Downward and Parallel Perspectives in an Experimental Study of Out-of-Body Experiences.
Kentaro Hiromitsu, Akira Midorikawa
Multisensory Research 2016 DOI: 10.1163/22134808-00002523 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Experimental study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Measures | OBE questionnaire, self-location mapping |
| Keywords | Humans Hallucinations Depersonalization Self concept Imagination Body image Visual perception Sensation Female Young adult Surveys and questionnaires |
| Key findings | The downward perspective produced a correlation between OBE sensations and self-location that was not seen with the parallel perspective, but no significant difference emerged between the two conditions. The authors conclude that perspective did not influence the experimentally induced OBE illusion, despite clinical reports linking OBEs to an overhead viewpoint. |
Abstract
Out-of-body experiences (OBEs) have been reported in patients with neurological or psychiatric disorders. According to these reports, the patients looked down on their body from overhead. Based on this phenomenon, we adopted a downward perspective in an experimentally induced OBE paradigm and compared responses to an OBE questionnaire (sensations of OBE) with self-location mapping (feelings of body drift). The results revealed a correlation between the sensation of an OBE and self-location under the downward-perspective condition but not under the parallel-perspective condition; however, no significant difference was observed between the two conditions. Thus, the effect of perspective on OBE illusion that has been reported in clinical research of OBE did not affect the results obtained in previous studies inducing OBE.
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
Cites 15
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