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Kurt Stocker

Psychopharmacology Research, Division of Clinical Pharmacology & Toxicology, Department of Clinical Research, University Hospital Basel, and University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland.

5 papers in the library · 42 citations · publishing 2023-2026

Papers

The revival of the psychedelic experience scale: Revealing its extended-mystical, visual, and distressing experiential spectrum with LSD and psilocybin studies

Journal of Psychopharmacology October 31, 2023 Kurt Stocker, Matthias Hartmann, Laura Ley et al. 22 citations

A questionnaire that measures psychedelic experiences, the Psychedelic Experience Scale (PES), contains more useful subscales than the well-known Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ30). Analyzing 239 measurements from 140 healthy participants given LSD or psilocybin, researchers identified four additional factors beyond the original four: paradoxicality, connectedness, visual experience, and distressing experience. Paradoxicality and connectedness correlated strongly with the mystical subscale. Adding these new subscales to the MEQ30 increased the variance explained alongside another measure, the 5D-ASC. A cluster analysis supported these findings. The results provide a validated 6-factor structure (MEQ40) covering mystical experience more comprehensively and a broader 48-item version (PES48), with the full 100-item PES available for future research.

DOI: 10.1177/02698811231199112 Psilocybin Mysticism Psychometrics Exploratory factor analysis +3

Methylenedioxymethamphetamine is a connectogen with empathogenic, entactogenic, and still further connective properties: It is time to reconcile “the great entactogen—empathogen debate”

Journal of Psychopharmacology July 28, 2024 Kurt Stocker, Matthias E. Liechti 15 citations

MDMA is described by two terms—empathogen (promoting empathy and openness) and entactogen (promoting introspection and self-awareness). A review of the origin and usage of these terms finds no consistent reason why researchers choose one over the other. The authors argue that both properties stem from a single holistic experience: an intense feeling of connection. Entactogen refers to deep connection with oneself, empathogen to deep connection with others. They propose the new term connectogen to unify these effects, noting that MDMA may also foster connection with the here-and-now, the body, the world, and spiritual principles. The paper compares MDMA's connectogenic properties with those of classic psychedelics.

DOI: 10.1177/02698811241265352 MDMA Ecstasy Introspection Openness to experience +4

The 3D-ASCr scale: A revalidation of the core dimensions of the Altered States of Consciousness Rating Scale 5D(11)-ASC for psychedelic research.

Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) December 26, 2025 Kurt Stocker, Matthias Hartmann, Yasmin Schmid et al. 5 citations

A psychometric revalidation of the Altered States of Consciousness Scale (ASC) using data from 901 questionnaires across 16 psychedelic studies (with LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, and DMT) shows that ten of the eleven subscales can be grouped into three higher-order dimensions—Positive Effects, Distressing Effects, and Perceptual Effects—mirroring the original three-dimensional model but with improved statistical fit. The Anxiety subscale could not be integrated due to floor effects (low anxiety in the sample) but is retained for clinical relevance. The revised scale, 3D-ASCr, is recommended for use with classic serotonergic psychedelics.

DOI: 10.1177/02698811251397328 Full text DMT LSD Mescaline Psilocybin +1

Integrating the Mystical Experience Questionnaire Into a Broader Psychometric Framework: English Validation of the Psychedelic Experience Scale and Comparison of Psilocybin and LSD Sessions Across Two Controlled Settings.

International journal of methods in psychiatric research June 1, 2026 Kurt Stocker, Matthias Hartmann, Frederick S Barrett et al.

The eight-factor structure of the Psychedelic Experience Scale (PES48), which includes the Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ30) and additional factors for paradoxicality, connectedness, visual experience, and distressing experience, is valid for use in English. Analysis of 280 measurements from 145 healthy participants in four placebo-controlled psilocybin studies found that six subscales have high internal consistency, one good, and one acceptable. Both the MEQ30 and MEQ40 models show acceptable to good model fits, with better fits in English than in German. All six MEQ40 scale means were higher in English data, suggesting that the PES48 provides a broader conceptualization of mystical and non-mystical psychedelic experiences, and that setting may influence mystical experience.

DOI: 10.1002/mpr.70073 Full text Mystical experience Psychedelic experience Psychometrics Setting

Mystical dynamics: renewal, luminous light, and ego disintegration as key features associated with mystical oneness—a psychometric analysis using the PES100 in controlled psychedelic studies

Religion Brain & Behavior March 31, 2026 Kurt Stocker, Matthias Hartmann, Frederick S. Barrett et al.

After administration of LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, or DMT, mystical oneness—the core of mystical experience—showed dose-sensitive strong correlations with luminous light and renewal, and a moderate-to-strong correlation with ego disintegration. These findings from 386 healthy participants across 15 studies support a broader, dynamic model of mystical experience, where mystical oneness unfolds with ego disintegration, renewal, and luminous light. The results offer insights for psychedelic-assisted therapy.

DOI: 10.1080/2153599x.2026.2635353 Mysticism Psychometrics Key lock Psychometric testing +5