Stages of paranormal belief, part 2

Yesterday I put up a humorous graphic, but I was actually pretty serious about the stages.  Let me list them out here for easier discussion:

The stages of paranormal belief

1. Ignorance -- at this point, one simply doesn't know about the paranormal subject in question.  The immediate reaction is usually something pretty much like "WTF?"  A reaction like that preserves our sense of "cool" without exposing us too much to a charge of idiocy.

2. Cognitive dissonance -- at this point we compare the world as we know it with the world as it would have to be to accomodate the paranormal elements we just learned about.  This period is usually not very long because humans cannot stand the acute sense of discomfort aroused by cognitive dissonance.

3. Ridicule of the subject -- It's important to note that the laughter engendered here is not like that from a joke.  This is a defensive maneuver which protects the psyche from fear.  No amount of evidence suffices to bring the ridiculer out of this stance, as it is perceived as much too dangerous to budge from it.  The fear is too great.  (I think it's fair to say that we only ridicule that which we fear in some way.)  Many people stay at this level because to progress further requires actual experience with the paranormal subject under consideration.

4.  Experience -- at this level, one has actually experienced the paranormal subject personally.  Here it is usually no longer possible to hold off the cognitive dissonance with defense measures like ridicule.  Other strategies have to be found.  (It is true that some people will simply lie to themselves and return to level 3.)  For people who have experienced the truly strange, the beginning of their psychic misadventures might start right here.  These folks will quickly pass through the prior levels and go on to level 5.

5. Become an investigator -- One prominent defense against the unknown is to try assiduously to make it known.  Whether one joins an organization, or simply begins to study on ones own, the emphasis is on learning as much about the subject as one can to try to gain a sense of control.

6.  Attain a state of knowing -- Here at last we can rest that we have met the unknown and conquered it.  Note that the state of "knowing" here need not be actually reflective of reality.  For example, no matter what the truth is, the belief that "Bigfoot is a relic hominid" would be protective enough of the psyche that it will serve.  At this point, the new belief is defended as vigorously as the prior disbelief.  In a way, we have returned to level 3, only now with an element of belief rather than stark disbelief.

I think we have to realize that, being human, we follow this pattern.  I do it.  You do it.  We all do it.

I want to get off this merry-go-round.  I think the only way to do that is to talk about all aspects of experience and examine them and the fear they arouse critically.  It might be that the fear is itself a major component of the experience, and integral to understanding the effects of paranormal encounters.  Paranormal encounters might, in fact, have as their purpose exposure of that fear.

It would be strange to think of paranormal experiences as having a purpose, but my own experience of this world suggests to me that we come here as students.