Italian psychologist and consciousness researcher Patrizio Tressoldi (University of Padua) does not restrict his work to meta-analyses of existing data. Through highly controlled experimental research, he continuously expands the empirical foundation of mediumship studies. A particularly notable study appeared in 2022 in the renowned peer-reviewed journal OMEGA – Journal of Death and Dying: "Is There Someone in the Hereafter? Mediumship Accuracy of 100 Readings Obtained with a Triple Level of Blinding Protocol" (Tressoldi, Liberale & Sinesio).
Study Design: Triple-Blind Protocol
The most frequent scientific critique of mediumship readings argues that results can be explained by cold reading (interpreting sitters' body language or verbal feedback) or *hot reading* (prior social media research). To strictly eliminate all conventional information channels, the research team implemented a triple-blind study design:
- Blinding Level 1 (Medium): The 28 participating mediums received no contact details, names, or photos of the sitter or the deceased. They worked solely with an anonymous ID.
- Blinding Level 2 (Sitter / Bereaved): The sitter was not in the room nor connected online during the reading. No real-time interaction was possible to convey body language, vocal cues, or emotional feedback.
- Blinding Level 3 (Evaluator & Matching): Neither the experimenter nor the sitters knew during evaluation which transcript belonged to which deceased individual. Sitters were presented two transcribed readings under blind conditions.
Decoy Design: Target vs. Control Readings
To test whether information received by mediums was specific to the intended deceased person or merely consisted of generic statements (the Barnum effect), a rigorous decoy design was used:
Each sitter received two anonymized transcripts:
- The **Target Reading** (conducted specifically for their deceased loved one).
- A **Decoy Reading** (a control reading conducted for another deceased person of the same gender and similar age).
The sitters' task was to score both readings item by item for accuracy and select which transcript belonged to their deceased relative, without knowing which was theirs.
Results: p = 0.000048 (1 in 20,833)
In total, **100 readings** were performed by **28 qualified mediums**. Statistical analysis yielded unambiguous results:
- Matching Accuracy: In **67 out of 100 cases**, sitters correctly identified their target reading rather than the decoy control reading under blind conditions. Under pure chance, expected accuracy was 50%.
- Statistical Significance: The calculated p-value was **p = 0.000048**. This indicates that the probability of obtaining such a result by chance alone is approximately **1 in 20,833**.
Why This Study Sets New Benchmarks
The OMEGA study by Tressoldi, Liberale & Sinesio (2022) is groundbreaking for several reasons:
1. Complete Exclusion of Cold & Hot Reading: Because mediums had neither visual nor auditory contact with sitters and identities were anonymized, cold reading, body language cues, and internet research are fully ruled out.
2. Replication of Windbridge Standards: The study confirms and extends findings from the Windbridge Research Center (Dr Julie Beischel), which has employed quadruple- and quintuple-blind protocols for years.
3. Published in an Established Peer-Reviewed Journal: *OMEGA – Journal of Death and Dying* (SAGE Publishing) is a respected scientific journal published since 1970 in thanatology and end-of-life studies.
Conclusion
The 2022 OMEGA study provides highly significant experimental evidence that mediums under triple-blind conditions can receive verifiable and specific information not transmitted through known physical sensory channels. It demonstrates that scientific rigor and exploring frontier questions in consciousness research can go hand in hand.
Sources: Patrizio Tressoldi, Luciano Liberale, & Fernando Sinesio: Is There Someone in the Hereafter? Mediumship Accuracy of 100 Readings Obtained with a Triple Level of Blinding Protocol. OMEGA – Journal of Death and Dying, 2022 (SAGE Journals, doi:10.1177/00302228221115556).
Further reading: Explore our articles on Cold Reading and our feature on Windbridge Research by Dr Julie Beischel.