Occultism as a Resource. The Parapsychologist Fanny Moser (1872–1953)

Abstract

Fanny Moser was a Swiss natural scientist who devoted the second half of her life to the study of occult phenomena, especially hauntings, and wrote two influential and extensive monographs on the subject. As one of the early female sponsors of the Freiburg Institute for Frontier Areas of Psychology and Mental Health, she also provided the necessary support for the research institute and, in this respect, contributed to the establishment of a parapsychological research scene in Germany. The article first reconstructs Moser’s research biography, which is already remarkable because she was one of the very first female students and doctoral candidates in the German Empire. In a second step, it will be shown at which point and how exactly Moser was confronted with parapsychological topics and what role and function they had in her life. It will be shown that Moser’s engagement with parapsychology was situated in a dynamic field between subjective experiences of evidence, a personal crisis, and scientific self-empowerment, and that gender-specific factors also played a role. In this context it will be asked whether the publication of one’s own paranormal experiences and the introspection as a form of presentation represents a "typical female" aspect, since comparable statements by male parapsychologists are mostly absent in the scientific publications.