Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews
August 1, 2024
Marina Weiler, David J Acunzo, Philip J Cozzolino et al.
10 citations
Out-of-body experiences (OBEs), where individuals feel detached from their physical bodies, often lead to lasting increases in pro-social behaviors such as tolerance and empathy. This article proposes that these changes occur through ego dissolution—a sense of unity and interconnectedness similar to that induced by psychedelics. The authors examine potential brain mechanisms, focusing on the temporoparietal junction and the Default Mode Network, to explain how OBEs might enhance empathy. The work synthesizes existing ideas to illuminate the relationship between altered states of consciousness and empathic improvement.
International review of psychiatry (Abingdon, England)
January 1, 2025
Marina Weiler, David J Acunzo
4 citations
Out-of-body experiences (OBEs) may offer clues about the mind-body relationship. Four interpretations are examined: OBEs as products of neural dysfunction, consistent with mind and brain being aspects of the same reality; anecdotal and experimental evidence that the mind can perceive distant locations, suggesting non-local consciousness; OBEs during abnormal brain function raising the possibility of mind independent of brain; and subjective feelings of survival or OBEs near clinical death supporting the survival hypothesis. The paper argues that OBEs are relevant to debates on the mind-body problem by presenting evidence for each view.
International review of psychiatry (Abingdon, England)
January 1, 2025
Marjorie Woollacott, Marina Weiler
3 citations
Consciousness is normally constrained by neural filters—sensory receptors, the ascending reticular activating system, the thalamus, the default mode network, and left hemisphere language centers—that restrict perception to a narrow range of energy frequencies, structure space and time, and prioritize internal narratives. When activity in these filters is reduced or absent, as in near-death experiences, deep meditation, or psychedelic use, people may access wider awareness, transcend time and space, and experience ego dissolution. This expanded state might allow the mind to access intuitive, nonlocal information beyond the five senses, suggesting vast untapped potential for human awareness.
Frontiers in Psychology
June 13, 2024
Marieta Pehlivanova, Marina Weiler, Bruce Greyson
2 citations
Belief in psychic phenomena is widespread but controversial. A leading hypothesis is that high belief is explained by differences in cognitive styles, but most research has been conducted with lay individuals. This study measured actively open-minded thinking (AOT) and need for closure (NFC) in four groups: academic psi researchers (N=44), lay psi believers (N=32), academic skeptics (N=35), and lay skeptics (N=33). Group differences appeared in AOT but not NFC. Academic psi researchers scored similarly to both skeptic groups on AOT (4.5 out of a possible range), while lay psi believers scored significantly lower (4.2), indicating less willingness to consider evidence that challenges their beliefs.
Frontiers in Psychology
June 2, 2026
Marina Weiler, Marieta Pehlivanova, Philip J. Cozzolino
Out-of-body experiences (OBEs) sometimes involve reports of veridical perception—accurate information obtained from a vantage point outside the body without conventional sensory input. While case collections and early laboratory studies suggest this possibility, replication under standard protocols has been challenging. This review argues that typical target-identification paradigms, conducted in sterile settings with inexperienced participants, misalign with the dynamics of the OBE state. Five key determinants constrain laboratory outcomes: the participant's mental/emotional state, the participant-researcher relationship, researcher intention, variability in participant skill, and the intrinsic purpose of the experience. Reframing methodology around these determinants and complementing lab tasks with rigorously vetted spontaneous cases can increase ecological validity while preserving falsifiability, offering a pathway toward more effective investigation of veridical perception in OBEs and implications for models of consciousness.
NeuroImage
June 1, 2026
David J Acunzo, Andrea H Denton, Marina Weiler et al.
A systematic review of 143 reports on the neural correlates of extra-sensory perception (ESP) finds that definitive conclusions remain premature. Studies are categorized into explicit paradigms (assessing psi via overt responses) and implicit paradigms (assessing psi via neurophysiology alone). Most work used EEG (91%), followed by fMRI (5%). Recurrent methodological limitations include small sample sizes, inadequate multiple-comparison control, and analytical flexibility. Explicit paradigms rarely showed above-chance behavior, yet neural analyses were often conducted. Implicit paradigms reported heterogeneous findings that were seldom replicated. Potential leads for future research include alpha-band power in forced-choice designs and a target-related negative slow wave in event-related designs.