SUBJECT: DETERMINATION OF ABDUCTION CASES                    FILE: UFO2648




       
                    Mutual UFO Network - MUFONET-BBS Network 
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         John Komar       DETERMINATION OF ABDUCTION CASES      Copyright
         State Director  ----------------------------------       MUFON
                                      1990

    In  a  paper  delivered  during  a  MUFON  UFO International Symposium, 
    researcher Budd Hopkins classified Abduction cases into five types: 


    Type 1:  The  abductee consciously recalls parts of the full  abduction 
             scenario:  The on-board experience,  the UFO,  it's occupants, 
             it's interior, and so on. (In a clearly related sub-group, the 
             abductee's conscious recall of this material is delayed.) 
              
    Type 2:  The  abductee  recalls  the UFO,   the  circumstances  of  the 
             encounter, and often the appearance of the occupants, but does 
             not remember any of the actual on-board experience.  That part 
             of the experience registers only as a perceived gap in time. 
              
    Type 3:  The abductee recalls only a UFO and/or humanoids,  but nothing 
             else.   He or she does not recall a time-lapse or dislocation. 
             (This   type  may  include  a  good  many  so-called   bedroom 
             visitations.) 
              
    Type 4:  The   abductee  recalls  only  a  peculiar  time-lapse  and/or 
             dislocation. No UFO is consciously recalled,  nor is any other 
             part of the UFO scenario. 
              
    Type 5:  The abductee recalls nothing of the usual abduction  scenario. 
             Instead,   there  remain vague indications,  ranging from  the 
             "feeling that something happened to me", to intense, unnatural 
             fears  of  specific  locations or  sections  of  highway,   to 
             physical  wounds  or marks of unknown  origin,   and  includes 
             sometimes   recurring  dreams  of  a  temporally   un-anchored 
             abduction experience. 


      Type number five,  which Budd Hopkins concentrates upon in  his book, 
    "MISSING  TIME",   is believed to be the most common.   This type  also 
    presents the greatest challenge to an investigator.   The  descriptions 
    above  can  also cover many situations that turn out to not  be  actual 
    abductions. 

      How can a researcher determine which reports to pursue and  which  to 
    ignore,   taking into account the limited knowledge of the topic  by  a 
    typical  researcher,   and the time constraints involved.  Hypnosis  in 
    itself is an expensive and time involving endeavor,  not to be included 
    with  the investigation of each case,  as a determining factor  of  the 
    validity  of the abductee,  but only to be used as the  extreme  avenue 
    after  much  time  and  work  has  been  expended  during  the  initial 
    investigation of the case. 
     
      As  a suggestion,  we should consider each case in the "quantitative" 
    sense,  weighing the details as the facts present themselves.  The more 
    specific and detailed the facts,  the higher the priority to be  placed 
    on the case as a whole. 
     
      Asking   the  witness  about  any  previous  experiences  or  unusual 
    encounters,  any physical marks or wounds not associated with any known 
    incident the witness can recall,  possibly a recurring bad dream, could 
    add weight to the credibility of the case. 
     
      Each  fact or detail,  by itself,  possibly would not provide  enough 
    substantive  justification  to actively pursue the case,   but  coupled 
    together  could  provide  enough detail and connecting  information  to 
    warrant the time expenditure required. Other considerations of the case 
    would be: 

    1. The  volume  and content of the information as it  pertains  to  the 
       case. 
    
    2. The quality of that information. 
    
    3. Is  the person who is citing the experience the only witness to it's 
       happening, or are there others. 
    
    4. The strangeness of the case,  whether it be the facts as  presented, 
       or  the  witness itself,  or the location where  the  experience  is 
       perceived to have happened. 

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