déjà vu demystified

8/12/2019 Dj Vu Demystified

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Dj Vu Demystified: A Research Attempt to Provide a Concise Data about Dj vu

At some point in our lives, there comes an instance, be it a fleeting or a recurring one,

wherein we find ourselves saying Ive been here before, or thinking I feel like this isnt my

first time doing or experiencing this. And we are given a French term to call that unique feeling

we have - dj vu, which literally means "already seen." This dj vu experience is defined as

any subjectively inappropriate impression of familiarity of a present experience with an

undefinedpast (Neppe, 1983).

As popular as it may be in our popular culture through movies, books, songs and other

media, we often question the validity of our experience for the lack of proof or explanation we

can offer to other people. But the fact is, this concept of dj vu has a long history and is being

continually researched on to identify its scientific reasoning through surveys and laboratory

experiments.

A brief history of dj vu

There doesnt seem to be much awareness in the phenomenon, historically, until the early

part of the 1800s, except for St Augustines (354 - 430 AD) argument on his book On the

Trinity (Chapter XV, Book XII), which if analyzed, it could be considered as the earliest

reference to dj vu. The belief by St. Augustine that dj vu might be caused by outside

agencies will reappear in Frederic William Henry Myerss, one of the founding members of the

British Society for Psychical Research, two-part, book length article on what he called The

Subliminal Mind (1895) where he stated: I ascribe some precognitions to the reasoned

foresight of disembodied spirits, just as I ascribe some retrocognitions to their surviving

memory" (p. 340).


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A novel entitled Guy Mannering or the Astrologer (1815) by Sir Walter Scott will be

another earliest account that talks about dj vu experiences again, 1500 years since St.

Augustine. And though only published in 1840, the English poet Percy Bysshe Shelley seemed to

be among the firsts to see an obvious connection between his dj vu experiences and his prior

dreams as shown in his prose notes with the heading Catalogue of the Phenomena of Dreams, as

Connecting Sleeping and Waking.

Charles Dickens David Copperfield (1850) book passage: "We have all some

experience of a feeling, that comes over us occasionally, of what we are saying and doing having

been said and done before. in a remote time -- of our having been surrounded, dim ages ago, by

the same faces, objects, and circumstances -- of our knowing perfectly what will be said next, as

if we suddenly remembered it" (chap 39), is perhaps the most often cited in the dj vu literature

before it turned to a more scientific topic, among many other literature works.

The one who served as the bridge of dj vu to a more scientific thinking was Oliver

Wendell Holmes, an eminent Bostonian and Harvard Professor of Anatomy, when he published

his collection of thoughts entitled The Autocrat of the Breakfast Table (1858). But the earliest

published medical-scientific thinking on dj vu was Sir Arthur Wigans The Duality of the

Mind (1844)wherein he mentioned how he experienced dj vu when he attended the wake of

Princess Charlotte of Windsor in 1817.

From Sir Wigans experience, he concluded that dj vu only happens when someone isexhausted, making one hemisphere of the brain more or less inattentive or even asleep. Then

when it is awaken by something, the active hemisphere has already acknowledged the situation

while the other only digests its information after it. And since we dont have anything to base


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how much time has passed, that time interval may seem to have been many years (p. 85). His

book is actually surprising as to how he has predicted some of the most recent areas of

neurological studies.

Terminology

The term dj vu was first used in the scientific literature by mile Boirac, in his letter

published in Revue Philosophique (1876) wherein he mentioned le sentiment du dj vu,

describing his experiences and categorized them as a type of illusionary memory though his used

of the term was forgotten.

During the meeting of Societe Medico-Psychologique in 1895, Dr. M. Arnaud, a French

psychiatrist, officially proposed the term dj vu and objected that false recognition, false

memory, paramnesia and reminiscence were very extensive terminologies. Dr. Arnaud believed

that as dj vu means already seen it fitted more the phenomenon as it was experienced and is

more neutral in theory. A number of authors took this suggestion and the term was taken over in

popular jargon since it was short and straight to the point unlike dj vcu (already lived), as a

number of writers have wanted and would perhaps have been more precise, but it never became

famous.

Studies on dj vu

Though this dj vu phenomenon has now more than fifty different interpretations

(Brown, 2003, 2004), a strong and reliable explanations has yet to be done. Over these past

years, many scientists disregarded dj vu due to its constant association with past life

experiences, ESP, alien abductions and religion beliefs which gave the study of dj vu a bit of a

stigma. So now the question is why has the scientific study of dj vu remained so vague?


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According to Alan Brown (2004), two things are required to make a clear scientific

statement on any psychological phenomenon: a likely cause, and an observable behavior. And

too bad dj vu experience lacks both. A person can tell when it begins and how long it lasts, but

hardly has an idea about what caused it, and when you look at other people, you dont know if

theyre having a dj vu like you. Even the person experiencing himself the phenomenon will

have a hard time describing it.

Other seemingly odd things associated with dj vu also make scientists avoid this, as

stated previously, people feel that the events happening during a dj vu felt like have been

dreamt. And some claims a sense of precognition during dj vu, they know what will happen or

what will be said next by someone.

The theoretical foundation of dj vu research is another obstacle to its scientific scrutiny

since the experience was considered as a sign of pathology, rather than a routine memory glitch.

This past century dj vu was taken as seizure activity in the brain, specifically associated with

temporal lobe epilepsy (Crichton-Browne, 1895; Jackson, 1888). It has also been viewed as a

recognition disturbance linked with schizophrenia and other types of severe mental instability

(e.g. Harriman, 1947).

Two decades ago, if asked Is it possible to have a scientific study on dj vu? the

answer would have been No.But thanks to technological and research frontiers in the areas of

brain science and cognition, understanding the possible mechanisms underlying this memoryglitch is being continuously made.


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Brain malfunctions

An extensive research effort has been directed at determining if the dj vuexperience is

symptomatic of epilepsy(Brown, 2004). These investigations were stimulated by the presence of

dj vu in the pre-seizure aura of some temporal lobe epileptics. Although precisely locating

where the dj vu experience originates in the brain is clearly difficult, much of the evidence

gathered from patients who experience dj vu associated with epilepsy and brain tumors

suggests that the experience probably originates in the hippocampus and parahippocampal area

in the right hemisphere (Brown, 2004).

Another brain dysfunction that could possibly lead to dj vu involves a brief disruption

in the normal course of neural information transmission. Information is usually transmitted from

our sense organsto the higher brain centres in a rapid and dependably regular manner. Suppose

that a very brief delay occurs along one of these neural chains a slight disruption at one

juncture (synapse) between neurons. Our brain is accustomed to a precise rhythm in its circuitry,

and any disturbance gets its attention. When we trip over a rock, we immediately refocus our

attention on the act of walking.

Similarly, a slight neural hiccup changes our level of awareness, and we misinterpret this

as familiarity. The brain usually merges these separate neural messages, but a small temporal gap

creates the illusion of two separate experiences leading to dj vu.

Perhaps this temporal gap interpretation also explains the sense of precognition that

occasionally accompanies dj vu (see above vignette). If one focuses on the lagging message,

there is the feeling that this has happened before (dj vu). But if one focus on the leading

message, it elicits a sense of I know what will happen next (precognition) . Switching between


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the two messages could cause dj vu and precognition to alternate with each other during the

few fleeting moments of the experience.

How can we test some of these ideas? Recent advances in brain imaging and electrical

brain recording techniques may soon allow us to track small changes in the electrochemical

activity of very specific parts of the brain. Technology also is available to present visual and

auditory perceptual information asynchronously to each hemisphere, which could enable an

experimental laboratory analogue of the neural delay theory of dj vu (cf. Brown, 2004).

Memory-based theories

A second hypothesis involves another brain error; this time, the problem is with ourmemory, says Anne Cleary, a cognitive psychology professor at Colorado State University.

Something about a new situation or setting activates a memory of a similar past experience, but

our brains fail to recall it. Cleary offers this scenario to help explain: Imagine youre visiting

Paris for the first time, and you have arrived at the Louvre. Your gaze lands on the giant glass

pyramidjutting out of the museums main courtyard, and you get that strange feeling.

At that moment, your brain is failing to retrieve a memory that could explain it away: A

few months ago, you watched The Da Vinci Code, a film that provides an up-close look at the

Louvre Pyramid. In the absence of recalling that specific experience, Cleary says. Youre left

only with this feeling of familiarity with the current situation.

Cleary suspected that this sense of familiarity results from our ability to remember the

spatial configuration of surroundings. To test this hypothesis, she set out to induce dj vu in a

laboratory setting (PDF). Using the life simulation game The Sims, Cleary and her team built

two scenes, different in their features but identical in their layout. The first was a courtyard

setting featuring a potted tree in the center, encircled by various plants, and hanging plant


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baskets on the walls. The second was a museum setting that swapped the tree for a large statue,

the floor plants with rugs and the hanging baskets with sconces.

When participants explored the second room, they reported experiencing a feeling of dj

vu, but they couldnt connect that to their time spent navigating the first room. People do have

an increased sense of dj vu when the scene has a similar layout, but theyre failing to recall the

source of that familiarity, Cleary says.

Yet another possible explanation for dj vu, says Cleary, dates back to 1928, when

psychology Edward Titchener described the sensation using the example of crossing a street. As

we begin to cross a street, we instinctively look to the left, but if something catches our attentionon our right, we turn in that direction. By the time we look to our left again, our brains may have

forgotten the first glance. This second glance triggers a feeling of familiarity, because, in this

case, we really have seen something before.

In many cases, people who experience dj vu cant pinpoint why its happening. But for

what its worth, our brains are trying to tell us, Cleary says. Tip-of-the-tongue experiences work

in much the same way: for instance, we know that we know the name of that actor in that one

movie, but we cant pull it to the front of our minds. When retrieval does fail, our memories still

have a way of alerting us to the fact that theres something relevant in there, she says. Theres

something there that maybe we want to keep searching for.

Dj vu and psychological disorders

Early researchers tried to establish a link between dj vu and serious mental disorders

such as schizophrenia, anxiety, and dissociative identity disorder, but failed to find the

experience of some diagnostic value. There does not seem to be a special association between

dj vu and schizophrenia or other psychiatric conditions. The strongest pathological association


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of dj vu is with temporal lobe epilepsy. This correlation has led some researchers to speculate

that the experience of dj vu is possibly a neurological anomaly related to improper electrical

discharge in the brain. As most people suffer a mild (i.e. non-pathological) epileptic episode

regularly (e.g. a hypnagogic jerk, the sudden "jolt" that frequently, but not always, occurs just

prior to falling asleep), it is conjectured that a similar (mild) neurological aberration occurs in the

experience of dj vu, resulting in an erroneous sensation of memory. Scientists have even

looked into genetics when considering dj vu. Although there is not currently a gene associated

with dj vu, the LGII gene on chromosome 10 is being studied for a possible link. Certain forms

of the gene are associated with a mild form of epilepsy and, though by no means a certainty, djvu occurs often enough during seizures that researchers have reason to suspect a link.

Drugs and deja vu

Certain drugs increase the chances of dj vu occurring in the user. Some pharmaceutical

drugs, when taken together, have also been implicated in the cause of dj vu. Taiminen and

Jskelinen (2001) reported the case of an otherwise healthy male who started experiencing

intense and recurrent sensations of dj vu upon taking the drugs amantadine and

phenylpropanolamine together to relieve flu symptoms. He found the experience so interesting

that he completed the full course of his treatment and reported it to the psychologists to write up

as a case study. Due to the dopaminergic action of the drugs and previous findings from

electrode stimulation of the brain (e.g. Bancaud, Brunet-Bourgin, Chauvel, & Halgren, 1994),

Taiminen and Jskelinen speculate that dj vu occurs as a result of hyperdopaminergic action

in the mesial temporal areas of the brain.


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Divided attention (the cell phone theory)

Dr. Alan Brown has attempted to recreate a process that he thinks is similar to dj vu. In

studies at Duke University and SMU, he and colleague Elizabeth Marsh put the idea of

subliminal suggestion to the test. They showed photographs of various locations to a group of

students, with the plan to ask them which locations were familiar. Prior to showing them some of

the photographs, however, they flashed the photos onto the screen at subliminal speeds -- around

10 to 20 milliseconds -- which is long enough for the brain to register the photo but not long

enough for the student to be consciously aware of it. In these experiments, the images that had

been shown subliminally were familiar at a much higher rate than those that were not -- eventhough those students who had actually been to those locations had been pulled from the study.

Larry Jacoby and Kevin Whitehouse of Washington University did similar studies using lists of

words with similar results using lists of words.

Based on this idea, Alan Brown proposed what he calls the cell phone theory (or divided

attention). This means that when we are distracted with something else, we subliminally take in

what's around us but may not truly register it consciously. Then, when we are able to focus on

what we are doing, those surroundings appear to already be familiar to us even when they

shouldn't be.

With this in mind, it is reasonable to see how we might walk into a house for the first

time, perhaps while talking to our host, and experience dj vu. It would work like this: before

we've actually looked at the room, our brains have processed it visually and/or by smell or

sound, so that when we actually look at it we get a feeling that we've been there before.


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Other theories on dj vu

Some researchers also report that the more tired or stressed you are, the more likely you

are to experience dj vu. Other researchers, however, have seen just the opposite. They report

that the more refreshed and relaxed you are, the more likely you are to experience dj vu.

Obviously, the jury is still out about a lot of things related to dj vu.

One reported finding is that the more open-minded or politically liberal a person is, the

more likely they are to experience dj vu. However, this may also mean that the more open-

minded you are, the more likely you are to talk about something potentially seen as "weird," like

dj vu.

The hologram theory

Dutch psychiatrist Hermon Sno proposed the idea that memories are like holograms,

meaning that you can recreate the entire three-dimensional image from any fragment of the

whole. The smaller the fragment, however, the fuzzier the ultimate picture. Dj vu, he says,

happens when some detail in the environment we are currently in (a sight, sound, smell, et

cetera) is similar to some remnant of a memory of our past and our brain recreates an entire

scene from that fragment.

Other researchers also agree that some small piece of familiarity may be the seed that

creates the dj vu feeling. For example, you might go for a ride with a friend in an old 1964

Plymouth and have a strong dj vu experience without actually remembering (or even being

aware of the fact) that your grandfather had the same type of car and you're actually


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remembering riding in that car as a small child. Things like the smell and the look and feel of the

seat or dashboard can bring back memories you didn't even know you had.

Dual processing (or delayed vision)

Another theory is based on the way our brain processes new information and how it

stores long- and short-term memories. Robert Efron tested an idea at the Veterans Hospital in

Boston in 1963 that stands as a valid theory today. He proposed that a delayed neurological

response causes dj vu. Because information enters the processing centers of the brain via more

than one path, it is possible that occasionally that blending of information might not synchronize

correctly.

Efron found that the temporal lobe of the brain's left hemisphere is responsible for sorting

incoming information. He also found that the temporal lobe receives this incoming information

twice with a slight (milliseconds-long) delay between transmissions -- once directly and once

again after its detour through the right hemisphere of the brain. If that second transmission is

delayed slightly longer, then the brain might put the wrong timestamp on that bit of information

and register it as a previous memory because it had already been processed. That could explain

the sudden sense of familiarity.

"Memories" from other sources

This theory proposes that we have many stored memories that come from many aspects

of our lives, including not only our own experiences but also movies, pictures we've seen and

books we've read. We can have very strong memories of things we've read about or seen without

actually experiencing, and over time, these memories may be pushed back in our minds. When in


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we see or experience something that is very similar to one of those memories, we might

experience a feeling of dj vu.

For example, as a child we may have seen a movie that had a scene in a famous

restaurant or at a famous landmark. Then, as an adult, we visit the same location without

remembering the movie, and the location appears to be very familiar to us.

Types of dj vu

Defining types of dj vu is a very slippery area. Those who have studied it have applied

their own categories and differentiations -- each usually tied to a specific theory about what

causes dj vu. Alan Brown, a professor of psychology at South Methodist University and author

of "The Dj Vu Experience: Essays in Cognitive Psychology," has three categories for dj vu.

He believes there is dj vu caused by biological dysfunction (e.g., epilepsy), implicit familiarity

and divided perception. In 1983, Dr. Vernon Neppe, Director of the Pacific Neuropsychiatric

Institute in Seattle, proposed four subcategories of dj vu, including epileptic, subjective

paranormal, schizophrenic and associative.

Taking a very broad look at the research and resources available, we can put dj vu

experiences into two categories and then see the more subtle distinctions that researchers have

placed on it:

Associative dj vu. The most common type of dj vu experienced by normal, healthy

people is associative in nature. You see, hear, smell or otherwise experience something that stirs

a feeling that you associate with something you've seen, heard, smelled or experienced before.

Many researchers think that this type of dj vu is a memory-based experience and assume that

the memory centers of the brain are responsible for it.


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Biological dj vu. There are also high occurrences of dj vu among people with

temporal lobe epilepsy. Just before having a seizure they often experience a strong feeling of

dj vu. This has given researchers a slightly more reliable way of studying dj vu, and they've

been able to identify the areas of the brain where these types of dj vu signals originate.

However, some researchers say that this type of dj vu is distinctly different from typical dj

vu. The person experiencing it may truly believe they've been through the exact situation before,

rather than getting a feeling that quickly passes.

Below are names for some of the many ways in which the dj experience may manifest:

dj entendu - already heard

dj prouv - already experienced

dj fait - already done

dj pens - already thought

dj racont - already recounted

dj senti - already felt, smelt

dj su - already known (intellectually)

dj trouv - already found (met)

dj vcu - already lived

dj voulu - already desired


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Neppe (in conjunction with Prof. B. G. Rogers, Professor of French, University of the

Witwatersrand) in 1981 suggested the following additional terms:

dj arriv - already happened

dj connu - already known (personal knowing)

dj dit - already said/spoken (content of speech)

dj gout - already tasted

dj lu - already read

dj parl - already spoken (act of speech)

dj pressenti - already sensed

dj rencontr - already met

dj rv - already dreamt

dj visit - already visited

Dj rencontr appears preferable to dj trouv for the already met experience because it

specifically relates to interpersonal situations

Methodology

With that knowledge on dj vu in mind, the researcher conducted a small and limited

interview and survey of peoples understanding and experience of dj vu which will later on be

analyzed in terms of the existing researchers regarding dj vu.


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The interview was done on the researchers selected family and friends asking them their

basic understanding of dj vu, and their beliefs of the causes behind it. While the survey was

designed after the online survey provided by Dr. Art Funkhouser, was modified and was

conducted online to ten participants only.

Results and discussion

The following were the questions asked during the interview, with the participants

answers:

Question #1 Are youfamiliar withdj vu?

Have youexperiencedit?

What are your general experiences with it?

Participant 1 Yes. Yes. Napanaginipan ko na bago pa man mangyari to. . .Parang narinig o nakita ko na ito.

Participant 2 Yes. Yes. Pamilyar sa kin ang isang lugar kahit hindi ko panapuntahanAlam ko na kung anong susunod namangyayari. Tipong kilala ko na yung isang taongbaong kilala pa lang . . .

Participant 3 No. No. Wala talaga akong maalala eh.

Participant 4 Not sure. Maybe. Baka gusto akong kausapin ng isang multo, o alien,o ng Diyos. Parang premonisyon, ang galing. Saprobinsya kasi kapag ganyan baka babala rin yan.

Participant 5 Yes. Yes. Parang nangyari na kahit hindi pa, parangnapuntahan ko na, narinig, nabasa, nakilala kahit firsttime ko lang talaga na-encounter.

Question 1 in the interview lets the participants tackle their own familiarity with dj vu

by letting them discuss their different experiences they consider as dj vu. The things they

mentioned are surprisingly under the different types of dj vu as stated earlier.

Question #2 What do you think are the causes/reasons behind dj vu?Participant 1 Yun nga. Kasi napanaginipan ko na.

Participant 2 Coincidence lang siguro.

Participant 3 Baka maling akala lang yan nung mga taong sabi naka-experience na ng dj vu.

Participant 4 Milagro. Diyos lang angmay-alam. Kailangang manalig na lang tayo at magdasal.

Participant 5 Baka nakalimutan ko lang yung iba. Baka sabog lang utak ko nun. Sobrang pagod.Nagkataon lang.


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In question 2, their own theories on the reasons they think why dj vu happens were

discussed. References to dreams, fate, false memory, brain fatigue and even religion belief were

mentioned. Though not all of these are considered scientific, these are still included under the

theories linked with dj vu, as stated earlier in the paper.

For the survey, here are the results of the different set of questions asked to the

participants, but this time their identity was not asked:

Have you ever experienced dj vu?

Yes No Not Sure

7 2 1

Table 1. Familiarity with deja vu

Out of the ten participants, two have not experienced it, which means that they did not

have to answer the next questions.

You've mainly experienced ...

Dj visit (already been to a place - "been

there")

6

Dj vcu (already lived through or experienced) 4

Dj entendu (already heard) 4

Dj gut (already tasted) 4

Dj connu (already known personally) 3

Dj dit (already said) 3

Dj prsenti (had a presentiment)

Dj rv (already dreamt) 6

Some other form of dj experience 1

Table 2. Types of deja vu

Here they were asked to check all that apply with the results showing that dj visit

(been there) and dj rv (already dreamt) were the most common types of dj vu

garnering six occurrences over the eight participants.


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Frequency Have you ever had an experience in whichyou recognized that something which wasjust happening had also happened beforebut, at the same time, you also knew thatthis was not possible (dj vcu)?

Have you ever gone to a newplace but were able to recognizeit like you had been there beforebut, at the same time, you knewthat this was not possible (djvisite)?

Never 3 3

Just Once 1 1

More than Once 4 4

Table 3. Two initial questions leading to the questionnaire

The researcher decided to include asking the two most common types of deje vu

experience. As the results showed, half of the participants have at least experienced it more than

once. Though three out of eight answered they have never experienced both, which may implythat they have experienced other types of dj vu (as checked with their answers in table 2).

These two questions are important aspect for the subsequent set of questions.

How frequently did you have theseexperiences?

daily 0

a few times aweek

0

weekly 1monthly 1

rarely in a year 6

Table 4. Frequency of dj vu experience

How often the participants experience dj vu showed that majority have it rarely in a

year, implying that this phenomenon is indeed an elusive one, supported by their next answers.

What was the

shortest span oftime thisoccurred?

What would you

estimate was atypical span oftime?

What was the

longest span oftime thisoccurred?

a fleeting instant 2 3 2

a few seconds 4 0 0

several seconds 1 3 1

a minute to fewminutes

02 4

more than a few 1 0 0


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more minutes butless than an hour

an hour or more 0 0 0

Table 5. Length of dj vu experience

Table 5 shows the length the participants experience dj vu which the shortest is a few

seconds, longest is a minute to few minutes with a typical time span of a fleeting instant to

several seconds. This supports the studies that aside from being elusive, dj vu is short-lived

making it hard for memory retention or recall and validity whether its really happened or not.

How old were you when you hadthe first such experience?(estimate)

before attendingprimary school

0

duringelementary

2

during highschool 2

during college 1

can't remember 3

Table 6. Age of first dj vu experience

The first experience of dj vu of the participants is hard to determine as shown in the

table since they cant really remember it or may not be aware that what they have experienced is

considered as dj vu.

Table 7. Retained memory of dj vu experience

Though as shown in table 5 (length of dj vu experience happens so fast and within a

short period of time only), the participants claimed that they can remember very clearly to

somewhat clear their dj vu experiences rather than vaguely.

How well can you remember whathappened during the experience?

very clearly 4

somewhat clear 4

vaguely 0


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How do suchexperiences typicallybegin?

How do suchexperiences typicallyend?

suddenly 3 1

gradually 4 5

I don't remember 1 2

Table 8. Occurrence speed of dj vu

How fast or slow the phenomenon occurs and ends to the participants are majorly

gradual. This may be due to the processing that takes place within the brain, whether it accepts or

rejects the phenomena, weighing and eliminating what is acceptable and what is not.

How would you describe your typical state ofalertness during such experiences?

hyperalert 2normal consciousness 6

my mind was dull 0

Table 9. Mental state during dj vu

Table 9 shows that the participants have normal consciousness when they are undergoing

the dj vu experience with 6 of them claiming this, while only 2 claimed to be hyperalert and

none was having a passive mental state.

Has there been any change in the frequency of these experiences?

they have just started happening to me 1

they now occur more often 0

there has been no change in how often they occur 3

they happen less often now 3

they seem to have stopped happening 1

Table 10. Changes in frequency of dj vu experience

This can be correlated to table 4 (Frequency of dj vu experience) which has a result of

the participants experiencing it rarely within a year and here it is a tie between that frequency

being the same and it becoming more rarely as of the moment.

How much of the situation you were in wasincluded in your experience?

all of it 0


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most of it 5

only a few details 2

I don't remember 1

Table 11. Similarity of dj vu experience with prior memory

This part tries to determine the accuracy of their dj vu experience with their

preconceived memory of it and it shows that the participants consider that most of it are the

same with each other. This implies their sureness with their experience to be labeled under

dj vu.

How well did your "memory" of the situation tallywith what actually took place?

precisely (inevery detail)

0

to a large extent 2

to some extent 4

only a few details 1

i don't remember 1

Table 12. Retained memory of dj vu experience version 2

This retelling of the question presented in table 11 to somewhat achieve a sense of

validity in the participants answers and this creates a conflict with the previous generalization

since here they claimed that their preconceived memory of the dj vu experience is only up to

some extent.

Did you ever have the impression that you knew in advance what was goingto happen before it took place in such an experience?

yes 8

no 0

I don't remember 0

Table 13. Dj vcu (already lived through or experienced)

Table 13 tries to test again the validity of the participants answers by rephrasing the

question asked in table 1 (familiarity with dj vu) and the expected result was 7 answering

yes and 1 in I dont remember since in table 1 7 answered yes and 1 answered not sure.


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But this is still considered valid since the series of questions asked after the first question in the

survey might have helped the participant reconfirm his statement of whether having experienced

dj vu or not.

How were the experiences for you?

Pleasant Unpleasant Frightening Reassuring Stunning

all 2 0 1 0 2

some 6 5 5 7 6

none 0 3 2 1 0

Table 14. Emotional feelings during dj vu experience

This part maybe considered as an extra scope, but not the main focus of the study, since

this tackles the different emotions the participants have felt during their dj vu experience.

Though it is still nice to know what kind of feelings dj vu makes when being experienced.

Do you have an explanation of howthis can occur?

no explanation ortheory

1

some glitch inbrain functioning

3

due to tirednessor fatigue

4

for somethingsimilar (seen orread about)

3

reincarnation 3

dreams 7

Table 15. Theory on dj vu experience

Table 15 gives a very good association of the survey to what the participants think the

reason/s behind their dj vu experience to the established (though still bound to be changed

academically speaking) theories on dj vu discussed at the earlier part of the paper. Though they

dont really have a prior knowledge of these theories, its a point to be taken that this part

supports the idea that psychology somewhat just needs common sense to explain things (this is

the researchers opinion only, no offense to all the psychologists and other people) . The table


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shows that dreams is the most popular theory believed by the participants. This supports the

results in table 2 (types of dj vu) which shows that dj rv (already dreamt) is the most

common type experienced by the participants. And since that is the most common type, they

linked the dreams as the mechanisms behind.

If you have an explanation or theory, how certain are you that it is true?

very certain 1

somewhat certain 5

not certain at all 2

Table 16. Certainty on dj vu experience

This part tests the conviction of the participants on the theory they believed is the reason

behind dj vu. It shows a positive result of them being somewhat certain in it.

Conclusion

The researcher thinks that what matters in this research is not the quantity of participants

or the validity of the results of the interview and survey as a contribution to the academic study

of dj vu, but the exposure and knowledge gained during the process. As discussed, even today

dj vu has no hard-rock scientific explanations to either debunk or support existing theories

on why it happens or is being experienced. The difficulty to operational this phenomenon

makes it hard for the professional scientists, what more for a mere student of a general course

in Psychology. The whole essence of things goes back to the reason why this whole study was

done, and that is for learning and unlocking a Psych mystery. The researcher would like to end

thisby saying this research has given a feel like a boss confidence after this was successfully

ended.


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