Discovery Lab Answers

Suitbert Ertel was a German experimental psychologist who conducted research on psi phenomena, particularly through the development and refinement of the Ball Selection Test (BST). He was based at the University of Göttingen’s Psychology Institute (Georg-Elias-Müller-Institut für Psychologie) ^[3].

Research focus

Ertel’s experimental work centered on designing controlled protocols to test for psi—particularly extrasensory perception—using physical randomization methods. His Ball Selection Test involved participants attempting to identify ping-pong balls drawn blindly from a container, with hits recorded by number and color ^[3]. Beyond this primary line of work, Ertel also conducted critical reanalyses of other researchers’ published data. He examined Shawn Carlson’s 1985 astrology study (published in Nature), scrutinizing its statistical methods and conclusions ^[4], and investigated claims about planetary effects in astrology, engaging with the published work of skeptical organizations and individual critics ^[4].

Replication and laboratory findings

In 2010, Ertel published a replication of the Ball Selection Test conducted at the Anomalistic Psychology Research Unit (APRU), reporting significant results from participants with prior high performance on the task ^[3]. In 2013, he further examined whether BST performance could be sustained under conditions designed to eliminate sensory leakage—testing participants wearing both blindfolds and gloves to rule out visual, tactile, and temperature cues ^[2].

Ertel also worked on laboratory validation of home-test results, including replication studies with members of a Ukrainian family who had participated in remote experiments over an extended period ^[5].

Scholarly profile

Ertel was recognized as a pioneer of anomalistics research in the German-speaking academic tradition ^[1]. He held emeritus status as an ordinary professor of psychology at the University of Göttingen and was noted for combining rigorous experimental methodology with critical engagement with existing parapsychology literature, including both supportive and skeptical commentary.

For a deeper overview of Ertel’s most widely cited replication work, see the ESP-Nexus study audit on Ertel (2010).