PsyArXiv
June 10, 2026
Theo Tobel, Aidan Cone, Emily Choquette et al.
preprint
Floatation-REST (Reduced Environmental Stimulation Therapy) systematically alters sensory and bodily input by combining neutral buoyancy, thermal and proprioceptive neutrality, attenuation of exteroceptive stimulation, and enhancement of cardiorespiratory signaling to the brain. Here we examined whether this non-pharmacological sensory perturbation induces altered states of consciousness and...
PNAS Nexus
February 29, 2024
Félix Schoeller, Leonardo Christov-Moore, Caitlin Lynch et al.
Abstract Why does the same experience elicit strong emotional responses in some individuals while leaving others largely indifferent? Is the variance influenced by who people are (personality traits), how they feel (emotional state), where they come from (demographics), or a unique combination of these? In this 2,900+ participants study, we disentangle the factors that underlie individual...
PLOS mental health
2024
Leonardo Christov-Moore, Félix Schoeller, Caitlin Lynch et al.
11 citations
Self-transcendence (ST) is a state of consciousness associated with feelings of ego-dissolution, connectedness, and moral elevation, which mediates well-being, meaning-making, and prosociality. Conventional paths to ST, like religious practice, meditation, and psychedelics, pose nontrivial barriers to entry, limiting ST's study and application. Aesthetic chills (henceforth "chills") are a...
Cognitive Sciences
March 1, 2023
Leonardo Christov-Moore, Alex Jinich-Diamant, Adam Safron et al.
Our culture and its scientific endeavor direly need a holistic characterization of mind and body. Many phenomena attest to the profound effects of beliefs on bodily function (e.g., open-label placebo's effects on chronic pain) and interoceptive systems' role in mental processes (e.g., the emerging role of gut microbiomes in the mood). We need a mechanistic, integrative framework to account for...