Research Grants
Research Projects and Grants
The promotion of research is one of the most important functions of the Society.
Many members of the SPR are involved in their own projects, which include examining spontaneous cases, experiments in instrumental transcommunication (anomalous voice recordings) and historical research, to name just a few. If you have a specific area of research that might be of interest to our members, please contact us.
The Society also administers research funds for the support of projects approved by the relevant committees (see the Tate Fund below). Financial assistance is regularly given to PhD students working in British universities, but not exclusively so, and applications are also invited from knowledgeable committed individuals. SPR projects vary in scope, and all applications are considered on their merit. Recently, the SPR has supported such diverse projects as purchase of equipment for haunting investigations, experiments in dowsing, examination of Ganzfeld experiments, a survey of psychic experiences, work with sitter groups, investigation of mental healing, and PK meditation.
To apply for an SPR Grant print and complete the "fill out and print" Application Form. Applications should be sent to the Chairman of the Research Grants Committee, c/o the Society. They should include a brief CV, an outline (preferably no more than 1500 words) of the projected research and the rationale for undertaking it, and a breakdown of the costs involved. Applications for grants of £1000 or over will be considered en bloc in July of each year, and should be submitted by 1st June (this deadline will be strictly adhered to). Normally, no grant in excess of £5000 will be awarded. Applications for small amounts may be made at any time. It is a condition of the award of a grant that an account of the completed research be sent to the Society for inclusion in one of its publications or in its archives.
The Tate Fund
Under the generous bequest to the Society by the late Henry Burton Tate, the Society holds a sum of money (known as the Tate Fund) to support research into the theory of survival after death. Under the terms of the bequest the Society also organises two lectures on the 'Continuous Existence of Consciousness' named the 'Gwen Tate Memorial Lectures' and dedicated to the memory of the late Gwen Tate. The Fund and the Gwen Tate Lectures are administered on behalf of the Council of the Society by Survival Research Committee, currently chaired by Professor David Fontana with Guy Lyon Playfair as Honorary Secretary.
The Survival Research Committee welcomes applications for grants from the Tate Fund by those wishing to pursue research into the survival of consciousness after death. The Fund is limited in size and grants are for small amounts rarely exceeding two thousand pound sterling. Any individual or group with a research proposal that falls within the terms of the Fund that they wish to be considered should write to the Survival Research Committee summarising the purpose, scope and methodology of the research. Letters should be sent to the Secretary of the Society for Psychical Research at the Society's offices in London who will make them available to the Committee.
Professor David Fontana, Chair of the Survival Research Committee