Why some physical systems are accompanied by subjective experience remains unresolved in neuroscience and philosophy of mind. Building on predictive processing and the Free Energy Principle, I propose that phenomenal consciousness (what-it-is-like-ness) arises when an information-processing system enters a regime of dynamic entropic closure: a metastable condition in which (i) internally...
Recent psychedelic research has shown that compounds such as psilocybin, DMT, ayahuasca, and 5-MeO-DMT can induce acute altered states involving self-dissolution, altered reality-status, and heightened meaning attribution. Historical and cross-cultural evidence likewise suggests that nonordinary states have often been embedded within ritual, initiation, contemplative discipline, and structured...
Under the influence of psychedelics, people often report encountering "entities" who seem to have their own autonomous agency. Depending on the cultural milieu, these entities are reported to take a variety of forms, including spirits, elves, ancestors, or fragments of the self. Encounters with such beings hold a central place in many traditions of psychedelic practice around the world. And...
Classical serotonergic psychedelics (e.g., LSD, psilocybin, DMT) alter perception and neuroplasticity primarily via 5-HT2A receptor activation and downstream Ca2+-dependent signaling cascades. Here we propose a speculative yet falsifiable pharmacological hypothesis that these drug-induced biochemical cascades might interface with quantum-mechanical processes in the brain. We focus on nuclear...
Bullying among children and adolescents is a complex and widespread problem with profound psychological, social, and legal implications. It includes physical, verbal, relational, sexual, and cyber forms involving perpetrators, victims, and bully-victims. This narrative literature review synthesizes findings from studies published between 2000 and 2024 across disciplines including psychology,...
Psychotherapy process research increasingly uses intensive longitudinal monitoring to capture dynamic patterns of change in patients. In this study, 283 psychiatric inpatients diagnosed with depression (n = 70), PTSD (n = 148), dissociative disorders (n = 26) or personality disorders (n = 39) completed the Therapy Process Questionnaire each evening over an average of 81.5 days per patient,...
Why do some moments imprint themselves in memory while others vanish without a trace? This meta-analysis identifies a dissociation in large-scale brain networks during encoding: networks associated with impairing encoding are task-invariant, whereas those supporting it are task-specific. Drawing on 56 functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies employing the subsequent memory paradigm,...
Climate change generates not only physical and economic disruption but also profound psychological impacts, including climate anxiety, trauma following extreme events, and chronic stress. These mental health burdens undermine individual and community capacities for effective climate adaptation. Recent researches highlight mindfulness and contemplative practices as scalable, low-cost...
The integration of traditional and modern medicine has become a growing concern in the field of healthcare, particularly in the context of healing that involves psychological and spiritual aspects. One traditional approach that has gained attention is Sufi Healing, a method of treatment based on the practices and values of Sufism. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of Sufi Healing and...
Artificial intelligence (AI) has moved from being an external instrument to an environment that increasingly mediates attention, interpretation, and judgment. In religious life, this shift is not merely practical; it is structural. It reconfigures how religious experience is organized, how authority is distributed, and how religious subjectivity is formed. This article examines these...