I listen to a lot of Podcasts while I write. There is something about it that I find rather easy to deal with and have limited effect on the scenes that I'm writing. Anyway, I was listening to a Podcast from Beyond Reality (normally with Jason Hawes and Grant Wilson aka TAPS), but this night it was an interview with a substitute co-host Adam Blai (sorry if the spelling is off). They were talking about the dangers of those groups who jump into the field of ghost hunting without having all of the regulations in place that will protect them and help to determine the real need of the prospective clients. They suggest that a lot of groups are so excited to get an assignment that they forgo some of the necessary preliminaries that should be in place. They broke it down into a couple of areas. Interview of clients and activity and safety concerns and considerations (for group and client).
When it comes to the preanalysis there is no easy way to do this. You must take the time to investigate the need before you can investigate the paranormal responses. One needs only look at the response of the TV viewing audience to realize the incredible outpouring, and ultimately, the sudden awareness that shows like GhostHunters has increased. The idea of wanting to know what happens beyond this lifetime is not a new idea, but with the "magic" of television it feeds our need for instanteous information. To pursue answers without taking into account what work really needs to be done.
- They suggest that you do a background check on the person. If this is available it would be helpful.
- Do an interview with the client in an everyday setting to establish normalcy.
- Ask the delicate questions that maybe will allude to possible indicators, such as mental illness, abnormal behavior, etc.
- Never go alone. This really should be a no brainer, but the reality is that you shouldn't put yourself at risk to investigate just because you don't want to pass up the opportunity.
Protect yourselves and your group and even your credibility.
- For liability reasons you should be thorough before you go into a situation. Other outside factors such as depression, medication, illness, etc. can make the situation to be heightened. If you suspect that someone may need medical help then the responsible thing would be to see that the person gets attention without endangering yourself. The best situation would be to check out all possibilities BEFORE investigating and thus not putting everyone in danger.
- Another reason for protecting yourself against liability is the fact that you are wandering around someone's house in the middle of the night looking for something that could possibly hurt you.
- And protect your credibility by acting in a professional and responsible manner. You are there to investigate things that would normally scare other people. Know your own limitations before going into a situation so that you don't do something that could discredit the investigation.
All of thise are great things to consider. And by no means is this a full inventory of items. But those in the field for some time will tell you the importance of being prepared before you investigate.
