Hobby, Research or Assistance?
An open letter to everyone in the ghost hunting or research field
I have always wanted to address this
topic but have held off because of the toes I may step on in the
process but after recent events in my own area I have to say what's
been on my mind. The people in this field of ghost hunting, ghost
research, etc all have different motives for being in this field and
want different things out the time they spend doing related activities.
Many people are what I consider hobbyists. They are the ghost hunter
who is looking for proof that ghosts exist and enjoy they the thrill of
the hunt. The excitement of the actual ghost hunt and the possibility
of experiencing something supernatural first hand is what drives this
type of person. Many are dedicated and spend many hours enjoying their
hobby and they do contribute much to the collective data pool in this
filed of ghost research. They do their ghost hunts in cemeteries and
other locations that are open to them. There is one place that the
hobbyist does not belong, a private home. Unless they make it perfectly
clear to the home owner that they are just hobbyists and have some
experience in doing home investigation they should not be there. There
are many things that can go wrong naturally and supernaturally by
inexperienced people messing around in homes where the residents will
be staying in long after the ghost hunters leave. You can wind up
scaring the residents, stirring up activity, etc. The scenarios are
endless and it is not fair to the residents. There are plenty of other
locations for the hobbyist to go to do their work without putting
people at risk.
The next group is the serious researcher. Whether they use scientific
equipment or methods and/or psychics to go about their research in the
ghost realm, they both are seeking the same thing, proof that ghosts
exist. They go about this in very exact manner and many established
groups fall into this category. The overall focus and goal is to
provide evidence that there are ghosts at a location or that ghosts
exist overall. They use meters and other equipment, follow strict
protocols and provide documentation of their research. They will be the
ones who will find the "proof" if it is ever gong to be found. The
serious researcher also should steer clear of private homes unless they
explain exactly what they are going to do and why. If you go into
someone's home who is experiencing a lot of spirit activity and you
find nothing on your equipment, do you now conclude the house has no
activity ? Even if you don't tell the witnesses that, how do they feel
after you leave? Do they feel like they were imagining it all? How do
they react if the activity still occurs? If the people in the home are
concerned or frightened in some degree then the researcher can often
make things worse. Going into someone's home to collect data and
telling them what your meters read does little to console a frightened
child who cannot sleep in their room at night or the adult who wants to
sell their house because of the activity in it. If you are a strictly
research oriented group or investigator, please consider the situation
in the home before you decide to do your research there. Remember you
get to go home after your research is done but the homeowners have to
stay. If the residents are not completely comfortable with what is
going on in the home, then please show sensitivity and go somewhere
else to do research. I am speaking from experience as a resident who
once called a scientific research group from a university for
assistance in my childhood home.
The final category are extremely similar the researchers. These are the
investigators that are in this field to provide comfort and assistance.
They follow most of the same procedures and use much of the same
equipment in their work. The proof that ghost exist is secondary the
these investigators, the living come first. They go into a home with
the goal of making people who are frightened or uncomfortable feel
better about the events in their home. They use many techniques to
educate the residents. Sometimes just sitting down with the residents
and listening to the experiences can help them over come their fear,
especially when they see that they are talking to people that
understand what they are going through. If it takes more than that,
this kind of investigator will do whatever they can to make the
residents comfortable in their home. If the end result comes without
the investigator getting any good photos or EVPs, that is ok with them
because the reward is in seeing the people relax in their own home. I
have personally been on cases where after we were finished the resident
took down their "house for sale" sign or the parents of a young child
called to say that their son slept through the night in his own
bedroom. This is the reward for this type of investigator. Along the
way there is data collected for the research field but people come
first. This is the type of person that goes into private homes to do
investigations for people who are more than just curious about what is
going on in the home.
I implore all persons and groups that fall into the first two
categories only to please refer cases in homes to other groups/persons
who are put the residents first. There are groups and individuals that
are in this 3rd category all over the country and world. If you are not
going to refer the cases to others then please stay away. I have gone
into homes where the people reached out to the first group they found
only to have someone come in, take some photos and video, and tell them
"yep, you have 12 ghosts" and then leave. One case I had recently was
this exact situation and the residents wound up calling my group on our
emergency phone number at 1am hysterical because they were more scared
now that they had "professionals" tell them that there were 12 ghost in
their home earlier in the evening. Please, think about the consequences
of what you do in this field and remember, when dealing with private
homes, you get to leave but the residents have to stay and spend the
rest of the night there with your words and actions ringing in their
ears.
You have more to fear from the living than from the dead.
Dave Juliano (djuliano@theshadowlands.net)
Founder of The Shadowlands:Ghosts and Hauntings
Director of South Jersey Ghost Research