Page 6 - 45The Paranormal

Charles H. Smith 15

chological research must be “based on the postulate that researchers must
believe what they are trying to prove before attempting to prove it.”6 S.
Rueda explores another kind of problem, noting how relatively little of the
literature from the Spanish-speaking world is surviving the language barri-
er to become better J. MacDonald connects various trends in
parapsychology research to the field of anthrop~logy.~ L. Vilenskaya sug-
gests that more emphasis should be placed on studying psi phenomena in
traditional culture^.^ J. Matlock considers another kind of problem by
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suggesting that parapsychology archives be established as a means for
“ensuring the systematic collection, preservation, and preparation for re-
search of parapsychological materials.” lo
Librarians may be little able to address most of these matters direcdy,
but we can still help things along by seeing to it that the greatest range of
perspectives and subjects is covered in our collections-no matter how
large or how small these may be. Considering the enormity of the level of
ignorance attached to the subject, it is especially important that the first
line of defense, the reference collection, be as well-rounded and current as
possible. To this end, and in the hope that even the mere perusal of its titles
will educate librarians as to the range of subjects and perspectives in-
volved, I have created the following bibliography.

A BIBLIOGRAPHY OF SERIALS AND REFERENCE WORKS
ON PARANORMAL SUBJECTS

In this compilation I attempt to draw together a list of titles which are
classics and/or are new and currently being collectedcirculated in signifi-
cant numbers. I have split the overall subjectas defined earlier-into
twelve subclasses; these are, briefly stated: Alchemy, Astrology, Magic,
Witchcraft, etc., UFOs, Curious Natural Phenomena, Ghosts, Psychical
and Seance Phenomena, Mysticism, Literary Sources, Miscellaneous Spe-
cial Subjects, and General Parapsychology/Occultism. Each section con-
tains a brief introduction, a list of (italicized) LC subject headings (with
classification numbers, as appropriate) and other keywords (unitalicized),
and lists of significant related serial and reference titles. Needless to say,
none of these lists approaches comprehensiveness!
To save space the amount of bibliographic information for each serial
and reference work title has been minimized to a state emphasizing identi-
fication alone. However, where relevant I have also mentioned the names
of sponsoring societies and associations, and a few other clarifying notes
on subject coverage or place of publication. I have also preceded those
items pertaining with the following symbols: