Wake Forest professor details three factors behind reported ghost sightings

An American psychology professor has outlined the scientific factors behind reported ghost sightings in a new book. Melissa Mavio, a faculty member at Wake Forest University, said one in five people claim to have seen a ghost, while a large portion of the global population holds beliefs in supernatural events. Her research identifies three main factors contributing to such experiences. The first factor involves electromagnetic fluctuations found in certain environments, which can trigger dizziness and a sense of bodily alienation even when not consciously perceived. The second stems from illusions and sleep paralysis caused by stimulation of the temporoparietal junction in the brain, which converts fear-filled dream remnants into apparent real sounds and images. The third factor is supernatural belief itself, which the researcher describes as acting as a binding element bringing the other two together. Mavio cited experiments conducted in an abandoned theater where individuals told beforehand that the space was "haunted" reported seeing ghosts, while those not given that information did not. The professor presented her findings in the book titled "Science-Quran," according to the report.