Psychonautic Benchmarking: Towards Standardized Expertise Criteria in Non-Ordinary States Research
Juliana Estévez, David Lameiras, Giancarlo Allocca, Cody Gibbons, Leonardo Christov-Moore
October 3, 2026 preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/zuwxc_v1 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Altered states of consciousness |
| Key points | Argues that psychoactive substance research lacks the systematic participant-expertise classification common in meditation research, and proposes a multidimensional "psychonaut" benchmarking framework combining exposure metrics, functional capacity, phenomenological sophistication, typological profiling, and competency evaluation. Introduces two proposed instruments, the GPCA and PPIA, both explicitly unvalidated, with validation programs specified. |
Abstract
This paper addresses a methodological disparity between meditation research and research involving psychoactive substances. Studies of meditation routinely apply established criteria to distinguish expert practitioners from novices, while research with psychoactive substances screens for safety rather than classifying expertise. We analyze current benchmarking practice in meditation research, examine the limitations of participant selection in psychoactive substance research, and propose a multidimensional framework for psychonaut benchmarking that integrates quantitative exposure metrics, functional capacity assessment, phenomenological sophistication, typological profiling, and standardized competency evaluation. Drawing on parallels between the two domains, and incorporating a new competency instrument, the General Psychonautic Competence Assessment (GPCA), together with a proposed typological profiling component, the Psychonaut Profile Identification Assessment (PPIA), we aim to improve participant classification in research on non-ordinary states of consciousness. Both instruments are presented as proposals for collaborative development. Neither has completed psychometric validation, and the paper specifies the validation program each requires.
In the evidence
This study is part of the evidence base for a synthesis in the library. Here is how each one recorded it.
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Argues that psychoactive-substance research lacks systematic participant-expertise classification and proposes an unvalidated multidimensional psychonaut benchmarking framework with two proposed instruments.
Synthesized
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on altered states of consciousness, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Altered States of Consciousness | 1966 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Functional neuroanatomy of altered states of consciousness: The transient hypofrontality hypothesis | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Psychedelic Mystical Experience in the Human Encounter with Death | 1969 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| A neurophenomenological approach to non-ordinary states of consciousness: hypnosis, meditation, and psychedelics | 2022 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Hypnotic phenomena and altered states of consciousness: a multilevel framework of description and explanation | 2003 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |