ALTERED STATES OF CONSCIOUSNESS, ABSORPTION, AND SEXUAL RESPONSIVENESS
Psicologia, Saúde & Doença December 1, 2020 Jacopo Ellero, R. Costa
Sexual intercourse can induce altered states of consciousness (ASC), similar to those experienced during meditation or after psychoactive substances. A study of 448 participants (303 women, 145 men) found that both trait absorption—a personality tendency to experience ASC—and sexual responsiveness independently predicted intensity of ASC dimensions (Unity, Spiritual Experience, Blissful State, Insightfulness) during sex. For women, experiencing vaginal orgasm (from intercourse without additional clitoral stimulation) was an additional independent predictor of ASC. Male orgasm related to ASC but not independently of other aspects of sexual responsiveness.