Cross-validation of the ego dissolution scale: implications for studying psychedelics.
Front Neurosci December 5, 2023 Steven Jay Lynn, Charlie W. McDonald, Fiona G. Sleight et al. 8 citations
Ego dissolution—the experience of losing one's sense of self—is a key feature of psychedelic drug use. Researchers developed and cross-validated a 10-item Ego Dissolution Scale (EDS) for measuring this phenomenon in everyday life, not just during acute drug effects. In an online sample of 527 participants, the scale showed a two-factor structure: Ego-Loss and Unity/connectedness with others, the world, or universe. The total score and both subfactors had adequate-to-good reliability and strong convergent validity with measures such as mindfulness, hallucination-proneness, sleep variables, personality, affect, transliminality, and dissociation. Neuroticism and social desirability did not correlate highly with ego dissolution. Distinct patterns emerged for the two subfactors, supporting the scale's use in studying everyday ego dissolution and long-term effects of psychedelics.