We are currently experiencing a turbulent time of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena or also known as UAP. On the one hand, we have the increasingly numerous groups, foundations and associations of scientists advocating for a declassification and scientific study of this phenomenon, and on the other hand, the authorities who, divided, try to play down the issue. Examples include the latest statements before the US Congress, the reports from NASA, the Pentagon and the different responses in the press and social networks.
All of this has a common denominator, the focus of attention is on the objects. The objects are of enormous interest, both to those on one side and those of the other. Without a doubt, understanding these phenomena that seem to challenge our physics is a great challenge and has an interest that goes beyond mere curiosity since they can represent the greatest enigma of our History. What world power wouldn’t be interested in understanding how something, an object, a technology can surpass the current assumed limits for speed, acceleration, invisibility, etc. It could be a decisive advantage in the strategic field. Therefore, UAP can represent a threat to national security as has been said in different forums, but also an opportunity, an opportunity for technological advancement, a technological singularity.
Interest in removing the stigma regarding UAP sightings
On the other hand, we have a phenomenon that for years has been belittled, ridiculed, and forgotten by the scientific community. For Science these things that were seen in the sky probably had a reasonable explanation, birds, balloons, stars, etc. However, recently new objects have appeared on the scene that have added confusion and concern: the drones, or Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs). These drones can vary greatly in size and characteristics and have a quality that makes them worrying : they can be difficult to detect and can sometimes be confused with UAP. What would happen then if pilots, military personnel, and civilians witnessed UAVs flying over areas of strategic interest or no fly zones, and did not report them due to fear of ridicule because they look like UAPs? This had to be changed, the stigma had to be removed not only in science but in society. We must be aware that the enemy can use this UAV technology over national territory and go practically unnoticed (for example the recent alleged Chinese balloons). We must now look at the sky and analyze, report and study objects that we previously kept silent about for fear of the consequences.
Therefore, we must start from a new paradigm of awareness about threats in new areas and the previous “useful” UAP stigma has lost its usefulness once UAVs have entered the scene. If we add to this, the differentiating potential of the data obtained from the study of UAP for technological development, the paradigm shift seemed inevitable, although logically with reservations.
Information continues to flow in dribs and drabs, incomplete and with great difficulty, sometimes in loops. Various study programs existed years ago on the formerly called UFOs (Unidentified Flying Objects). As you may know, all of them were unsuccessful, but some of them yielded interesting data. Dr. Allen Hynek was one of these first scientists to study this topic first on a skeptical/ Government side and then from the other side.
The technological factor hides the human factor
It is worth asking what factor is hegemonic in the study and current interest in the UAP, both by the scientific community (groups, associations, foundations, etc.) and by the authorities at their different levels. In my opinion this is clearly the technological one.
In this materialistic approach, we forget, from my point of view, the fundamental factor, the human factor. UAP are usually linked to a person, even if it is a person interpreting a sensor data in a radar, a human piloting an airplane, etc. or a group of humans that interacts at a given time with one or several UAPs. In some cases, these witnesses even interact with the UAP occupants. This human factor has been used by skepticism, to discredit witnesses or to explain sightings. Curiously, these arguments have rarely been contrasted by experts in Psychology, Neuroscience or similar, with some exceptions.
Currently it is as if a review of the phenomenon is happening, more committees, briefings, etc. I miss references to those scientists who once studied the psychological and sociological aspects of UAP encounters, not without difficulty such as Dr. Ring, Dr. Mack, however we commonly see references to Dr. Valle, an astronomer.
In my opinion the psychological factor is key to understanding UAP. Of course, it’s good to understand their physics, but if these are smart objects, what is their purpose? What effects do they have on the observers? At first glance, some may think that none. However, there are examples of some cases where there have been physical effects on witnesses, but there is also an effect that has often been ignored, the psychological effect.
Our study on the psychological aspects related to UAP
In our study («Psychological aspects in unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP) witnesses»), recently published in the scientific journal International Journal of Astrobiology (DOI: 10.1017/S1473550423000289) we precisely focus on the analysis of these psychological variables in UAP witnesses. The study consisted of a questionnaire, mostly Likert style, divided into 5 fundamental sections.
- First, we collected basic information about the participants (245 volunteers from different countries) such as educational level, age, etc.
- In a second section we asked several questions about the popular videos about UAP and the US Navy that were published in press with great social impact. Several questions about the position regarding UAP of governments and science on this issue were also included here.
- In a third section we asked questions about the topic of the search for extraterrestrial intelligence. Many of these questions were related to the different strategies, hypotheses and theories used by scientists in this area.
- A fourth section was dedicated to the UAPs themselves, their characteristics, origin, etc.
- The last section, the fifth was a section that was only accessible to those participants who reported having directly witnessed a sighting or experience with UAP (93 subjects). In this last section, the questions were related to the incident, and we emphasized the collection of data and information regarding possible psychological, physiological or physical consequences and the evidence they may have.
The results of our study yielded some interesting data. It seems that UAP have a common effect on many witnesses, basically you could say that they are introduced, let’s say, into the minds of the witnesses, and generally the topic of UAP will occupy a relevant place in their thinking.
Triad of Deep Engagement with UAP
We identify what we have called the triad of deep psychological engagement with UAP, which consists of three fundamental factors:
- witnesses feel somewhat obsessed with the phenomenon (non-pathological),
- they need to talk about it, even if it is not about their own experience or event.
- and the UAP topic is present in their thoughts at some point during the day, every day.
UAP have a transformative effect on the people who witness them and their belief systems regarding specific aspects such as life in the universe. A kind of change of consciousness occurs. If we consider that there are hundreds perhaps thousands of sightings per year, one could say that the effect is global, perhaps intentionally global?
Our participants reported to a lesser extent physiological and in some cases perceptual effects even days after the event or sighting.
The psychological profile of UAP witnesses
Also interesting is the psychological profile of these witnesses with characteristic details such as the non-relevance of the religious component, resilience to traumatic events, and spiritual life among others.
The information provided by witnesses is very relevant to understanding the phenomenon in our opinion and while we dedicate ourselves to try to understand certain physical characteristics that go beyond our current understanding, we are losing a valuable source of information that, although it has been for years attended in the investigation of the phenomenon, it was not from the academic or scientific domain to the same extent.
For this reason, I understand that, faced with a phenomenon that is incomprehensible to us, not necessarily aerial, such as UAP, the search for patterns and most interesting data may be where we have looked least, in the witnesses. Imagine that one day we go to Mars and find a nuclear installation and a Martian, what would be more interesting to study, the Martian or his nuclear technology?
I have previously written about how easily our attention and perception are diverted due to the limitations of our own mind, our brain. The so-called cosmic gorilla effect was proposed (De la Torre, G.G. & Garcia, M. A. (2018). The cosmic gorilla effect or the problem of undetected non-terrestrial intelligent signals. Acta Astronautica, 146, 83-91.), based on classic studies in Psychology (Inattentional Blindness/Gorila Invisible by Chabris and Simons in the 90s and 2010). This cosmic gorilla effect explains how even if we had an alien in front of our noses, we would not see it. We are distracted by other details while the important ones go unnoticed, we would not be conscious about it. Attention is related to perception and action, but even more importantly to Consciousness.
Author:
Prof. Dr. Gabriel G. de la Torre
Neuropsychology and Experimental Psychology Laboratory
Cadiz University
gabriel.delatorre@uca.es
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