Inducing selflessness through a numadelic virtual reality experience: a preliminary study
Virtual Reality December 21, 2025 Joana Vidal, Catherine I. Andreu, Maja Wrzesien et al.
A single multi-person virtual reality experience can induce a state of selflessness—where the sense of self as the immediate subject of experience fades—and enhance interpersonal connectedness. It also increases low-arousal positive affect and warmth, and generates mystical and peak experiences in a notable subset of participants. The experience is widely accepted, with few adverse effects reported. This offers a cost-effective, non-pharmacological alternative to meditation and psychedelics for cultivating selflessness.