Psychology International
August 24, 2026
Tom Ford, Lisa Miller
Rationale/Aim: We aimed to identify potential latent profiles and factor structures that may reflect characterological differences in how transcendence is experienced and expressed in individuals and investigate the nature and structure of transcendence as a character virtue rooted in Awakened Awareness (as a tendency towards spiritual perception). Methods: Two studies were conducted on a...
Behavioral Sciences
February 23, 2026
Joshua Lipson, Hannes Kettner, Robin Carhart-Harris et al.
BACKGROUND: The quality and valence of psychedelic experiences are influenced by a range of psychological and contextual factors. This study examines baseline mood and the "relational triad"-comprising social connectedness, mindfulness, and spirituality-as potential predictors of the quality of naturalistic psychedelic experiences. METHODS: Data were drawn from the Predicting Responses to...
The international journal for the psychology of religion
October 1, 2024
Joshua Lipson, Thomas Ford, Miles Beattie et al.
ABSTRACT The present study aimed to characterize the relationship between mystical experience and psychopathology measures in a general-population sample of 763 U.S. adults. The participants were assessed across various domains including psychopathology, spirituality, personality, and life experience. The analysis revealed three distinct profiles among individuals: Transcendent Wellness,...
Religions
June 12, 2020
Elsa Lau, Clayton H. Mcclintock, Marianna Graziosi et al.
This study investigates the lived-experience of spiritual life in contemporary USA, India, and China. A qualitative coding frame was constructed based on participant responses to open-ended questions regarding spirituality. Qualitative analysis was facilitated by the use of Dedoose, a mixed methods software. The exploratory approach of this study takes on a cross-culturally comparative lens,...
Journal of Behavioral Addictions
December 1, 2019
Clayton H. Mcclintock, Patrick D. Worhunsky, Jiansong Xu et al.
18 citations
Background and aims Spirituality is an important component of 12-step programs for behavioral and substance addictions and has been linked to recovery processes. Understanding the neural correlates of spiritual experiences may help to promote efforts to enhance recovery processes in behavioral addictions. We recently used general linear model (GLM) analyses of functional magnetic resonance...
Cerebral Cortex
May 14, 2018
Lisa Miller, Iris M. Balodis, Clayton H. Mcclintock et al.
65 citations
Across cultures and throughout history, human beings have reported a variety of spiritual experiences and the concomitant perceived sense of union that transcends one's ordinary sense of self. Nevertheless, little is known about the underlying neural mechanisms of spiritual experiences, particularly when examined across different traditions and practices. By adapting an individualized...
Frontiers in Psychology
2016
Clayton H. Mcclintock, Elsa Lau, Lisa Miller
While the field of empirical study on religion and spirituality in relation to mental health has rapidly expanded over the past decade, little is known about underlying dimensions of spirituality cross-culturally conceived. We aimed to bridge this gap by inductively deriving potential universal dimensions of spirituality through a large-scale, multi-national data collection, and examining the...
Journal of Religion and Health
June 1, 2015
Lisa Miller, Yakov A Barton
Diagnosis of depression has low reliability (kappa = 0.28) due to "covert heterogeneity," making the identification of sub-types a focus of research. Very high rates of moderate or sub-threshold depression among adolescents (35-45 % beyond the 20-25 % with MDD), prompt consideration of a potential sub-type of moderate sub-threshold depression, linked to adolescent development. Previously,...
Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
October 1, 2011
Lisa Miller, Kenneth Miller, John Haught et al.
Moderated by Lisa Miller from Newsweek, evolutionary biologist Kenneth Miller (Brown University) and theologians John Haught (Georgetown University) and Nancey Murphy (Fuller Theological Seminary) discuss the questions Are we immortal? Do our souls exist beyond our bodies? and What scientific evidence is there for mystical experience? from a cultural, historical, and scientific perspective. The...
Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy
March 1, 2008
Jennifer Lee, Randye J. Semple, Dinelia Rosa et al.
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility, acceptability, and helpfulness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy for Children (MBCT-C) for the treatment of internalizing and externalizing symptoms in a sample of nonreferred children. Twenty-five children, ages 9 to 12, participated in the 12-week intervention. Assessments were conducted at baseline and posttreatment. Open trial...
Journal of Cognitive Psychotherapy
October 1, 2005
Randye J. Semple, Elizabeth F. G. Reid, Lisa Miller
This study is an open clinical trial that examined the feasibility and acceptability of a mindfulness training program for anxious children. We based this pilot initiative on a cognitively oriented model, which suggests that, since impaired attention is a core symptom of anxiety, enhancing self-management of attention should effect reductions in anxiety. Mindfulness practices are essentially...