On the varieties of conscious experiences: Altered Beliefs Under Psychedelics (ALBUS).
Adam Safron, Arthur Juliani, Nicco Reggente, Victoria Klimaj, Matthew Johnson
Neuroscience of Consciousness 2025 DOI: 10.1093/nc/niae038 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Neuroplasticity |
| Keywords | Consciousness-states Default-mode-network Belief-systems Alpha-band synchrony Free-energy principle Psychedelics Rebus |
| Citations | 44 |
| Key points | Proposes that psychedelic experiences can produce both relaxed (REBUS) and strengthened (SEBUS) belief effects depending on dose and context, integrated into an ALBUS framework. |
Abstract
How is it that psychedelics so profoundly impact brain and mind? According to the model of "Relaxed Beliefs Under Psychedelics" (REBUS), 5-HT2a agonism is thought to help relax prior expectations, thus making room for new perspectives and patterns. Here, we introduce an alternative (but largely compatible) perspective, proposing that REBUS effects may primarily correspond to a particular (but potentially pivotal) regime of very high levels of 5-HT2a receptor agonism. Depending on both a variety of contextual factors and the specific neural systems being considered, we suggest opposite effects may also occur in which synchronous neural activity becomes more powerful, with accompanying "Strengthened Beliefs Under Psychedelics" (SEBUS) effects. Such SEBUS effects are consistent with the enhanced meaning-making observed in psychedelic therapy (e.g. psychological insight and the noetic quality of mystical experiences), with the imposition of prior expectations on perception (e.g. hallucinations and pareidolia), and with the delusional thinking that sometimes occurs during psychedelic experiences (e.g. apophenia, paranoia, engendering of inaccurate interpretations of events, and potentially false memories). With "Altered Beliefs Under Psychedelics" (ALBUS), we propose that the manifestation of SEBUS vs. REBUS effects may vary across the dose-response curve of 5-HT2a signaling. While we explore a diverse range of sometimes complex models, our basic idea is fundamentally simple: psychedelic experiences can be understood as kinds of waking dream states of varying degrees of lucidity, with similar underlying mechanisms. We further demonstrate the utility of ALBUS by providing neurophenomenological models of psychedelics focusing on mechanisms of conscious perceptual synthesis, dreaming, and episodic memory and mental simulation.
Comparable studies
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| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Dendrite-Focused Framework for Understanding the Actions of Ketamine and Psychedelics | 2020 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Does Psychedelic Therapy Have a Transdiagnostic Action and Prophylactic Potential? | 2021 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| A complex systems perspective on psychedelic brain action. | 2023 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Critical Period Plasticity as a Framework for Psychedelic-Assisted Psychotherapy | 2021 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Therapeutic mechanisms of psychedelics and entactogens. | 2023 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 15
- Key competencies for psychedelic treatment in real-world mental health care settings. General Hospital Psychiatry 2025
- A causal pluralist theory of the interaction of substance, set and setting in psychedelic experience Philosophical Psychology November 30, 2025
- The entropic brain today Brain December 12, 2025
- A Large-Scale Computer-Vision Mapping of the Geometric Structures of Stroboscopically-Induced Visual Hallucinations bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) February 18, 2026
- Accelerated recovery using magnesium ibogaine: characterizing the subjective experience of its rapid healing from neuropsychiatric disorders. npj Mental Health Research January 31, 2026
and 10 more in the library
Cites 57
- The entropic brain: a theory of conscious states informed by neuroimaging research with psychedelic drugs Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 2014
- REBUS and the Anarchic Brain: Toward a Unified Model of the Brain Action of Psychedelics Pharmacological Reviews June 20, 2019
- Mystical experiences occasioned by the hallucinogen psilocybin lead to increases in the personality domain of openness Journal of Psychopharmacology September 28, 2011
- Validation of the revised Mystical Experience Questionnaire in experimental sessions with psilocybin Journal of Psychopharmacology October 6, 2015
- The default-mode, ego-functions and free-energy: a neurobiological account of Freudian ideas Brain February 28, 2010
and 52 more in the library