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The language of altered states
T E Oxman1, S D Rosenberg, P P Schnurr
1Department of Psychiatry, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire 03756.
The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease
|July 1, 1988
Summary
This study used computerized content analysis to compare subjective experiences across schizophrenia, drug states, and mystical ecstasy. Findings reveal distinct linguistic patterns, suggesting these altered states of consciousness are significantly different.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Linguistics
Background:
- Altered states of consciousness (ASCs) encompass diverse experiences, including those induced by schizophrenia, hallucinogenic drugs, and mystical practices.
- Understanding the subjective differences between these ASCs is crucial for psychological and neurological research.
- Previous research often relies on subjective self-reports, which can be prone to bias.
Purpose of the Study:
- To quantitatively compare the subjective experiences of individuals in states of schizophrenia, hallucinogenic drug intoxication, and mystical ecstasy.
- To differentiate these ASCs from ordinary important personal experiences using linguistic analysis.
- To identify unique lexical markers associated with each distinct state of consciousness.
Main Methods:
- Computerized content analysis of 66 autobiographical accounts detailing schizophrenia, hallucinogenic drug states, or mystical ecstasy.
- Analysis also included 28 control autobiographical accounts of significant personal experiences.
- Discriminant and classification analyses were performed on word frequency data from 83 lexical categories.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in word frequencies were observed across 49 of 83 measured lexical categories between the four groups.
- Using data from the 13 most statistically significant categories, 84% of samples were correctly identified based on word frequencies.
- Linguistic patterns clearly distinguished between schizophrenia, hallucinogenic drug states, mystical ecstasy, and control experiences.
Conclusions:
- The subjective experiences associated with schizophrenia, hallucinogenic drug-induced states, and mystical ecstasy exhibit more differences than similarities.
- Computerized content analysis of autobiographical accounts provides a reliable method for differentiating between various altered states of consciousness.
- These findings contribute to a more nuanced understanding of the cognitive and linguistic underpinnings of diverse ASCs.