The Singapore Theory

OK, for some reason I've gotten slammed with emails this evening (which I enjoy!) asking about The Singapore Theory. First I've gotta say that I don't know how so many people are aware of this theory... because it's pretty obscure and is not widely used, at least not to my knowledge. I do have some friends that are members of paranormal groups that have used it with fairly successful results.

I've heard it called the Singapore Theory only once before. Most of the time, it's referred to as the Theory of Familiarization or simply Paranormal Stimuli.In essence, the theory is really basic. The method involves trying to recreate the environment, or a part of the environment, of a particuliar era during an investigation in an attempt to stimulate paranormal activity. The theory, in part, is based on familiarization, believing that if spirits occupying the location recognize the environment or something positive within it, they will become active and possibly show themselves in some form. The ultimate desire is for this theory to be so effective and stimulating that the end result is an apparition (but that of course is the "Holy Grail" of paranormal investigation anyway, right?). But that doesn't mean it's always a positive ending.

The method is usually put into action by playing music of different eras, or one exact era if you're focusing more on an individual situation. For example, if you're in a haunted ballroom from the early 1900's, you might play music from that era. If you're in a haunted hotel or saloon in Nevada, then the music of choice would most likely be "cowboy-type" music.

Another popular method of action would be to recreate the environment visually. This is most often seen in 19th century victorian styles homes that have been turned into an Inn or a Bed N Breakfast, for example. It is sometimes done unintentionally by owners attempting to restore a building to it's original state, complete with antique furniture and decorations from that era. A seldom used method is to play movies from an era. Different stimuli can yield very different results, according to the theory. If you're in a location that is very old, perhaps more than 100 years, try music or movies from different eras and see if any particuliar one is more popular than the other.

I personally have never seen active results from using the Singapore Theory. We were working with another group in southeast Georgia and that group fired up the theory, playing music from the early 1920's (if memory serves me). There was some activity after a few minutes or so... BUT, the activity we witnessed were signs of a Residual Haunting, NOT an active one. This group told me that everytime they used the method and witnessed phenomena, residual activity was the result.

This leads me to my own theory:While I do believe the Singapore Theory is well-founded and based on sound principles, I do not believe that it alone can stimulate "ACTIVE" paranormal phenomena. I think that it is more in-tune with stimulating residual-type hauntings. My belief is based on the theory of the residual haunting itself. Certain actions can "wake" residual hauntings, such as voices, position of people, funrniture and objects, strong emotions, fear, trauma and.... music and movies. The Singapore Theory, to me, falls into the catagory of a stimulant for a residual haunting.

This is a relatively new method for me, so as I gather more information I will post updates here and in the website.

Hope this answers some of your questions. If you have any thoughts on this topic, please post a response.

You can visit our forum to find out a little more about it and see updates on the theory.

http://theparanormalsociety.org/ghostboard/index.php/topic,13.0.html

Happy Hunting!

Chris

www.theparanormalsociety.org