Sleep disturbances such as sleep paralysis, lucid dreams, nightmares, and hypnagogic hallucinations are positively associated with reports of paranormal experiences and beliefs, including those involving ghosts, spirits, and near-death experiences. A scoping review of 44 cross-sectional studies found consistent links between these sleep variables and ostensibly paranormal phenomena. The findings suggest that nighttime experiences many people interpret as supernatural may stem from common sleep disruptions. This has clinical implications, such as reducing misdiagnosis and guiding treatment for sleep-related experiences.
People who connect chance events and unchosen experiences into meaningful stories tend to hold paranormal beliefs, have mystical experiences, and be more absorbed in experiences. Those with an external locus of control, intrinsic religiosity, and higher well-being and life satisfaction also score higher on narrative emplotment. However, the effect of this meaning-making on psychological adjustment depends on individuals' coping strategies. Narrative emplotment mediates the link between religiosity and well-being, but it can negatively affect well-being through a chance locus of control. This type of meaning-making is important for understanding religious and spiritual beliefs and their impact on psychological adjustment.
Dispositional mindfulness—a trait reflecting one's tendency to be attentive and aware in daily life—is linked to distinct patterns of brain electrical activity. In 120 participants, higher mindfulness scores were associated with lower frontal gamma power at rest, suggesting reduced default mode network involvement and less mind-wandering. During a learning task, mindful individuals showed a trend toward higher brain signal entropy, a pattern also seen during formal meditation. The findings indicate that even without meditation training, naturally mindful people exhibit a neural signature of reduced self-referential thought and greater task readiness.