-
Locate a
site in which you have probable cause* to believe paranormal
activity may be taking place.
-
Research
the selected site and outlying area for any significant historical
events which would indicate the potential for paranormal activity.
This research will either confirm or deny the probable cause which
you may be performing your investigation under.
-
If probable
cause is confirmed by the initial research, continue researching and
gathering historical evidence so that external support for the
probable cause may be firmly established. If probable cause is not
established it is recommended that the investigator should select
another site.
-
Once the
pre-investigation research is complete you should contact the site
owner to receive permission to enter and investigate the area. If
the investigation site is on public land notify the proper
authorities such as the police.
-
Once
permission is received to investigate the site you should begin
coordination and confirmation of your personnel who will attend the
investigation, the time that the investigation is to begin and the
date on which the investigation will take place. Also, it is
recommended at this time that you select the proper equipment that
you will take to the site to perform the investigation with.
-
Conduct
witness interviews and complete all related documentation about one
week prior to the investigation if possible. The interview is
performed about one week in advance so that the influence of
suggestion will have a lesser psychological impact on the
investigation. If the witness must be interviewed on the day of the
investigation, or at the site, that is acceptable if it is the only
alternative.
-
On the day
of the investigation all investigators should perform a
pre-investigation check of the equipment that they will be using to
be sure that it is functioning correctly.
-
About an
hour before the investigation, or as close to the actual
investigation time as possible, check various influential
environmental factors such as solar flares, geomagnetic activity and
moon phase. Document all factors which may affect the outcome of the
investigation.
-
When the
investigation crew arrives at the site a central meeting place
should be established and the perimeter of the site should be
secured to prevent a breech of the investigation scene.
-
When all
members of the investigation crew have arrived and gathered at the
appointed meeting site you should then perform a pre-investigation
briefing, safety check and review of S&P (if necessary) with all
personnel who are to be in the “hot zone” (active investigation
area) or on site while the investigation is taking place.
-
At the
completion of the pre-investigation briefing the investigation
itself should begin. Perform a through, systematic and scientific
investigation of the site in accordance with the accepted standards
and protocols of the organization that you are working with.
-
Once the
investigation is completed all members of the investigation crew
should meet at the central location for a debriefing meeting. When
the debriefing meeting is complete all investigators should gather
their equipment and exit the site.
-
Analyze the
data collected at the investigation off site and cross reference
your findings with the findings of the other investigators who
attended the investigation. While analyzing the media evidence
(photos, EVP, video, etc.) you should document, in detail, all
photographic anomalies, EVP findings and video evidence in your
investigation reports at the time they are discovered.
-
Fill out
all investigation related documents and reports. File these reports
for cross examination when a follow up investigation is performed.
Send an investigation analysis report and other evidence to
investigation site owner if necessary.
-
Schedule a
post investigation follow-up at the site, if possible, and if enough
supporting evidence and data has been found. If enough evidence has
been collected to warrant a follow up investigation you should then
follow the progressive steps as stated above using only the ones
that would pertain to a follow up investigation. It is not necessary
to re-research a site once probable cause has been established and
all historical evidence has been documented, witnesses may be
re-interviewed however. This procedure may be performed as many
times as necessary, however it is recommended that a minimum of one
initial investigation and two follow up investigations be performed
so that a trend in the paranormal activity, if any exists, may be
documented.
