University of West Georgia, Carrollton, GA, USA

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Introduction: The voice hearing phenomenon involves accessing non-local information or communicating with entities beyond the physical realm. This auditory experience, traditionally associated with mediums who exhibit control over their perceptions, is often stigmatized and can significantly impact individuals, leading to distress. In various cultures, voice hearing has historically been viewed as a gift or divine communication. However, in Western societies influenced by the psychiatric medical model, voice hearing is often pathologized.

This proposed study aims to expand the understanding of the voice hearing phenomenon within a Western society and fill in gaps in previous literature. It has the potential to uncover strategies used by mediums to maintain control, invite voices, or build mental boundaries to block out uninvited voices that may cause distress. This qualitative exploratory study using mediums as participants could provide tools and techniques to improve the quality of life for other voice hearers who have been stigmatized.

Methods: To answer the research question, “What is the experience of mediums with mental boundaries with invited and uninvited voice hearing phenomena?” five mediums who experience communications with spirits by means of voice hearing or clairaudience will serve as participants. All mediums recruited will be verified through an organization, Very Soul, which connects evidentiary mediums through a rigorous testing process.

Participants will carry a journal for three weeks and record entries immediately following each voice hearing occurrence. Journal entries will be the method of data collection as they provide participants with comfort to be most honest and reduce the possibility of forgetting details. Once three weeks of entries have been recorded, journals will be sent to the researcher and transcribed.

A thematic analysis will be executed on the journal entries with the intention of identifying patterns and techniques used while engaging with disembodied voices. Thematic analysis will provide researchers with insight into participants’ experiences with voice hearing and how they make meaning of their experience.

Results: The findings will consist of significant patterns and recurring techniques used by mediums to build mental boundaries to reduce and manage distress caused by the voice hearing phenomenon. These findings could deepen our understanding of the voice hearing phenomenon within the mediumship community and provide potential techniques for psychiatric voice hearers to introduce into a clinical environment. Learning these

techniques could reduce distress experienced and provide an opportunity to reclaim control over the choice to engage or not engage with disembodied voices.

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Taylor N. Robinson is a researcher at the University of West Georgia focusing on mediumship, voice hearing phenomena, and mental boundaries in parapsychological experiences.

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The Parapsychological Association is an international professional organization of scientists and scholars engaged in the study of psi (or ‘psychic’) experiences, such as telepathy, clairvoyance, psychokinesis, psychic healing, and precognition. The primary objective of the PA is to achieve a scientific understanding of these experiences.

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Published on April 7, 2026