The
First
Sungazing List Group
Sungazer’s Survey
Some Preliminary Results after
First 56 Responses
IntroductionHere are some preliminary results from the first Sungazer’s survey administered by the Sungazing list group, offering a simple question-by-question analysis of answer percentages. At this point, almost one month after the survey was started, the survey has accumulated 56 responses (e.g., it was answered by 56 persons…). A more complex analysis would examine cross-question correlations, and would be able to offer observations such as (examples):
- "significantly more females and males reported health improvements"
- "persons who had sungazed for at least one year and at least 4 times per week were far more likely to report decrease in need for solid food"
- persons who had been sungazing for over five years and who gazed near mid-day were more likely to have reported "xxxxxx".
(note: above statements were examples only!)
By the way, the entire raw data set for this survey, including respondent-by-respondent data, is available to any list members who wish to perform further analysis such as cross-item correlative studies. If you wish access to this data set, please ask me (Vinny.)
A Question: Was this a "truly scientific" survey?
Well, I speak here as a trained degreed scientist and statistician who has spent years teaching and training university professors, scientists and graduate students in statistical survey methods, and here are my observations:
Please realize that over 98% of all surveys administered even under scientific auspices, for example, by credentialed scientific researchers working for a legitimate academic institution (such as a university) are not truly “scientific”, and are far more limited in scope, often deliberately so, in order to conserve time and money. Further, many scientific researchers would contend (I do not agree with them) that no survey could be considered to be truly “scientific” unless administered only to a very large number of persons who were part of a well-controlled experiment where their food intake, water intake, sungazing and other activities were carefully monitored, and who were being reimbursed for their time and energy.
As for this current survey: it is quite “scientific” in many ways, but to be fully scientific, it would have needed to meet also the following criteria:
- Responses from at least 41 sungazers (we reached that number of responses by May 24…) By the way, for normal surveys of “normal” populations and “normal” population samples, the minimum number of responses needed (known as “minimum sample size”) for scientific accuracy could have been as low as from 20 to 34 persons. Due to the “specialness” and “uniqueness” of sungazers and sungazing, and to the inter-group variance (variability in various traits, behaviors and demographics among sungazers), that minimum sample number rises to at least 41, and might be as high as 68 or more if the study were to be done in a really rigorous fashion.
- For each response from a member of the list group, there would have been needed one response from a sungazer who does not belong to the list group. So, if a total of 48 persons from the SG list group had responded, we would have needed an additional 48 responses from sungazers who do not belong to the list group.
- In line with the above note, the survey would have needed to include a question (Y/N) asking if the respondent belonged (currently or at any time in the past 3 months) to the SG list group.
- The survey would also need to have been administered to two control groups (about 41 persons in each group):
- Non-sungazers who often eat largely eat raw diets, who meditate and have spiritual interests
- Non-sungazers from general population who do not meet the above criteria
- The survey would also have needed to have had a number of additional questions, often known as control questions, assessing the following:
- Education level, for assessment of socio-economic status (SES)
- Family Income level, for assessment of socio-economic status (SES)
- Other demographics (country, region, rural/city, language)
- Marital/relationship status
- Diet
- Meditative practices
- Yoga
- Other spiritual practices
- Level of consumption of prescription drugs
- Level of consumption of alcoholic beverages
- Level of consumption of street drugs
- A few other miscellaneous control questions
Unfortunately, such a “fully scientific” survey would have been very expensive and time-consuming to design, administer and there would have been problems even in finding enough persons for each “group”, and would have demanded the efforts of at least 3 full-time persons working for a least one month. So, instead I chose instead to create a useful tool which would simply give us some insights into the practices of sungazers, as well as the results which they seem to notice. So this survey, like most surveys, is not rigorously scientific, but rather a useful survey.
Results
Here are the results, on a question-by-question basis:
What is your age? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
What is your gender? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
When sungazing, have you ever seen the sun as a purple, black, gray, (but not blue) disk? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
When sungazing, have you ever seen the sun as a blue disk? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
When sungazing, have you ever seen the sun as concentric light/dark or colored rings/circles? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
What is your average sungazing time per session? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
How long have you been sungazing? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
How often do you sungaze on average, weather permitting? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
When you sungaze, at what time of day do you usually sungaze? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
Why did you start sungazing (please pick up to 5 choices)? Multiple Choice: Select All That Apply
Have you regularly noticed, as a result of sungazing, changes in energy levels? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
Have you regularly noticed, as a result of sungazing, changes in sexual energy? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
Have you regularly noticed, as a result of sungazing, changes in how attractive or appealing others find you? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
Have you regularly noticed, as a result of sungazing, a change in your need for food? (water need is NOT included in this question…) Multiple Choice: Select Only One
Have you ever studied or trained with a sungazing guru or teacher? You may select up to four choices. Multiple Choice: Select All That Apply
Have you regularly noticed, as a result of sungazing, any of the following? (okay to pick more than one, up to 6) Multiple Choice: Select All That Apply
Have you regularly noticed, as a result of sungazing, changes in physical health? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
Have you noticed, as a result of sungazing, changes in your capacity for unconditional love? Multiple Choice: Select Only One
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| END OF SURVEY RESULTS REPORT |