Encyclopedia of Opinion

Question: Are psychics real?
Position1 of 2›: Yes, psychics are real
Argument‹3 of 3: Psychics possess ESP

Psychics have ESP (extrasensory perception), also known as the sixth sense which allows perception of events that have not happened.

The argument

Extrasensory perception, or the ability to see the future, is an ability that psychics are believed to possess. According to Dr Jennifer Hartstein, it is essentially "that gut instinct that we have. We think of it as this very 'out there' thing. The truth is it's that sense that you can predict something will happen." Many people fall under the assumption that ESP is something crazy and magical but really, we all possess ESP to some extent. Psychics are just those who have figured out how to harness that intuitive ability, and thus have essentially found the ability to predict the future. Psychics are real, and essentially anyone can be a psychic.

Premises

[P1]Proponents describe extrasensory perception (ESP) as a heightened form of the 'gut instinct' or intuitive sense that people use to anticipate what will happen. [P2] On this view everyone possesses some ESP, and psychics are simply those who have learned to harness that intuitive ability to predict the future. [C] Therefore, proponents conclude that psychics possess ESP and so that psychics are real.

Counter-arguments

The idea that a "gut feeling" allows predictions into the future does not make sense. Intuition is not necessarily accurate, it operates as a warning system for your body. It cannot predict the future.

Rejecting the premises

[Rejecting P1] The premise redefines its own subject. Describing ESP as an ordinary gut instinct concedes that nothing extrasensory is involved, since intuition is rapid inference from prior experience rather than perception of events that have not happened. A quotation reporting what an ability is believed to be does not establish that it exists. [Rejecting P2] The two halves cannot both hold. If everyone possesses the ability, its presence cannot be what distinguishes a psychic; and if some have harnessed it into reliable prediction, that is a claim demonstrable under controlled conditions. The premise offers no such demonstration, only the assertion that the skill has been learned.