Phenomenology of auto-induced cognitive trance using text mining: a prospective and exploratory group study.
Audrey Vanhaudenhuyse, Marie-Carmen Castillo, Charlotte Martial, Jitka Annen, Aminata Bicego, Floriane Rousseaux, Leandro R. D. Sanz, Corine Sombrun, Antoine Bioy, Olivia Gosseries
Neuroscience of Consciousness 2024 DOI: 10.1093/nc/niae036 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 27 |
| Population | Trained participants who can practise auto-induced cognitive trance |
| Intervention | Auto-induced cognitive trance |
| Duration | Five pseudo-randomized experimental sessions |
| Topics | Philosophy of mind |
| Keywords | Auto-induced cognitive trance Narrative content Subjective experience Text mining |
| Citations | 7 |
| Key findings | Auto-induced cognitive trance yields longer and phenomenologically richer reports with distinct content categories, including nature, animals, body modifications, and difficulty describing thoughts, compared to ordinary conscious states. |
Abstract
Auto-induced cognitive trance (AICT) is a modified state of consciousness derived from shamanic tradition that can be practised by individuals after specific training. The aim of this work was to characterize the phenomenological experiences of AICT, using text mining analysis. Free recalls of subjective experiences were audio-recorded in 27 participants after five pseudo-randomized experimental sessions: ordinary conscious resting state, with auditory stimulation and with an imaginary mental task, as well as during AICT with and without auditory stimulation. Recordings were transcribed, normalized total word counts were calculated for each condition, and analyses of content were performed using IRaMuTeQ software. Results showed that the length of the participants' reports was higher for AICT compared to the other conditions, and that the content could be categorized into four classes of discourse: AICT memory, AICT, ordinary conscious states, and AICT with and without stimulation. AICT was also characterized by specific content compared to rest, auditory stimulation, and imagination conditions. Content analysis of the narrative revealed nine categories encompassing the presence of nature, people, animals, positive and negative features, sensory perceptions, body modifications, metacognition, and difficulty of describing thoughts. Among these categories, AICT is specifically characterized by reports related to the presence of nature, animals, body modifications, as well as the difficulty of describing thoughts. These results suggest that a richer phenomenology was reported during AICT, compared to the other conditions, and that AICT constitutes a class of discourse on its own, with a clear dissociation from the other conditions.
Comparable studies
Other experimental studies on philosophy of mind, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Deep-Dream Virtual Reality Platform for Studying Altered Perceptual Phenomenology | 2017 | Experimental study | |
| New World Tryptamine Hallucinogens and the Neuroscience of Ayahuasca. | 2018 | Review with original neuroimaging and neurophysiological data | |
| Differential contributions of serotonergic and dopaminergic functional connectivity to the phenomenology of LSD Healthy adults | 2022 | Secondary analysis of experimental data | n = 15 |
| TMS-EEG and resting-state EEG applied to altered states of consciousness: oscillations, complexity, and phenomenology. | 2023 | Experimental study | |
| Training novice practitioners to reliably report their meditation experience using shared phenomenological dimensions. Novice meditation practitioners | 2019 | Neurophenomenological experiment |
Citations in the library
Cited by 7
- Therapeutic Use of Auto-Induced Cognitive Trance in a Chronic Pain Setting: A Case Study Using Mixed Methodology OBM Integrative and Complementary Medicine March 5, 2025
- Exploring Mystical-Type Experiences Through Auto-Induced Cognitive Trance. International Journal of Clinical and Experimental Hypnosis 2025
- Trance practice and well-being measures: the case of Auto-Induced Cognitive Trance medRxiv July 17, 2026
- The rhythms of trance: Cultural phenomenology and neural mechanisms of music-induced non-ordinary states of consciousness. Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews July 1, 2026
- The Neurophenomenology of a Self-Induced Transcendental Visionary State: A Case Study. Neuroimage February 4, 2026
and 2 more in the library
Cites 15
- Near-death experience in survivors of cardiac arrest: a prospective study in the Netherlands The Lancet December 1, 2001
- Brain changes during a shamanic trance: Altered modes of consciousness, hemispheric laterality, and systemic psychobiology Cogent Psychology April 24, 2017
- The Near-Death Experience Content (NDE-C) scale: Development and psychometric validation Consciousness and Cognition November 1, 2020
- Neural Correlates of the Shamanic State of Consciousness Frontiers in Human Neuroscience March 18, 2021
- An Encounter With the Other: A Thematic and Content Analysis of DMT Experiences From a Naturalistic Field Study Frontiers in Psychology December 16, 2021
and 10 more in the library