Several theories promote the similarities between dreaming and psychosis, but this has rarely been tested empirically. We assessed dreaming and waking reality using the Psychotomimetic States Inventory, a measure of psychotic-like experience originally designed for drug studies. Twenty participants completed the measure in each of two dream conditions and one waking condition. Dreams were...
People experiencing sensory deprivation often report perceptual disturbances such as hallucinations, especially over extended periods of time. However, there is little evidence concerning short-term sensory deprivation and whether its effects differ depending on the individual concerned, and in particular their proneness to psychosis. This study explored whether perceptual disturbances could be...
This study reports a new measure of psychotomimetic states in the context of cannabis and ketamine use. The Psychotomimetic States Inventory (PSI) has sub-scales of Delusory Thinking, Perceptual Distortions, Cognitive Disorganization, Anhedonia, Mania and Paranoia. The PSI was administered in two independent group, repeated measures designs: an experimental study of ketamine and a naturalistic...
Psychotherapeutic interventions containing training in mindfulness meditation have been shown to help participants with a variety of somatic and psychological conditions. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) is a meditation-based psychotherapeutic intervention designed to help reduce the risk of relapse of recurrent depression. There is encouraging early evidence from multi-centre...