Altered State of Consciousness
According to Revonsuo and his colleagues, an altered state of consciousness (ASC) is a state in which the neurocognitive background mechanisms of consciousness produce general misrepresentations of the contents of consciousness experienced by an individual. Here, these researchers argue for the informational or representational concept, which suggests that any alterations affect the representational world-consciousness relationships and not consciousness itself as other definitions claim (Revonsuo et al., 2009). It is impossible to ignore the critical points raised by Revonsuo et al. in defining what an ASC essentially is. Firstly, it is agreeable that a description that does not outline the criteria of differentiating between a regular and altered pattern may fail to be convincing. Secondly, the ‘state’ of consciousness cannot be defined by the contents of the experience. For instance, with the example of dreaming as an ASC, dreams with ordinary contents would not pass as altered states, while those with complex and unusual experiences would be considered ASCs. In this manner, I agree with Revensuo’s definition because it insists on the presence of an alteration to the mechanisms and not the contents which would otherwise generate further ambiguities. Human beings have several cognitive, sensory, and affective processes, and according to Revonsuo and his co-researchers, an altered state of consciousness would mean an altered misrepresentation, not in one but a combination of all of those. Content-specific alterations and delusions may suggest the existence of psychiatric or neurological disorders and not in an ASC because of the lack of a general state of misrepresentation. This definition also allows for the consensus that an ASC only occurs temporarily, after which normalcy resumes (Revonsuo et al., 2009). In this manner, this requirement insisted in their definition ensures that there is a clear difference between altered states of consciousness and psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorders.
Liechti, Dolder, and Schmid investigated the effects of “LSD-induced mystical experiences and their relationship to alterations of consciousness.” They found out that after the use of LSD, mystical experiences became rare and produced high ratings of bliss and insightfulness at 200 micrograms as compared to 100. Hallucinogens such as LSD produce pseudo-hallucinations and aggravate existing mental health conditions if not handled well (Blackmore, 2017). However, such drugs like LSD can cause a once in a lifetime experience that can either be negative or positive. For the most part, individuals take these drugs because of the positive feeling that they gain after consuming them. The 200 micrograms of LSD that the subjects consumed induced a state of bliss and insightfulness that disrupted their ordinary waking consciousness. It also resulted in an apparent closeness to others, and trust. In this manner, these drugs alter consciousness by affecting auditory and visual perceptions so that there is a misrepresentation in the world-consciousness relationship (Liechti et al., 2017). The LSD consumed by subjects affected their judgment, forcing them to feel a sense of trust and openness to strangers and inducing happiness in the process. They operate by mimicking neurotransmitters such as serotonin, which primarily regulate social behavior and moods (Stangor & Walinga, 2018). They produce an altered state of consciousness by modifying perceptions and sensations and creating illusions. These alterations in how people perceive things occur through one or more senses and, thus, the hallucination. In light of these changes in behavior, it is safe to conclude that the subjects were experiencing altered states of consciousness, and for several reasons (Bayne & Carter, 2018). Firstly, Revonsuo and colleagues argued that an ASC occurs temporarily within a specified period, after which a person regains his or her awareness. These subjects did regain their consciousness after a few hours without permanent effects that they could attribute to the experience. Secondly, those who took higher doses of LSD reported perceptual distortion that affected how they saw things. In this manner, it is clear that the drugs did not change the physical forms of the things they saw. Instead, it is the LSD that interfered with the normal functioning of their neurocognitive background mechanisms, thereby causing a misrepresentation of how the world is and how it appeared them. It is also important to note that other than affecting their judgment and lightening up their moods, it also caused intense arousal, hence the reported blissfulness and insightfulness. These are all common characteristics of an altered state of consciousness, which shows that the LSD induced ASC, especially in subjects who took 200 micrograms of the substance.
Both 5D ASC and MEQ30 scales have widely been used across the globe to capture altered states of consciousness. The participant gets an opportunity of describing how they felt during the session by answering the laid out questions. Daydreaming is a phenomenon that most people experience more often, and a considerable number of them use it as a mode of escapism. Daydreaming allows for the focus of inward thoughts and imaginations, which then lock someone out of reality and takes them on a journey beyond what is real and acceptable within the realm of existence. I chose this altered state of consciousness, and the MEQ30 scale did an excellent job of capturing this ASC. Firstly, the questions on the MEQ30 are in-depth and unambiguously laid out for a person to know what they are answering. Mainly, the 5-point scale provides people with the opportunity to rate their feelings accurately and not merely give a yes or no answer. Indisputably, most people would feel that the 5D ASC did not describe their emotions well, give that they were forced to choose either yes or no on the questions asked. The 5D ASC is time-consuming, and a person might lose interest and focus within the reporting stage and register inaccurate results. More than ninety questions may have what it takes to paint a picture of someone’s ASC experience eventually, but it takes a great deal of time and concentration to achieve this. On the other hand, the MEQ30 has thirty detailed questions with all the relevant questions necessary to report an incident of ASC. However, it is critical to note that the MEQ30 involves mathematical calculations of percentages, which may sometimes be confusing and tedious. Nonetheless, it is actually this feature that allows for accuracy in the results. Quantitative data provided by the MEQ30 provide no difficulty in analyzing statistically as opposed to the answers provided by yes or no, which call for speculation. For these reasons, the MEQ30 excellently captured my altered state of consciousness and highlighted what kind of experience that I had. It provided an acute numerical representation of my feelings, such as my loss of usual sense of time and feelings of ecstasy.
References
Bayne, T., & Carter, O. (2018). Dimensions of consciousness and the psychedelic state. Neuroscience of consciousness, 2018(1), niy008.
Blackmore, S. (2017). Consciousness: A very short introduction. Oxford University Press.
Liechti, M. E., Dolder, P. C., & Schmid, Y. (2017). Alterations of consciousness and mystical-type experiences after acute LSD in humans. Psychopharmacology, 234(9-10), 1499-1510.
Revonsuo, A., Kallio, S., & Sikka, P. (2009). What is an altered state of consciousness? Philosophical Psychology, 22(2), 187-204.
Stangor, C., & Walinga, J. (2018). Introduction to Psychology-1st Canadian Edition.