A neurophenomenological approach to non-ordinary states of consciousness: hypnosis, meditation, and psychedelics

Christopher Timmermann; Prisca R Bauer; Olivia Gosseries; Audrey Vanhaudenhuyse; Franz Vollenweider; Steven Laureys; Tania Singer; Mind and Life Europe (MLE) ENCECON Research Group; Elena Antonova; Antoine Lutz

doi:10.1016/j.tics.2022.11.006

A neurophenomenological approach to non-ordinary states of consciousness: hypnosis, meditation, and psychedelics

Trends Cogn Sci. 2023 Feb;27(2):139-159. doi: 10.1016/j.tics.2022.11.006. Epub 2022 Dec 22.

Authors

Christopher Timmermann¹, Prisca R Bauer², Olivia Gosseries³, Audrey Vanhaudenhuyse⁴, Franz Vollenweider⁵, Steven Laureys³, Tania Singer⁶; Mind and Life Europe (MLE) ENCECON Research Group; Elena Antonova⁷, Antoine Lutz⁸

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Psychedelic Research, Division of Psychiatry, Department of Brain Sciences, Imperial College London, London, UK. Electronic address: c.timmermann-slater15@imperial.ac.uk.
² Department of Psychosomatic Medicine and Psychotherapy, University Medical Center Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany.
³ Coma Science Group, GIGA Consciousness and Centre du Cerveau 2, University and University Hospital of Liege, Belgium.
⁴ Sensation and Perception Research Group, GIGA Consciousness and Algology Intedisciplinary Center, University and University Hospital of Liege, Belgium.
⁵ Centre for Psychiatric Research, Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Psychiatric Hospital Zürich, University of Zürich, Switzerland.
⁶ Social Neuroscience Laboratory, Max Planck Society, Berlin, Germany.
⁷ Division of Psychology, Department of Life Sciences, College of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Brunel University London, London, UK; Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
⁸ Eduwell team, Lyon Neuroscience Research Center, INSERM U1028, CNRS UMR5292, Lyon 1 University, Lyon, France. Electronic address: antoine.lutz@inserm.fr.

PMID: 36566091
DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2022.11.006

Abstract

No contemporary unifying framework has been provided for the study of non-ordinary states of consciousness (NSCs) despite increased interest in hypnosis, meditation, and psychedelics. NSCs induce shifts in experiential contents (what appears to the experiencer) and/or structure (how it appears). This can allow the investigation of the plastic and dynamic nature of experience from a multiscale perspective that includes mind, brain, body, and context. We propose a neurophenomenological (NP) approach to the study of NSCs which highlights their role as catalysts of transformation in clinical practice by refining our understanding of the relationships between experiential (subjective) and neural dynamics. We outline the ethical implications of the NP approach for standard conceptions of health and pathology as well as the crucial role of experience-based know-how in NSC-related research and application.

Keywords: agency; altered states of consciousness; hypnosis; meditation; psychedelics; self.

Publication types

Review
Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Brain
Consciousness
Hallucinogens* / pharmacology
Humans
Hypnosis*
Meditation*

Substances

Hallucinogens