Occurrence of Altered States of Consciousness among Students: Profoundly and Superficially Altered States in Wakefulness
Imagination, Cognition and Personality March 1, 1993 DOI: 10.2190/3b4n-3pp4-u06y-cj9c (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Questionnaire survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 174 |
| Population | Polish students |
| Topics | Altered states of consciousness |
| Citations | 8 |
| Key findings | Superficially Altered States of Consciousness are common and occur in everyday life, while Profoundly Altered States of Consciousness are less frequent, occur mainly in religious or natural contexts, and are accompanied by extremely strong positive emotions. |
Abstract
In a questionnaire survey waking altered states of consciousness (ASC) are found to be common among 174 Polish students. The experience of Superficially Altered States of Consciousness (SACS) was reported by 96 percent of subjects and more than half of them had such experiences often. Whereas an experience of Profoundly Altered States of Consciousness (PASC) was confirmed by 75 percent and about one-third of them had them often. The comparison of the experiences accompanying the ASC indicates that SASC are characterized by disturbances in experiencing the reality and oneself combined with positive, pleasant feelings and with quietness. On the other hand, PASC are accompanied by experiences related to an absolute, universal, eternal, and existential or religious matters. PASC are accompanied by extremely strong positive emotions of happiness, total love, etc. and are experienced as more rational than SASC, and with significantly less feelings of cognitive disturbances than in SASC. The comparison of circumstances of the ASC occurrence, indicates that SASC occur in usual and common states and situation of everyday life, whereas PASC mainly in the context of religion and nature. The congruence of these findings with an integrated model of the main states of consciousness suggests a natural tendency for a cyclical occurence of ASC, or more precisely, the differentiated waking states of consciousness.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on altered states of consciousness, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Future directions in meditation research: Recommendations for expanding the field of contemplative science Meditators | 2018 | Cross-sectional online survey | n = 1,120 |
| Altered states of consciousness and hypnosis in the twenty-first century | 2005 | Survey and commentary | |
| Naturalistic use of psychedelics is related to emotional reactivity and self-consciousness: The mediating role of ego-dissolution and mystical experiences Adults with varying histories of psychoactive substance use, including 1661... | 2022 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 2,516 |
| Salvia divinorum use and phenomenology: results from an online survey. Recent users of Salvia divinorum | 2011 | Survey | n = 154 |
| Examination of the Phenomenology of the Ibogaine Treatment Experience: Role of Altered States of Consciousness and Psychedelic Experiences. Individuals who used ibogaine in the past | 2017 | Retrospective survey | n = 27 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 6
- Altered States of Consciousness: A Comparison of Profoundly and Superficially Altered States Imagination, Cognition and Personality October 1, 1999
- [Neurotheology: neurobiological models of religious experience]. Der Nervenarzt March 1, 2013
- A Review of Hallucinogen Persisting Perception Disorder (HPPD) and an Exploratory Study of Subjects Claiming Symptoms of HPPD. Current Topics in Behavioral Neurosciences 2018
- Altered states of consciousness, dissociation, and dream recall Perceptual and Motor Skills February 1, 2005
- The protective mechanisms of the basic rest-activity cycle as an indirect manifestation of this rhythm in waking: preliminary report. International Journal of Neuroscience February 2003
and 1 more in the library
Cites 5
- Altered States of Consciousness Archives of General Psychiatry September 1, 1966
- An Evolutionary Leveled Model of the Main States of Consciousness Imagination, Cognition and Personality June 1, 1991
- Occurrence of Altered States of Consciousness: An Overview Imagination, Cognition and Personality September 1, 1992
- An Integrated Model of the Main States of Consciousness Imagination, Cognition and Personality March 1, 1988
- Relations between the Phenomena of Religious Mysticism (Altered States of Consciousness) and the Psychology of Thought: A Cognitive Psychology of States of Consciousness and the Necessity of Subjective States for Cognitive Theory Perceptual and Motor Skills December 1, 1985