Clarifying and measuring the characteristics of experiences that involve a loss of self or a dissolution of its boundaries.
Nicholas K Canby, Jared Lindahl, Willoughby B Britton, James V Córdova
Consciousness and cognition March 1, 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.concog.2024.103655 via PubMed
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractExperiences like mystical states, non-dual awareness, selflessness, and ego dissolution are increasingly studied in meditation and psychedelic research, but their definitions and measures often overlap and lack precision, especially regarding pathological experiences. In a survey of 386 people who reported an experience involving a loss of self or self-boundaries, researchers used statistical and qualitative methods to identify 16 distinct characteristics of such experiences. These included different types of changes in sense of self, accompanying phenomena, and cognitive or emotional responses. The results provide a more specific model for measuring and describing these experiences across contexts like meditation, psychedelics, and psychopathology.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey with confirmatory factor analysis and qualitative thematic analysis Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 386 |
| Population | Adults who reported an experience involving dissolution of self-boundaries or loss of selfhood |
| Topics | Ego dissolution Meditation Mystical experience Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Measure development |
| Citations | 11 |
| Key finding | Sixteen distinct experience characteristics, including multiple types of changes in sense of self, were identified across contexts such as meditation, psychedelics, and psychopathology. |
Abstract
Mystical experience, non-dual awareness, selflessness, self-transcendent experience, and ego-dissolution have become increasingly prominent constructs in meditation and psychedelic research. However, these constructs and their measures tend to be highly overlapping, imprecise, and poorly integrated with similar pathological experiences. The present study seeks to clarify the common factors involved in the characteristics of these experiences using precise distinctions across an array of experience contexts (including meditation, psychedelics, and psychopathology). Participants (N = 386) completed an online survey about an experience that involved either a dissolution of self-boundaries or a loss of selfhood. Confirmatory factor analyses resulted in 16 experience characteristics, including multiple types of changes in sense of self, co-occurring phenomenology, and cognitive and affective responses. Qualitative thematic analysis provided rich descriptions of experience characteristics. Taken together, results lead to a more specific measurement model and descriptive account of experiences involving a loss of self or self-boundary.