The excitement of venturing out to conduct a paranormal investigation can be enormous. The idea of exploring a reputedly haunted location with the possibility of capturing evidence is thrilling. Whether you are part of a team or like to explore on your own, safety must always remain on your mind as the number one priority.

Doing this type of work alone is not recommended. That being said, people do work alone for their own reasons. We can understand that when alone, an investigator doesn't have to worry about outsider audio contamination or trying to decide who is going to do what job. The main problem is if—or when—something goes wrong, you will have no one readily available to help you. If investigating solo, you should have an emergency plan, and people you trust should know where you are going and what time you will come home. It is important to stick to these arrangements.

Even small teams must use extreme caution, especially when investigating old buildings. Working closely, along with the excitement of the investigation, could mean everyone ends up in the same space at the same time. A team Richard worked with years ago entered a large underground basement. The place was in terrible repair, and the steel fire door they entered through somehow closed behind them. The investigators found they were trapped inside heavy concrete and steel construction with no cellular phone service available. Luckily, a security guard found them—hours later. We need to keep these things in mind when on an investigation.

The workload is heavier with a small team, as many tasks need to be carried out by fewer people. Investigators are tasked with managing longer lists of details to focus on, which could reduce valuable time available to conduct thorough investigative work. For example, let's say a small team has been permitted to conduct an eight-hour investigation. Two of those hours will be spent setting and packing up the equipment, which leaves six hours to investigate. With larger teams, the investigators can investigate for the full eight hours while other members set up and tear down equipment.

It is great if you can put a team together comprised of people you already know and trust; however, because of the special skills required, you may have to recruit strangers. When doing so, check into their background and do extensive interviews. Try to be satisfied with the information and answers you receive. Be absolutely sure these people will represent you and the group faithfully and be responsible when handling equipment, collecting information, and respecting the investigation site—including keeping it confidential.

Team Assignments
Every team will be different. Some will have set roles and duties, while others mix it up by changing roles and duties for team members so they gain different training and experience. It doesn't matter which route you take. Neither one is better than the other. It is all about preference and what works best for the team. However, when working a location for numerous visits, team members should maintain their original roles throughout the ongoing investigation to be consistent.

Traditional team member roles include the following:

Lead Investigator
The job of the lead investigator is to form the plan for each investigation or visit, assign jobs to the other team members, and ensure everyone is doing their assignments. They also make sure evidence is properly collected and everyone conducts themselves safely.

Investigator
An investigator conducts tests and experiments and records electronic voice phenomena during the investigation. Investigators should conduct walk throughs of the study site prior to the investigation to collect baseline readings, become familiar with the layout, and make sure it's safe, noting any dangerous areas.

At least one of the investigators should have a good working knowledge on interviewing witnesses, including how to make a witness feel at ease, what questions to ask, and how to collect and record the information.

Tech
The tech team members make sure all the surveillance equipment is deployed in locations indicated by the lead investigator, ensuring optimal camera views. The tech team members verify all camera and audio equipment is working, that camera views are the best they can be, and that sound levels are optimized. Additionally, they ensure fresh batteries are available for mobile equipment, provide technical support and information when requested, and perform analysis of recorded data following the investigation.

Researcher/Historian
This team member is responsible for collecting detailed historical information about the property and the past owners, along with any relevant events in the property's history. They can also assist in investigations.

Mediums
Finding the right medium(s) for your team is key and can be extremely difficult. Many mediums are hoaxers, fakes, or attention-seekers looking to augment their social status. Some of the most committed, helpful mediums are those with a humble attitude toward their gifts; they recognize their worth in this context as a human tool connected to an investigation and don't expect praise over and above the team's appreciation for their contribution. Legitimately talented psychic mediums can operate on a spectrum from fairly good to mostly accurate to exceptional. Truly capable mediums will not fish for information connected to an investigation and will insist that they discover what they can for themselves. Recruiting the right one could take time.

As if recruiting a good one isn't difficult enough, you must find the right type, which is even more of a challenge.

Psychic or mental medium: This type of medium communicates through the use of telepathy, which allows the medium to hear, see, and feel information from spirits.

Trance medium: This type of medium enters a trance state, allowing spirits to communicate through them. While in a trance, the medium will rarely remember any of the message, so it is important to record what they are saying.

Physical medium: This type of medium utilizes a variety of means to establish inter-dimensional communication. Methods can be visual (manifestations, apport objects) or audible (raps, knocks, disembodied voices) in nature. In some cases, both visual and audible events occur.

Some terminology of the mechanisms employed by mediums:
Clairaudience, or "clear hearing:" This the ability to hear the voices or thoughts broadcast by spirits.
Clairvoyance, or "clear seeing:" This is the ability to see things that are not physically evident.
Clairsentience, or "clear sensing:" This is the ability to sense information that a spirit wishes to communicate.
Clairalience, or "clear smelling:" This is the ability to smell a spirit or thing directly associated with a spirit, such as perfume or cigar smoke.
Clairgustance, or "clear tasting:" This is the ability, albeit rare, to taste impressions from a spirit.
Claircognizance, or "clear knowing:" This is the ability to simply know something. It is the ability to tell if some information is right or wrong, true or false.
Empaths:Being empathic means a medium has the ability to understand feelings and experiences that are not their own but conveyed to them. An empath may take on the feelings of the spirit, such as anger, frustration, sadness, depression, or pain, for a short while.

Mediums should never know anything about the location, the history of the property, or any discoveries made in the course of your research or investigation.

Safety and Security (S&S) Specialist
S&S specialists are those who observe the team from a distance for the purposes of safety and security. They maintain their distance so if something goes wrong, they are not directly involved or endangered (e.g., injured or trapped) and are free to provide assistance. (As an example, recall the previous anecdote concerning the lack of cell phone service while locked inside a concrete room located deep underground.)

Excerpted from The Complete Paranormal Investigation Handbook, by Peter J. Roe and Richard Palmisano.