghost Hunter gets their information from TV and reading ghost stories or books on ghost hunting. Very few get anything from actually educating themselves on the subject. They rely on the basics which is fine for ghost hunting but not if they are going to present themselves as a Paranormal Investigator. An investigator looks for facts to build a case. In the case of a PI if they get information that something has happened at 3pm they don’t wait for the sun to go down and turn off the lights to investigate. PI’s investigate and record information of reported incidents. Ghost Hunters go around looking for ghosts. It’s that simple.

As an outsider (I don't do either) I agree. You may have some sort of crossover, but just because a person records some EMF measurement doesn't make them an Paranormal Investigator. And I don't understand how you can investigate a place, especially of a subject that is still largely unknown, in a day. I'd think that if I did get into investigating the paranormal in some way, I'd put myself in the Ghost Hunter category. I probably wouldn't spend days most of the time somewhere and I'm probably not going to be methodical in every gig that I'd do. My team may also very and would be informal. Just because you set up some tech. gear doesn't make it anymore formal. I'd also apply science and logical understanding to the situation, but yet again, that doesn't make me a Paranormal Investigator or Paranormal Scientist or what-not.

For instance, if your team doesn't have some sort of plan and procedure in place (even somewhat general) for set-up, investigation, tear-down and review, then you haven't even taken the first step to really investigate anything. You must have a control, you must be consistent, and you must devote a real and serious effort.

Since the Ghost Hunters show (I used to be a fan actually) seems to be the baseline of what people think a Paranormal Investigation team should be I'd like to criticize their techniques a bit.

GH doesn't seem to do any pre-testing of their devices, especially new ones. For instance, they seem to bring them into an investigation and THEN question if something from the outside could interfere. Why wouldn't they have already tried that in a controlled setting? You know, like for EMF sensitive devices, see how your radio interferes, see how the production crew equipment interferes, and even how an IR Remote (possibly in case of a neighbor across the street changing channels) would interfere in the case of IR equipment. These are just some things that they would probably normally encounter. There should be a slew of these and with that, some sort of formal list that may or may not grow, but is tested against most equipment at all times.

GH also seems to "have fun" and also, at least for a time "have problems" with their teams. Not only would those team members not be yanked out of the investigation, but joking around seemed to be encouraged. Who cares if "nothing is happening" for the first hour and a half. You don't know when or where something is going to happen.

GH do not seem to have control over where their people are all the time. You hear them sometimes ask "Where are you guys?" or "Is anyone around the place?" or even "Oh, you guys are still there?" over their radios. Why would you even have to ask? If you are going to have different people around, it should be one team in, everyone else out.

GH talks to their partners…a lot. Maybe it livens things up and maybe its just a little bit, but they edit in a lot of footage of them talking over the course of 8 hours for a 20 minute segment, but it certainly doesn't add any serious credibility. Investigation anything is all about observation, not conversation.

GH also doesn't seem to have much methodology for anything in particular. Things like "set up camera to get a good view", "ask some questions for an EVP session whenever you feel like it", "We'll go first, someone else will go next I guess" and what's with the call for lights on? Why isn't there a time set, and when there is a team inside, why would you blast that over the radio anyway?

You see, I'm not saying that these guys aren't worthy of what they do, but I don't think that they should be the role models for a budding Paranormal Investigation Team.

Just my thoughts, but I'm an outsider, so I'm not exactly up on what the field accepts as a whole.

Interesting, if those of you are investigating day or night and experiencing activity, also falls into if ghosts experience the passage of time.

If the ghosts are there, they are there all the time, day or night.

Maybe the ghosts don't know the difference????

Welcome GhostBreakers. Glad to have you with us.

I'd say that some groups do both – investigate and hunt – depending on the location.

Here's something that Loyd Auerbach pointed out to us in our podcast with him that I think bears mentioning. The word debunk actually means "expose while ridiculing; especially of pretentious or false claims and ideas."

Many investigators – legitimate investigators – that I know never attempt to debunk as it is defined above. They do, however, look for alternative explanations for phenomena. I'd say that groups that run around at grave yards are ghost hunters. Those who do their due diligence and then seek to explain and/or quantify the phenomena are paranormal investigators.

Hi Whammie. Thanks for the welcome. I think I will enjoy it here. I have been doing this a long time and things I have discovered just don't go with what you see on TV or read in books. I know people like to follow the old popular beliefs but I have found a lot of them to be misleading. Anyway, I was looking for a good place to discuss different things and I think this may be it. I also posted on the debunk article among others. ( http://www.paranormalundergrou…..net?p=1620 )

Oh, one more thing. Regardless of how something I say may sound. I speak only for myself and I don't intentionally bash anyone or group. I may disagree strongly and will give my reasons but everyone is entitled to do as they please.

I also have started a group/cause on Facebook for anyone who is on there. It is in regard to Standardization of Paranormal Investigation as a whole. If anyone is interested. Not meant for Ghost Hunters but they are most welcome also. Loyd Auerbach and Dale Kaczmarek have joined among others noteables so far.

Well, I guess I'll see everyone around now and again.

Here is my concern with standardized practices – if we standardize investigatory techniques for something that is still in its infancy, do we limit discovery? Hmmm…maybe a blog is in order.

I think standardizing the process more than the activity is probably the goal. For instance, you probably should test equipment, plan out spots to investigate (inside of whatever place is being investigated, whether outside or in), set up check-in times if multiple teams, and become consistent with techniques. But that shouldn't step on any theories, techniques that the group uses or limit a group in any legitimate way.

Stick with me on this. So – if spirit communications are largely psychic in nature (unless they choose to act on something psychokinetically), then they could in large part be ignored in the same way that any other psychic gift might be. If we are distracted with other things, then certainly it would be easy to ignore.

As hard as it is for me to admit, I can substantiate this as it happened to me when I was seven (when I asked for it to stop). It was what you'd call psychic phenomena and had nothing to do with ghosts. The house hauntings continued as this seemed to be separate, though maybe conincidental. Its hard for me to talk about, even more so than ghosts, because I'm such a logical person. Its hard for me to accept things that I haven't experienced and digested, or that doesn't follow some sort of logical flow of "things" (such as science). I haven't ever experienced the psychic type anomaly ever, other than the year or two that I had as a very young child. Also, I have experienced any sort of haunting activity since I moved out of my parent's house at 18 (so almost 10 years ago).

Exactly – and how do we know?? Why is a spirit sticking around? Is it the whole spirit, or is it just a part of the spirit caught up in the emotional impact of a surprising and unexpected death? How much intelligence is there? Is it even in our dimension and therefore aware of the dimensional realities that we are experiencing? I've got a million of them – I can keep asking…

That is a possibility. In my mind there seems to be two most probable situations.

1) Spirits are fully conscious and self-aware, but the "residual" hauntings are because they themselves only allow whatever event to be replayed in their lives over and over. While some spirits seem to have become consciously aware that they have died or at least that they aren't living the same life anymore. These "intelligent" hauntings are fully self aware and that is why they can choose to "move on", even when requested from someone, and will react to us in some way. This would also be why residual hauntings may stick around even when asked to leave or the house blessed and intelligent hauntings will most likely move on.

2) Spirits are only part of an imprint of some degree of "intelligence" left-over from someone previously. As such some may be able to be aware enough to know that they are not alive anymore and some may not be aware and repeat an event in their life, because "less" of the intelligence was imprinted in our reality. This would be why spirits won't always be able to appear wholly for a picture at will or even continue manipulating objects or give clear EVP. Remember EVP seem to only give short, simple phrases or repeat a short word or two over and over again.

Psychic phenomena may be possible with both probabilities as well.

I tend to favor probability 1 in my mind as well. This would explain why living people do not leave a psychic imprint on our reality and why you do not see apparitions of a living relative or even yourself. Sure you could argue that some may cause poltergeist activity, but that activity follows them or is at least charged by them if the theory is true.

I'm an outsider also, but would have to agree with you. I think a ghost hunter and paranormal investigator are different for the reasons stated.

I shoot pictures, at places of inrerest to me and quietly observe. Love to read factual history on supposed haunted locations, and just locations in general.

Enjoy seeking, so I guess I would be a ghost seeker.

Maybe a Ghost Paparazzo?