Cortex; a journal devoted to the study of the nervous system and behavior
February 1, 2013
Etzel Cardeña, Peter Jönsson, Devin B Terhune et al.
151 citations
After a hypnotic induction, people who are highly or moderately hypnotizable often report spontaneous changes in consciousness, but few studies have controlled for the demands of specific suggestions or examined the brain activity underlying these experiences. In a neurophenomenological study of 37 individuals with high, medium, and low hypnotizability, participants reported their depth and spontaneous experiences at baseline, after induction, and after rest periods, while EEG measured brain activity. Perceived hypnotic depth increased substantially after induction, especially among highly and moderately hypnotizable individuals, but remained almost unchanged among those low in hypnotizability.
Transcultural psychiatry
June 1, 2005
Marjolein Van Duijl, Etzel Cardeña, Joop T V M De Jong
62 citations
Dissociative amnesia and depersonalization are recognized in Uganda as results of trauma and are useful categories, but dissociative fugue does not match local concepts and is confused with spirit possession, alcoholic fugues, or dementia. Dissociative identity disorder is consistently interpreted as a possession trance disorder by local healers. The DSM-IV classification of dissociative disorders receives only partial support for cross-cultural validity in Uganda.
The American journal of clinical hypnosis
October 1, 2016
Devin B Terhune, Etzel Cardeña
53 citations
Inductions are widely considered the starting point of hypnosis, yet their actual role is poorly understood and often oversimplified. Drawing on research into suggestibility, spontaneous experience, brain activity, and cognition, this article argues that the value of inductions is more nuanced and uncertain than commonly assumed. Some components of standard inductions clearly boost suggestibility, while others show no clear benefit. The effect of inductions on suggestibility varies depending on the type of suggestion and how it is measured, and the reasons for this variability remain unknown. Examining these effects through the lens of individual differences in high hypnotic suggestibility and componential models may open new research directions. The article advocates for practical, theory-driven optimization of inductions.
American Psychological Association eBooks
October 27, 2004
Ronald J. Pekala, Etzel Cardeña
48 citations
No Summary
Culture, medicine and psychiatry
March 1, 2016
Yvonne Schaffler, Etzel Cardeña, Sophie Reijman et al.
30 citations
Vodou practitioners in the Dominican Republic who experience spirit possession report greater somatoform dissociation, more sleep problems, and more past exposure to mortal danger (assaults, accidents, or diseases) than those who do not experience possession. The two groups did not differ significantly in other types of trauma. Somatoform dissociation was the strongest predictor of group membership, though these symptoms may partly reflect the possession experience itself. A factor analysis yielded three factors: early responsibility and professional spiritual role; traumatic events and pain; and distress/dissociation. Overall, possessed individuals did not have a remarkably more severe trauma history and appeared to derive economic benefits from possession practice.
Current psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.)
October 30, 2021
Eli Somer, Etzel Cardeña, Ramiro Figueiredo Catelan et al.
19 citations
Reality shifting (RS) is a mental activity that gained popularity after the COVID-19 pandemic, primarily among post-millennials. Practitioners report using relaxation, focused attention, and autosuggestion to feel they transcend their physical surroundings and enter alternate, often fictional, universes—such as those from Harry Potter. Online forums have over 40,000 members, and RS-related clips have been viewed over 1.7 billion times. Some shifters report a strong sense of presence in these realities, with some believing the alternate world is concretely real. The paper describes RS's phenomenology from online reports, compares it to hypnosis, tulpamancy, dissociation, maladaptive daydreaming, and lucid dreaming, and proposes a theoretical model of interactive factors. It concludes RS is an important, uninvestigated phenomenon and suggests future research.
Ethos (Berkeley, Calif.)
December 1, 2018
Etzel Cardeña, Yvonne Schaffler
14 citations
A Dominican Republic Vodou priest, followed from childhood to early adulthood, learned to control and adapt dissociative manifestations into a professional role, transitioning from a child with many problems. A multidisciplinary, developmental approach integrating ethnographic observation and psychological constructs explains how originally dysfunctional expressions of spirit possession became personally and socially beneficial. The community's shifting attitudes toward him are also accounted for by specific psychological and cultural conditions.
Neuroscience of consciousness
January 1, 2023
Lena Lindström, Philippe Goldin, Johan Mårtensson et al.
12 citations
People who report a stronger sense of self-boundarylessness—feeling less distinct from the surrounding world—tend to endorse words related to fluidity more strongly and take longer on a math task. Brain imaging shows that during mind-wandering, boundarylessness is linked to less activity in the posterior cingulate cortex/precuneus. Interestingly, both low and high boundarylessness, compared to moderate levels, are associated with greater connectivity within the default mode network at rest, less activity in the medial prefrontal cortex when processing self-related words, and lower endorsement of words related to constancy. Directing attention to the center of experience activates brain regions similar to meditation onset, regardless of meditation experience.
Psychology of Consciousness Theory Research and Practice
June 12, 2025
Etzel Cardeña, Aviva Berkovich‐ohana, Katja Valli et al.
11 citations
A multidisciplinary, international group used taxonomic principles and a modified Delphi method to create a taxonomy of altered states of consciousness based on central phenomenological features. They identified eight distinct states, some with subcategories: proto and transitional, delirium, minimal to no awareness, experiential detachment, enhanced physicality, altered identity, imaginary/fantasy/visionary, and unity/mystical. The authors hope this taxonomy will foster conceptual clarity and stimulate research across specializations, helping reveal what is common and different across triggers and antecedents of altered states, and encouraging phenomenological, psychological, cultural, and neuroscientific understanding.
Brain and cognition
August 1, 2023
Etzel Cardeña, Lena Lindström, Philippe Goldin et al.
4 citations
Automatic writing, whether occurring spontaneously or induced by hypnosis, reduces the sense of control and agency compared to copying symbols. In a functional MRI study of one spontaneous automatic writer and four highly hypnotizable individuals, automatic writing was associated with decreased brain activity in regions linked to the sense of agency, including the left premotor cortex and insula, right premotor cortex, and supplemental motor area. Increased activity was observed in the left and right temporoparietal junctions and occipital lobes. The highly hypnotizable individuals showed widespread decreases in brain activity and increases in frontal and parietal regions compared to the spontaneous writer. Spontaneous and induced automatic writing had similar effects on the subjective experience of agency but only partly overlapping effects on cortical activity.
The International journal of clinical and experimental hypnosis
January 1, 2025
Aminata Bicego, Naji Alnagger, Etzel Cardeña et al.
1 citation
Auto-induced cognitive trance (AICT) can produce mystical-type experiences in healthy individuals, with 29% of participants reporting such experiences during AICT compared to none during a rest condition. The study examined twenty-seven people who could self-induce AICT, measuring their religious and spiritual practices and paranormal beliefs beforehand. Participants completed five conditions including rest, imagination, and AICT with or without auditory stimulation. The intensity of the AICT experience and features resembling near-death experiences were linked to mystical-type experiences only during AICT. This is the first demonstration that AICT, a technique distinct from hypnosis or meditation, can induce mystical-type experiences outside life-threatening situations.
NeuroImage
February 4, 2026
Gabriel Della Bella, Agustina Velez Picatto, Dante Sebastián Galván Rial et al.
A participant who can reliably enter a self-induced non-ordinary state of consciousness (NOC) characterized by vivid imagery, altered bodily perception, and a sense of unity underwent 20 fMRI sessions. Compared to a control group, during the transition into the NOC state, functional connectivity became more variable, indicating temporary destabilization of network organization. In the NOC state, connectivity between brain networks broadly decreased, especially visual cortex coupling with auditory, sensorimotor, and other regions, while frontoparietal and salience networks increased coupling with precuneus and temporal areas, matching reports of inward attention and absorption. Entropy and complexity measures tracked the experience and returned to baseline afterward.
Journal of Anomalous Experience and Cognition
April 3, 2023
Etzel Cardeña
No Summary
The Oxford Handbook of Meditation
October 4, 2019
Etzel Cardeña
Meditation may be linked to exceptional abilities such as enhanced perceptual sensitivity, control over bleeding and heart rate, tolerance of cold and pain, and reduced metabolic responses. Some evidence also suggests that long-term meditation practice is associated with above-chance performance on parapsychological tasks like clairvoyance or precognition under controlled conditions. However, research on this topic remains limited, and more studies are needed to confirm these findings.