The Ouija board is used by superstitious individuals to communicate with the spiritual world or mysterious forces. Now, it may also help unveil the secrets of the subconscious mind.
The Ouija Board – An Ancient “Spirit Calling” Tool
The Ouija board is a wooden board printed with letters of the alphabet, along with two responses: “yes” and “no.” It includes a small heart-shaped piece of wood known as the planchette, which has a small hole for users to place their fingers inside.
The Ouija board is often adorned with a variety of symbols, including the sun, moon, and stars. In countries that do not use the Latin alphabet, the board features their own letters and scripts.
The heart-shaped piece can easily glide across the Ouija board when players place their hands on it. Many believe that spirits guide the piece to move from one letter to another, ultimately forming a message or answer to the players’ questions. Although players insist they do not physically move the planchette.
The Ouija board is commonly produced and sold by Parker Brothers.
Some claim that the Ouija board dates back to ancient Greece, but it actually emerged not long ago. Elijah Bond invented this game in the early 1890s and later sold the patent to entrepreneur William Fuld, who was instrumental in producing and marketing the Ouija board worldwide. Ultimately, the toy company Parker Brothers acquired the patent in 1966.
“When the Ouija board first appeared, it was merely seen as an entertaining pastime and not associated with the mystical,” researcher Eric Eliason wrote in the encyclopedia American Folklore.
Things changed when Pearl Curran, who significantly contributed to the revival of spiritualism during World War I, began promoting the Ouija board as a tool for predicting the future, locating lost objects, seeking daily advice, and contacting spirits. Soon, thousands of Americans used the Ouija board to inquire whether their loved ones fighting in Europe were alive or dead on the battlefield.
Many Christians believe that mystical divination tools like Tarot cards, pendulums, and Ouija boards can connect or even summon malevolent spirits, including Satan. Consequently, players of the Ouija board may invite disturbances and become possessed. Christian followers also worry that Satan could manifest through simple games or other mystical activities like astrology, dowsing, or even hypnosis, all of which are considered forms of witchcraft and condemned in the Bible.
The Ouija board has been the subject of horror films for decades. These films often depict the Ouija board as a device for humans to communicate with spirits and demons. Notable films include The Uninvited (1944), The Exorcist (1973), The Changeling (1980), Witchboard (1986), Paranormal Activity (2007), and Ouija (2014).
There are two popular ways to use the Ouija board. Some treat it as a regular toy, where a group places their hands on the planchette and reads questions aloud. The answers are simply yes or no. Sometimes, the planchette moves to the correct answer, even though those touching it assert they are not moving it.
Participants in spirit summoning use the Ouija board differently: they place one finger on the planchette and, through various mystical rituals, they spell out the letters that the planchette subconsciously points to, forming meaningful phrases and sentences.
Chris French, a psychology professor at Goldsmiths, University of London, has spent decades researching supernatural experiences related to the Ouija board. He first used a Ouija board while in college.
“Playing with the Ouija board was a regular Friday night activity for me,” he recalls. Chris and his friends designed their own Ouija board by writing on a piece of paper and using a glass as the planchette. “Perhaps no one truly believed they were communicating with spirits, but everyone had fun.” Chris remembers the sensation of the glass moving on its own, a feeling that was very real and vivid.
After years of research, he discovered that what he had experienced was simply the ideomotor effect (unconscious physical movement). This effect causes the players’ muscles to move without them being aware of it.
Scientific Explanations
This is why the Ouija board has captured the attention of psychologists at the University of British Columbia (Canada) who conducted experiments. There is increasing evidence that the subconscious plays a role in activities where participants do not intentionally create movements.
If you drive on a familiar road that you traverse daily, you may find that you’ve arrived at your destination without consciously controlling the vehicle. This is known as the “inner zombie”, as stated by Hélène Gauchou from the Society for the Study of the Subconscious (UK).
Gauchou’s research team used the Ouija board to test the role of the subconscious in controlling actions. To simplify the problem, the team allowed only one volunteer to place their hand on the planchette at a time. The unconscious effect was maximized if the player believed they were not using their hands to cause the movement—this is why the Ouija board works so well when played by a group. Subsequently, the volunteer reported they would play with another person. The other participant was blindfolded and unaware that the player was the only one touching the planchette when the game began.
This method proved effective. Some volunteers suspected their playing partner was influencing the movements, unaware that they were the only player.
Gauchou’s research team asked volunteers yes or no questions using the Ouija board. They then asked the same questions again, but this time the volunteers answered by typing on a computer. Volunteers were also asked whether they were sure of their answers or just guessing.
When using the computer, if the player did not know the answer, their responses were only half correct. However, when using the Ouija board, their correct responses were 65%—indicating that their subconscious held some awareness of the correct answers, and the Ouija board helped them express that intuition.
