Kahn, S. David (1929-)

Psychiatrist who wrote on experimental parapsychology. His interest in the psychic dated from his youth, his family having been friends of seer Edgar Cayce. Kahn was born on February 15, 1929, in New York City. He studied at Harvard University (B.A., 1950; M.D., 1954), during which time he made his first experiments in parapsychology, overcoming resistence from behaviorist B. F. Skinner. In the years immediately after his graduation he worked with Eileen Garrett and finally persuaded her to fund an experimental laboratory at her Parapsychology Foundation.

In 1960 Kahn was appointed senior psychiatrist at Montefiore Hospital, New York. He continued writing about parapsychology into the 1980s. He became a member of the Parapsychology Association and served on the board of the American Society for Psychical Research for many years until he retired in 1988.

Sources:

Kahn, S. David. "Ave Atque Vale: Gardner Murphy." Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research 74 (1980).

——. "The Enigma of Psi: A Challenge for Scientific Method." Journal of the American Society for Psychical Research (July 1962).

——. "Extrasensory Perception and Friendly Interpersonal Relations." In Explorations in Altruistic Love and Behavior, edited by Pitirim A. Sorokin. N.p., 1950.

——. "A Mechanical Scoring Technique for Testing GESP [General Extrasensory Perception]." Journal of Parapsychology 13, no. 3 (1949).

——. "Studies in Extrasensory Perception: Experiments Utilizing an Electronic Scoring Device." Proceedings of the American Society for Psychical Research 25 (October 1952).

Pleasants, Helene, ed. Biographical Dictionary of Parapsychology. New York: Helix Press, 1964.

Pratt, J. G. "A Review of Kahn's 'Studies in Extrasensory Perception.'&43" Journal of Parapsychology 17 (1953).