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What are Ouija boards? -

A Ouija board is a device used to communicate with the dead. Also known as a spirit board or talking board, it is usually a flat piece of wood with the alphabet and numbers 0 to 9.

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What are Ouija boards? -

These boards also usually have the words "yes" and "no" written on them. Some can also contain the words "hello" and "goodbye."

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How do they work? -

There is usually an additional piece. Traditionally a planchette holding a pencil was used. Spirits in contact would use it to write down messages.

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How do they work? -

These have evolved to a more simple non-writing pointing device (or sometimes even an upturned glass was used). Either way, the idea is that spirits use energy to communicate messages through these.

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Where do they come from? -

Ouija boards as we known them were popularized by Spiritualists in the United States in the late 19th century.

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Where do they come from? -

Though before Ouija boards as we know them, these were known as “talking boards.” They became popular during the American Civil War, when mediums would exploit grieving families who wanted to contact deceased loved ones.

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Where do they come from? -

The Ouija board was introduced in the market by businessman Elijah Bond in 1890 and was sold as a parlor game. This until American spiritualist Pearl Curran (pictured) made it popular among fans of the supernatural.

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Where do they come from? -

But before the birth of the Ouija boards most of us are familiar with, there were other similar devices. The first record dates back to 1100 CE China.

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Chinese Ouija board -

The ancient Chinese system of automatic writing was called fuji, or "planchette writing." Its use was popular during the Song Dynasty, but it was eventually forbidden during the Qing Dynasty.

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Religious response -

The popularity of Ouija boards was not welcomed by many religions. In fact, most religions condemn any practice of divination, and Ouija boards are no exception.

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Catholic response -

One Roman Catholic Christian apologetics organization stated that: "The Ouija board is far from harmless, as it is a form of divination (seeking information from supernatural sources)."

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Popularity of Ouija boards -

From sleepovers to Halloween parties, many of us have dabbled with Ouija boards. You had to put your finger on the planchette or pointer...and it moved!

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What's really going on with Ouija boards? -

For over 130 years, these tools have amazed (and frightened) many people, and indeed enticed the curiosity of skeptics to discover what was really going on.

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What's really going on with Ouija boards? -

A 1891 advertisement challenged the scientific community. It claimed that “for the scientific or thoughtful its mysterious movements invite the most careful research and investigation—apparently forming the link which unites the known with the unknown.”

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How does it move? -

The answer is actually quite simple: it moves because of the so-called ideomotor effect (also known as ideomotor response or reflex). This is essentially an unconscious, involuntary physical movement performed by our bodies.

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Brain signals -

Our bodies sometimes move, even when we try not to. Your brain essentially signals your body to move without you constantly wanting to.

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Ideomotor effect -

“The thing about all these mechanisms we’re talking about, dowsing rods, Ouija boards, pendulums, these small tables, they’re all devices whereby quite a small muscular movement can cause quite a large effect,” explains Dr. Chris French, professor of psychology and anomalistic psychology at Goldsmiths, University of London.

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Ideomotor effect -

Assistant professor Marc Andersen from Denmark’s Aarhus University gives an example: “If you think about kissing your partner, for instance, you're inclined to just lean a little bit forward without really thinking about it.”

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What about the messages? -

It’s all very well that the pointer moves through our involuntary movements, but how about the messages themselves? Do they come from our subconscious minds, or do they come from the dead?

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What about the messages? -

Well, that's us, too. “Once it starts to spell something, inevitably, you're trying to guess, even if you're not doing it consciously. If you ask, ‘What's your name?’ and it goes to the letter p, and then e, you're automatically thinking ‘Peter.’ Probably everybody else around the board is also thinking ‘Peter.’ And that's what is likely to be then spelt out,” says Dr. French.

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Zombie mind -

Maybe we can use a Ouija board to tap into our subconscious? Well, according to a 2012 study, it sounds like we might just be able to do that.

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Zombie mind -

“There's been more and more evidence that there's two systems, one which is conscious and one which is non-conscious, sometimes called the zombie mind,” explains Ronald Rensink, an associate professor of psychology and computer science at the University of British Columbia.

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Zombie mind -

“Your conscious mind says, ‘I’m just gonna give up because I'm not in complete control,’ in which case your zombie system then takes over,” adds Rensink.

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The dark side of the ideomotor effect -

Unfortunately, the ideomotor effect is also behind many other faux therapies, hoaxes, and scams.

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The dark side of the ideomotor effect -

These include demonic possessions. The person indeed believes he/she is possessed, meaning that the ideomotor effect will kick in, and the person will lose control of the body.

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Dowsing -

Dowsing, a type of divination used to locate numerous things (e.g. groundwater, gemstones, oil, etc.), is also a good example of the ideomotor effect in action.

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The Ouija board in popular culture -

Ouija boards have been part of pop culture for many years. For example, it is an essential piece in  the plot of the horror classic ‘The Exorcist’ (1973).

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We want to believe -

The appeal of the supernatural dates back to the dawn of humanity, so it’s natural that we want to believe. This makes users of Ouija boards think they are indeed experiencing something real.

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Psychological tool -

Ultimately, Ouija boards and similar devices might, after all, be useful in the study of our brain and the link between our conscious and non-conscious thought processes. But you're not communicating with the dead!

Sources: (Smithsonian Magazine) (Vox) (Discover Magazine) 

See also: Tricks psychics don't want you to know

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