Synthesis:Psychometric and clinical scales: Difference between revisions

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Scales and questionnaires relevant for emergence research (e.g. possibly serving as outcome measures), assessment for personalizing practice or therapeutic purposes are numerous. This page aims to list some of these and provide their items and instructions of use when available.
Scales and questionnaires relevant for emergence research, assessment for personalizing practice or therapeutic purposes are numerous. This page aims to list scales which taken together cover the full range of [[Synthesis:Emergent Phenomena|emergent phenomena, experiences, and effects]], provide their items and instructions of use when available, compile, and conduct critical review. This is not a comprehensive list but should be a reasonable ground for our purposes, particularly regarding "state" scales (see below).


While structured interviews (i.e. questionnaires and scales) may be useful to researcher and some practitioners, and are often needed in the context of costly trials, as in-depth interviews are somewhat costly, though less so than things like cerebral imaging, there are often limitations to what they can do in terms of nuance, adequacy, phenomenological depth and precision, a fact which can be obscured by the mathematical rigor of statistical methods used to validate them. We touch on some of these limitations in the first section below.
The five mainly used scales in the context of "altered-states" research across [[Synthesis:Emergent Modalities|emergent modalities]], are the [[Synthesis:5 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire|5 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire]] (5D-ASC), the similar [[11 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire]] (11D-ASC), the [[Synthesis:Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory|Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory]] (PCI), the [[Synthesis:Hallucinogen Rating Scale|Hallucinogen Rating Scale]] (HRS), and the [[Synthesis:Mystical Experience Questionnaire|Mystical Experience Questionnaire]] (MEQ),<ref>Prugger, J., Derdiyok, E., Dinkelacker, J., Costines, C., & Schmidt, T. T. (2022). The Altered States Database: Psychometric data from a systematic literature review. ''Scientific Data'', ''9''(1), 720. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01822-4</ref> and these have been compiled to structure recent compendia such as the "[https://osf.io/8mbru/ altered states database]". While such approaches are similar to the one advocated for by the EPRC [https://hypernotes.zenkit.com/i/UFIY1UO1cp/xTJU4WcyK/the-phenomenology-project?v=M6pP_Tb7W6 Phenomenology project], it should be noted that, in order to produce high-quality, broad, cross-modal typologies of emergent phenomena, more refined instruments might be needed.
 
Indeed, while structured interviews (i.e. questionnaires and scales) may be useful to researcher and some practitioners, and are often needed in the context of costly trials, as in-depth interviews are somewhat costly, though less so than things like cerebral imaging, there are often limitations to what they can do in terms of nuance, adequacy, phenomenological depth and precision, a fact which can be obscured by the mathematical rigor of statistical methods used to validate them. We touch on some of these limitations in the first section below.


== A word of caution ==
== A word of caution ==


=== Meditative and phenomenological expertise ===
=== Meditative and phenomenological expertise ===
The question of the phenomenological expertise of the subjects and/or researchers — that is to say, the expertise in verbally describing experiences at the pre-reflexive level — is rarely addressed in existing outcomes research, although it is a central topic in phenomenological research.<ref>Sandilands, O., & Ingram, D. M. (2024). Documenting and defining emergent phenomenology: theoretical foundations for an extensive research strategy. ''Frontiers in Psychology'', ''15'', 1340335. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1340335</nowiki></ref> Thus, it is difficult to know if different people mean the same thing by ''e.g.'' "altered sense of identity" or "body parts disappearing" when they are responding "yes" to such a question, and what their degree of phenomenological expertise is.  
The question of the phenomenological expertise of the subjects and/or researchers — that is to say, the expertise in verbally describing experiences at the pre-reflexive level — is rarely addressed in existing outcomes research, although it is a central topic in phenomenological research.<ref name=":0">Sandilands, O., & Ingram, D. M. (2024). Documenting and defining emergent phenomenology: theoretical foundations for an extensive research strategy. ''Frontiers in Psychology'', ''15'', 1340335. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1340335</ref> Thus, it is difficult to know if different people mean the same thing by ''e.g.'' "altered sense of identity" or "body parts disappearing" when they are responding "yes" to such a question, and what their degree of phenomenological expertise is.  


It is also common for research involving scales graded on a 7-point likert scale, to be considered as quantitative research, because statistical analyses are then conducted on the scores obtained. However, one should not forget that the original "data" is in fact qualitative, meaning they are subjective reports, and often there is no discernable method to make sure that the person's assessments are accurate. Generally speaking, there is thus a risk for outcomes research using scales or qualitative data with no methods to bypass the subject's or the interviewer's pre-existing beliefs, biases, judgments, and theories about their own experience, to (1) obtain biased descriptions (e.g. a person describes their experience using words that do not reflect what they actually lived, (2) analyze qualitative descriptions in a misleading way by superimposing one's own theories, (3) overlook aspects (sometimes many, and sometimes important) of the information contained in the description, (4) induce content.
It is also common for research involving scales graded on a 7-point likert scale, to be considered as quantitative research, because statistical analyses are then conducted on the scores obtained. However, one should not forget that the original "data" is in fact qualitative, meaning they are subjective reports, and often there is no discernable method to make sure that the person's assessments are accurate. Generally speaking, there is thus a risk for outcomes research using scales or qualitative data with no methods to bypass the subject's or the interviewer's pre-existing beliefs, biases, judgments, and theories about their own experience, to (1) obtain biased descriptions (e.g. a person describes their experience using words that do not reflect what they actually lived, (2) analyze qualitative descriptions in a misleading way by superimposing one's own theories, (3) overlook aspects (sometimes many, and sometimes important) of the information contained in the description, (4) induce content.


In the case of meditation research, the question of the meditative expertise of subjects is rarely addressed, but it plays a crucial role. It takes training to become adept at adequately describing experiences without filtering them through pre-interpretations, theories, vernacular language, or beliefs.<ref>Petitmengin, C., Beek, M. V., Bitbol, M., Nissou, J.-M., & Roepstorff, A. (2017). Que vit le méditant ? Méthodes et enjeux d’une description micro-phénoménologique de l’expérience méditative. [What is it like to meditate?: methods and issues for a micro-phenomenological description of meditative experience.]. ''Intellectica. Revue de l’Association pour la Recherche Cognitive'', ''67''(1), 219–242. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.3406/intel.2017.1843</nowiki></ref>
In the case of meditation research, the question of the meditative expertise of subjects is rarely addressed, but it plays a crucial role. It takes training to become adept at adequately describing experiences without filtering them through pre-interpretations, theories, vernacular language, or beliefs.<ref>Petitmengin, C., Beek, M. V., Bitbol, M., Nissou, J.-M., & Roepstorff, A. (2017). Que vit le méditant ? Méthodes et enjeux d’une description micro-phénoménologique de l’expérience méditative. [What is it like to meditate?: methods and issues for a micro-phenomenological description of meditative experience.]. ''Intellectica. Revue de l’Association pour la Recherche Cognitive'', ''67''(1), 219–242. https://doi.org/10.3406/intel.2017.1843</ref> Furthermore, practitioners with advanced insights may find that the way questions are formulated or the views that underly some formulations, are not sufficient to capture the nuances and depths of their perspectives and experiences.


=== Quality of research ===
=== Quality of research ===
It follows that clinical or qualitative research on [[Emergent Phenomena]] is often of relatively low quality, with many studies using structured questionnaire-type approaches, which as we saw are often quite "inductive" of content, imprecise, and general. Further, structured interviews are often a reflection of the researcher's own phenomenological expectations and interpretations and wording which may not always adequately reflect a person's actual unique experience. Though they allow "quantitative" analysis (statistical methods can be used on questionnaire responses), they rarely provide rich phenomenological descriptions.
It follows that clinical or qualitative research on [[Emergent Phenomena]] is often of relatively low quality, with many studies using structured questionnaire-type approaches, which as we saw are often quite "inductive" of content, imprecise, and general. Further, structured interviews are often a reflection of the researcher's own phenomenological expectations and interpretations and wording which may not always adequately reflect a person's actual unique experience. Though they allow "quantitative" analysis (statistical methods can be used on questionnaire responses), they rarely provide rich phenomenological descriptions.


Many studies do not at all address the question of distinguishing between "experience" and "interpretation" — which a crucial distinction in phenomenological research that was stressed even by early attempts like in Stace's work on mystical experiences. They rarely include procedures to attempt to bypass this (''i.e.'', to induce a state of ''épochè'' or suspension of preconceptions and interpretations in their subjects<ref>Bitbol, M. (2019). Consciousness, Being and Life: Phenomenological Approaches to Mindfulness. ''Journal of Phenomenological Psychology'', ''50''(2), 127–161. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1163/15691624-12341360</nowiki></ref>), and much less so for the researchers themselves. This stands in stark contrast with methods such as the micro-phenomenological interview, which should be considered of higher phenomenological quality, as they (1) avoid suggesting content; (2) induce a state of ''épochè'' in both the interviewer and interviewee; (3) explore the fine, pre-reflexive details of specific experiences in great depth, and (4) only later, after having explored specific experiences with several interviewees, proceed  at attempting to identify structural invariants in individual descriptions and then general structures.<ref>Petitmengin, C. (2006). Describing one’s subjective experience in the second person: An interview method for the science of consciousness. ''Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences'', ''5''(3–4), 229–269. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-006-9022-2</nowiki></ref><ref>Petitmengin, C., Remillieux, A., & Valenzuela-Moguillansky, C. (2019). Discovering the structures of lived experience: Towards a micro-phenomenological analysis method. ''Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences'', ''18''(4), 691–730. <nowiki>https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-018-9597-4</nowiki></ref> Questionnaire items based on such in-depth phenomenological descriptions could be developed and would probably be of much higher quality.
Many studies do not at all address the question of distinguishing between "experience" and "interpretation" — which a crucial distinction in phenomenological research that was stressed even by early attempts like in Stace's work on mystical experiences. They rarely include procedures to attempt to bypass this (''i.e.'', to induce a state of ''épochè'' or suspension of preconceptions and interpretations in their subjects<ref>Bitbol, M. (2019). Consciousness, Being and Life: Phenomenological Approaches to Mindfulness. ''Journal of Phenomenological Psychology'', ''50''(2), 127–161. https://doi.org/10.1163/15691624-12341360</ref>), and much less so for the researchers themselves. This stands in stark contrast with methods such as the micro-phenomenological interview, which should be considered of higher phenomenological quality, as they (1) avoid suggesting content; (2) induce a state of ''épochè'' in both the interviewer and interviewee; (3) explore the fine, pre-reflexive details of specific experiences in great depth, and (4) only later, after having explored specific experiences with several interviewees, proceed  at attempting to identify structural invariants in individual descriptions and then general structures.<ref>Petitmengin, C. (2006). Describing one’s subjective experience in the second person: An interview method for the science of consciousness. ''Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences'', ''5''(3–4), 229–269. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-006-9022-2</ref><ref>Petitmengin, C., Remillieux, A., & Valenzuela-Moguillansky, C. (2019). Discovering the structures of lived experience: Towards a micro-phenomenological analysis method. ''Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences'', ''18''(4), 691–730. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-018-9597-4</ref> Questionnaire items based on such in-depth phenomenological descriptions could be developed and would probably be of much higher quality.


Randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) in particular are often not the best in terms of phenomenology, their analysis is often stereotypical and lacks subtlety, as they typically employ psychometric scales as outcome measures. In such cases, we learn little about the actual phenomenology of the experiences of the study participants, since a scale is a predetermined binary yes/no phenomenological matrix. This makes some sense as RCTs are about testing causal hypotheses and thus need simple categories that can be quantified and subjected to various statistical methods. However, it seems to us that many of the psychometric instruments used in such research lack phenomenological subtlety and depth. Reviewing existing scales and showing the limitations that affect most of them would be an interesting project to take on, especially because clinical trials for novel agents are currently being conducted mostly using such questionnaires.
Randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) in particular are often not the best in terms of phenomenology, their analysis is often stereotypical and lacks subtlety, as they typically employ psychometric scales as outcome measures. In such cases, we learn little about the actual phenomenology of the experiences of the study participants, since a scale is a predetermined binary yes/no phenomenological matrix. This makes some sense as RCTs are about testing causal hypotheses and thus need simple categories that can be quantified and subjected to various statistical methods. However, it seems to us that many of the psychometric instruments used in such research lack phenomenological subtlety and depth. Reviewing existing scales and showing the limitations that affect most of them would be an interesting project to take on, especially because clinical trials for novel agents are currently being conducted mostly using such questionnaires.
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== State scales ==
== State scales ==
[[5 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaires|5 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire]]
[[11 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaires]]
Experience of unity (5 items)
Spiritual experience (3 items)
Blissful state (3 items)
Insightfulness (3 items)Disembodiment (3 items)
Impaired control and cognition (7 items)
Anxiety (6 items)
Complex imagery (3 items)
Elementary imagery (3 items)
Audio-visual synaesthesia (3 items)
Changed meaning of percepts (3 items)
[[Abnormal Mental State Questionnaire]]
Oceanic Boundlesness (OBN)
Dread of Ego Dissolution (DED)/Anxious Ego Dissolution (AED)
Visual restructuralization (VRS)
[[Challenging Experiences Questionnaire]]
Fear
______ 4. I had the feeling something horrible would happen
______ 7. Experience of fear
______ 14. Anxiousness
______ 21. Panic
______ 26. I felt frightened
Grief
______ 2. Sadness
______ 6. Feelings of grief
______ 9. I felt like crying
______ 11. Feelings of despair
______ 23. Despair
Physical Distress
______ 3. Feeling my heart beating
______ 5. Feeling my body shake/tremble
______ 15. I felt shaky inside
______ 17. I felt my heart beating irregularly or skipping beats
______ 18. Pressure or weight in my chest or abdomen
______ 25. Emotional and/or physical suffering
Insanity
______ 8. Fear that I might lose my mind or go insane
______ 13. I was afraid that the state I was in would last forever
______ 19. I experienced a decreased sense of sanity
Isolation
___ 1. Isolation and loneliness
______ 10. Feeling of isolation from people and things
______ 24. I felt isolated from everything and everyone
Death
______ 16. I had the profound experience of my own death
______ 20. I felt as if I was dead or dying
Paranoia
______ 12. I had the feeling that people were plotting against me
______ 22. Experience of antagonism toward people around meClinician Administered Dissociative Symptoms Scale
[[Control Over Perceptual Experiences Scale]]
[[Daily Spiritual Experience Scale]]
[[Dissociative Experiences Scale & Dissociative Experiences Taxon]]
[[Ego-dissolution Inventory]]
1. I experienced a dissolution of my “self” or ego
2. I felt at one with the universe
3. I felt a sense of union with others
4. I experienced a decrease in my sense of self-importance
5. I experienced a disintegration of my “self” or ego
6. I felt far less absorbed by my own issues and concerns
7. I lost all sense of ego
8. All notion of self and identity dissolved away
[[Ego-Inflation Inventory]]
I felt especially assertive
I felt more important or special than others
My ego felt inflated
I felt especially sure-of-myself
I felt especially keen and competitve
I felt like my viewpoint was worth more than other peoples'
I felt especially self-confident
I felt especially self-assured
[[Ego Dissolution Scale]]
Ego-Loss
Sense of Self Moves
Out of Body Feelings
Feeling Nonexistent
Ego Dissolves
Self Disintegrates
No "Me" or "I"
Unity
Feelings of Merger
One with Everything
One with Universe
Union with Others
[[God Encounter Questionnaire]]
[[Hallucinogen Rating Scale]]
Somaesthesia
A rush
Change in salivation
Body feels different
Change in sense of body weight
Feel as if moving falling flying through space
Change in body temperature
Electric /tingling feeling
Pressure or weight in chest or abdomen
Shaky feelings inside
Feel body shake or tremble
Physically restless
Sexual feelings
Feel removed detached separated from body
Affect
Anxious
Frightened
Feel like laughing
Excited
Awe
Amazement
Safe
Feel presence of a numinous force, higher power, God.
Euphoria
Change in feelings of closeness to people in room.
Change in "amount" of emotions.
Emotions seem different than usual
Feel of oneness with universe
Feel isolated from people and things
Feel reborn
Like the experience
How soon would you like to repeat the experience
Desire for the experience regularly
Perception
Flushed
Change in skin sensitivity
A sound or sounds accompanying the experience
Sounds in room sound different
Change in distinctiveness of sounds
Change in visual distinctiveness of objects in room
Visual effects
Room looks different
Change in brightness of objects in room
Room overlaid with visual patterns
Eyes open visual field vibrating or jiggling
Visual images
Kaleidoscopic nature of visual images
Difference in brightness of visions compared to usual daylight vision
Dimensionality of images
Movement within images
White light
CognitionSense of speed
Contradictory feelings at the same time
Sence of chaos
Change in strength of sense of self
New thoughts or insights
Change in rate of thinking
Change in quality of thinking
Difference in feeling of reality of experiences compared to everyday


experience
* [[5 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire]]
 
* [[11 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire]]
Dreamlike nature of the experiences
* [[Abnormal Mental State Questionnaire]]
 
* [[Challenging Experiences Questionnaire]]
Insights into personal or occupational concerns
* [[Control Over Perceptual Experiences Scale]]
 
* [[Daily Spiritual Experience Scale]]
Change in rate of time passing
* [[Dissociative Experiences Scale & Dissociative Experiences Taxon]]
 
* [[Ego-dissolution Inventory]]
Change in sense of sanity
* [[Ego-Inflation Inventory]]
 
* [[Ego Dissolution Scale]]
Volition
* [[God Encounter Questionnaire]]
 
* [[Hallucinogen Rating Scale]]
Urge to close eyes
* [[Hood Mysticism Scale]]
 
* [[Inclusion of Other in The Self 1 Scale]]
Change in effort of breathing
* [[Inventory of Meditative Experiences]]
 
* [[Inventory of Non-ordinary Experiences]]
Able to follow the sequence of events
* [[Kundalini Awakening Scale]]
 
* [[Meditation Depth Questionnaire]]
Able to “let go”
* [[Meditation Experiences Interview]]
 
* [[Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale — State]]
Able to focus attention
* [[Multidimensional Assessment for Interoceptive Awareness]]
 
* [[Mystical Experience Questionnaire]]
In control
* [[States of Consciousness Questionnaire]]
 
* [[Nondual Awareness Dimensional Assessment Scale, ST factor]]
Able to move around if asked to
* [[Nondual Embodiment Thematic Inventory]]
 
* [[Perceived Body Boundaries 1 Scale]]
Able to remind yourself of being in a clinical room, being administered a drug,
* [[Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory]]
 
* [[Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale]]
the temporary nature of the experience.
* [[Psychotomimetic States Inventory]]
 
* [[Spatial Frame of Reference Continuum]]
Intensity
* [[Spiritual Emergency Scale]]
 
Amount of time between when the drug was administered and feeling an
 
effect
 
Waxing and waning of the experience
 
Intensity
 
High
 
[[Hood Mysticism Scale]]
 
Extrovertive (2 items)
 
Inner Subjectivity
 
Unity
 
Introvertive (3 items)
 
Timelessness/Spacelessness
 
Ego loss
 
Ineffability
 
Interpretation (3 items)
 
Positive affect
 
Sacredness
 
Noetic quality
 
[[Inclusion of Other in The Self 1 Scale]]
 
[[Inventory of Meditative Experiences]]
 
[[Inventory of Non-ordinary Experiences]]
 
[[Kundalini Awakening Scale]]
 
Changes (15 items)
 
Involuntary positionings (3 items)Physical symptoms (20 items)
 
Negative experiences (12 items)
 
Positive experiences (9 items)
 
[[Meditation Depth Questionnaire]]
 
[[Meditation Experiences Interview]]
 
[[Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale — State]]
 
[[Multidimensional Assessment for Interoceptive Awareness]]
 
[[Mystical Experience Questionnaire]]
 
[[States of Consciousness Questionnaire]]
 
1. Internal Unity (6 items)
 
26. Loss of your usual identity.
 
35. Freedom from the limitations of your personal self and feeling a unity or
 
bond with what was felt to be greater than your personal self.
 
41. Experience of pure Being and pure awareness (beyond the world of sense
 
impressions).
 
54. Experience of oneness in relation to an “inner world” within.
 
77. Experience of the fusion of your personal self into a larger whole.
 
83. Experience of unity with ultimate reality.
 
2. External Unity (6 items)
 
14. Experience of oneness or unity with objects and/or persons perceived in
 
your surroundings
 
27. With eyes open, seeing something in your surroundings more and more
 
intensely and then feeling as though you and it become one.
 
47. Experience of the insight that “all is One”
 
 
51. Loss of feelings of difference between yourself and objects or persons in your surroundings.
 
62. Intuitive insight into the inner nature of objects and/or persons in your surroundings.
 
74. Awareness of the life or living presence in all things.
 
3. Transcendence of Time and Space (8 items)
 
2. Loss of your usual sense of time.
 
12. Feeling that you experienced eternity or infinity.
 
15. Loss of your usual sense of space.
 
29. Loss of usual awareness of where you were.
 
34. Sense of being “outside of” time, beyond past and future.
 
42. Feeling that you have been “outside of” history in a realm where time
 
does not exist.
48. Being in a realm with no space boundaries.
 
48. Being in a realm with no space boundaries.
 
65. Experience of timelessness.
 
4. Ineffability and Paradoxicality (5 items)
 
6. Sense that the experience cannot be described adequately in words.
 
19. Experience of a paradoxical awareness that two apparently opposite
 
principles or situations are both true.
 
23. Feeling that you could not do justice to your experience by describing it in
 
words.
59. Sense that in order to describe parts of your experience you would have
 
to use statements that appear to be illogical, involving contradictions and
 
paradoxes.
 
86. Feeling that it would be difficult to communicate your own experience to others who have not had similar experiences.
 
5. Sense of Sacredness (7 items)
 
5. Experience of amazement.
 
8. Sense of the limitations and smallness of your everyday personality in contrast to the Infinite.
 
31. Sense of profound humility before the majesty of what was felt to be sacred or holy.
 
36. Sense of being at a spiritual height.
 
55. Sense of reverence.
 
73. Feeling that you experienced something profoundly sacred and holy.
 
80. Sense of awe or awesomeness.
 
6. Noetic Quality (4 items)
 
3. Feeling that the consciousness experienced during part of the session was more real than your normal awareness of everyday reality.
 
9. Gain of insightful knowledge experienced at an intuitive level.
 
22. Certainty of encounter with ultimate reality (in the sense of being able to “know” and “see” what is really real ) at some time during your session.
 
69. You are convinced now, as you look back on your experience, that in it you encountered ultimate reality (i.e. that you “knew” and “saw” what was really real).
 
7. Deeply-Felt Positive Mood (7 items)
 
10. Experience of overflowing energy.
 
18. Feelings of tenderness and gentleness.
 
30. Feelings of peace and tranquility.
 
43. Experience of ecstasy.
 
50. Feelings of exaltation.
 
60. Feelings of universal or infinite love.
 
87. Feelings of joy.
 
[[Nondual Awareness Dimensional Assessment Scale, ST factor]]
 
[[Nondual Embodiment Thematic Inventory]]
 
1. An inner contentment that is not contingent or dependent upon circumstances, objects, or the actions of other people.
 
2. Accepting (not struggling with) whatever experience I may be having.
 
3. An interest in clearly seeing the reality or truth about myself, the world, and others, rather than in feeling a particular way.
 
4. A sense that I am protecting or defending a self-image or concept I hold about myself.
 
5. Deep love and appreciation for everyone and everything I encounter in life.
 
6. Understanding that there is ultimately no separation between what I call my “self” and the whole of existence.7. Feeling deeply at ease, wherever I am or whatever situation or circumstance I may find myself in.
 
8. A sense that my actions in life are motivated by fear or mistrust.
 
9. Conscious awareness of my non-separation from (essential oneness with) a transcendent reality, source, higher power, spirit, god, etc.
 
10. Not being personally invested in or attached to my own ideas and concepts.
 
11. An unwavering awareness of a stillness/quietness, even in the midst of movement and noise.
 
12. Acting without assuming a role or identity based on my own or others’ expectations.
 
13. A sense of immense freedom and possibility in my moment-to- moment experience.
 
14. A desire to be understood by others.
 
15. Concern or discomfort about either the past or the future.
 
16. A sense of fear or anxiety that inhibits my actions.
 
17. A feeling of profound aliveness and vitality.
 
18. Acting without a desire to change anybody or anything.
 
19. Feelings of gratitude and/or open curiosity about all experiences.
 
20. A sense of the flawlessness and beauty of everything and everyone, just as they are.
 
[[Perceived Body Boundaries 1 Scale]]
 
[[Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory]]
 
Altered state of awareness
 
Altered experience
 
Altered body image
 
Altered time sense
 
Altered perception
 
Altered meaning
 
Volitional control
 
Self-awareness
 
Rationality
 
Internal dialogue
 
Positive affect
 
Joy
 
Sexual excitement
 
Love
 
Negative affect
 
Anger
 
Sadness
 
Fear
 
Imagery
 
Amount
 
Vividness
 
Attention
 
Direction
Absorption
 
Memory
 
Arousal
 
Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale
 
Psychotomimetic States Inventory
 
Delusory Thinking
 
Perceptual Distortions
 
Cognitive Disorganization
 
Anhedonia
 
Mania
 
Paranoia
 
[[Spatial Frame of Reference Continuum]]
 
[[Spiritual Emergency Scale]]
 
(a) Dark Night of the Soul (7 items)
 
(b) Awakening of Kundalini (11 items)
 
(c) Shamanic Crisis (10 items)
 
(d) Episodes of Unitive Consciousness (Peak Experiences: 7 items)
 
(e) Psychic Opening (e.g., awakening of extrasensory perception: 13 items)
 
(f) ‘‘Past-Life’’ Experience (5 items)
 
(g) Near-Death Experience (8 items)
 
(h) so-called ‘‘Possession’’ States (8 items)
 
(i) Activation of the Central Archetype (9 items)
 
(j) Experiences of Close Encounters with UFOs (6 items)


== Trait scales ==
== Trait scales ==
Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire
Relevant trait scales depend on what research is being conducted, and this list could be vastly expanded. However this covers some interesting predisposing and other kinds of factors.
 
* Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire
Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility Form A
* Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility Form A
 
* Inventory of Secular/Spiritual Wakefulness
Inventory of Secular/Spiritual Wakefulness
* Iowa Interview for Partial Seizure-like Symptoms
 
* Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale — Trait
Iowa Interview for Partial Seizure-like Symptoms
* Metapersonal Self Scale
 
* [[Modified Tellegen Absorption Scale]]
Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale — Trait
 
Metapersonal Self Scale
 
[[Modified Tellegen Absorption Scale]]
 
* Synesthesia
* ASC
* Aesthetic Involvement
* Imaginative Involvement
* ESP
 
Multidimensional Schizotypy Scale — Brief
 
Questionnaire for the Evaluation of the Fluidity of Consciousness
 
The Transliminality Scale Revised
 
== General and other scales ==
Appraisals of Anomalous Experiences Interview
 
Attitudes Related to Spirituality Scale
 
Bidirectional Spirituality Scale
 
Defense Mechanisms Rating Scales
 
FAD-Plus
 
Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Spiritual Well-Being
 
Metaphysical Beliefs Questionnaire
 
* There exists another separate realm or dimension beyond this physical world that can be experienced or visited. (Ontological transcendentalism)
* Visiting such immersive “realms” or “worlds” can sometimes depend on a supernatural / magical transition process or event. (Supernatural transcendentalism)
* There are two separate realms of existence, the physical (body, brain and
* external world) and the mind, the latter being non-physical/non-material. (Dualism)
* There is just one primary reality: the mind and/or consciousness and all material
* things derive from it. (Idealism)
* There is just one primary reality: the physical; the mind (and/or consciousness) is
* just physical/functional properties of the brain and has an entirely material explanation. (Materialism)
* There are other realms of existence which are more important than everyday reality. (Primacy of other realms)
* The universe obeys a unifying principle which is beyond any possible material or scientific explanation. (Non-naturalism)
* The universe obeys a unifying principle which is (in theory) completely addressed by a material or scientific explanation. (Naturalism)
* The physical world is an illusion generated by consciousness or the mind (Solipsism/Idealism)
* Mind, consciousness, or soul is a fundamental quality of all things in the
* universe, either animate or inanimate. (Panpsychism)
* My conscious experience is entirely a construction of reality performed by my brain. (Internalism about consciousness)
* My ‘self ’ is entirely a construction of my brain. (Virtual self theory)
* My experience and my ‘self ’ are deeply rooted in my body and its interactions with the world and not the sole construction of my brain. (Enactivist approach to consciousness)
 
Psychometric Validation and Translation of Religious and Spiritual Measures
 
Spiritual and Religious Dimensions Scale
 
Spirituality Assessment Scale
 
Spiritual Climate Scale
 
Spiritual Meaning Scale
 
Spirituality Scale
 
Spiritual Supporter Scale
 
Spiritual Transcendence Scale


* Inner-connectedness (10 items)
* Multidimensional Schizotypy Scale — Brief
* Human compassion (8 items)
* Questionnaire for the Evaluation of the Fluidity of Consciousness
* Connectedness with nature (6 items)
* The Revised Transliminality Scale


Spiritual Wellbeing Scale
== Other scales ==


Spiritual Wellbeing Scale Meta-Analysis
* Appraisals of Anomalous Experiences Interview
* Attitudes Related to Spirituality Scale
* Bidirectional Spirituality Scale
* Defense Mechanisms Rating Scales
* FAD-Plus
* Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Spiritual Well-Being
* Imperial psychedelic predictor scale
* [[Metaphysical Beliefs Questionnaire]]
* Psychometric Validation and Translation of Religious and Spiritual Measures
* Spiritual and Religious Dimensions Scale
* Spirituality Assessment Scale
* Spiritual Climate Scale
* Spiritual Meaning Scale
* Spirituality Scale
* Spiritual Supporter Scale
* [[Spiritual Transcendence Scale]]
* Spiritual Wellbeing Scale
* Spiritual Wellbeing Scale Meta-Analysis


== References ==
== References ==

Latest revision as of 13:19, 18 March 2025

Scales and questionnaires relevant for emergence research, assessment for personalizing practice or therapeutic purposes are numerous. This page aims to list scales which taken together cover the full range of emergent phenomena, experiences, and effects, provide their items and instructions of use when available, compile, and conduct critical review. This is not a comprehensive list but should be a reasonable ground for our purposes, particularly regarding "state" scales (see below).

The five mainly used scales in the context of "altered-states" research across emergent modalities, are the 5 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire (5D-ASC), the similar 11 Dimensions Altered State of Consciousness Questionnaire (11D-ASC), the Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory (PCI), the Hallucinogen Rating Scale (HRS), and the Mystical Experience Questionnaire (MEQ),[1] and these have been compiled to structure recent compendia such as the "altered states database". While such approaches are similar to the one advocated for by the EPRC Phenomenology project, it should be noted that, in order to produce high-quality, broad, cross-modal typologies of emergent phenomena, more refined instruments might be needed.

Indeed, while structured interviews (i.e. questionnaires and scales) may be useful to researcher and some practitioners, and are often needed in the context of costly trials, as in-depth interviews are somewhat costly, though less so than things like cerebral imaging, there are often limitations to what they can do in terms of nuance, adequacy, phenomenological depth and precision, a fact which can be obscured by the mathematical rigor of statistical methods used to validate them. We touch on some of these limitations in the first section below.

A word of caution

Meditative and phenomenological expertise

The question of the phenomenological expertise of the subjects and/or researchers — that is to say, the expertise in verbally describing experiences at the pre-reflexive level — is rarely addressed in existing outcomes research, although it is a central topic in phenomenological research.[2] Thus, it is difficult to know if different people mean the same thing by e.g. "altered sense of identity" or "body parts disappearing" when they are responding "yes" to such a question, and what their degree of phenomenological expertise is.

It is also common for research involving scales graded on a 7-point likert scale, to be considered as quantitative research, because statistical analyses are then conducted on the scores obtained. However, one should not forget that the original "data" is in fact qualitative, meaning they are subjective reports, and often there is no discernable method to make sure that the person's assessments are accurate. Generally speaking, there is thus a risk for outcomes research using scales or qualitative data with no methods to bypass the subject's or the interviewer's pre-existing beliefs, biases, judgments, and theories about their own experience, to (1) obtain biased descriptions (e.g. a person describes their experience using words that do not reflect what they actually lived, (2) analyze qualitative descriptions in a misleading way by superimposing one's own theories, (3) overlook aspects (sometimes many, and sometimes important) of the information contained in the description, (4) induce content.

In the case of meditation research, the question of the meditative expertise of subjects is rarely addressed, but it plays a crucial role. It takes training to become adept at adequately describing experiences without filtering them through pre-interpretations, theories, vernacular language, or beliefs.[3] Furthermore, practitioners with advanced insights may find that the way questions are formulated or the views that underly some formulations, are not sufficient to capture the nuances and depths of their perspectives and experiences.

Quality of research

It follows that clinical or qualitative research on Emergent Phenomena is often of relatively low quality, with many studies using structured questionnaire-type approaches, which as we saw are often quite "inductive" of content, imprecise, and general. Further, structured interviews are often a reflection of the researcher's own phenomenological expectations and interpretations and wording which may not always adequately reflect a person's actual unique experience. Though they allow "quantitative" analysis (statistical methods can be used on questionnaire responses), they rarely provide rich phenomenological descriptions.

Many studies do not at all address the question of distinguishing between "experience" and "interpretation" — which a crucial distinction in phenomenological research that was stressed even by early attempts like in Stace's work on mystical experiences. They rarely include procedures to attempt to bypass this (i.e., to induce a state of épochè or suspension of preconceptions and interpretations in their subjects[4]), and much less so for the researchers themselves. This stands in stark contrast with methods such as the micro-phenomenological interview, which should be considered of higher phenomenological quality, as they (1) avoid suggesting content; (2) induce a state of épochè in both the interviewer and interviewee; (3) explore the fine, pre-reflexive details of specific experiences in great depth, and (4) only later, after having explored specific experiences with several interviewees, proceed  at attempting to identify structural invariants in individual descriptions and then general structures.[5][6] Questionnaire items based on such in-depth phenomenological descriptions could be developed and would probably be of much higher quality.

Randomized-controlled trials (RCTs) in particular are often not the best in terms of phenomenology, their analysis is often stereotypical and lacks subtlety, as they typically employ psychometric scales as outcome measures. In such cases, we learn little about the actual phenomenology of the experiences of the study participants, since a scale is a predetermined binary yes/no phenomenological matrix. This makes some sense as RCTs are about testing causal hypotheses and thus need simple categories that can be quantified and subjected to various statistical methods. However, it seems to us that many of the psychometric instruments used in such research lack phenomenological subtlety and depth. Reviewing existing scales and showing the limitations that affect most of them would be an interesting project to take on, especially because clinical trials for novel agents are currently being conducted mostly using such questionnaires.

That being said, here are some instruments, divided into those which focus on specific "states" or experience types, those which focus on psychological "traits" or personal characteristics, and then more general questionnaires.

State scales

Trait scales

Relevant trait scales depend on what research is being conducted, and this list could be vastly expanded. However this covers some interesting predisposing and other kinds of factors.

  • Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire
  • Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility Form A
  • Inventory of Secular/Spiritual Wakefulness
  • Iowa Interview for Partial Seizure-like Symptoms
  • Metacognitive Processes of Decentering Scale — Trait
  • Metapersonal Self Scale
  • Modified Tellegen Absorption Scale
  • Multidimensional Schizotypy Scale — Brief
  • Questionnaire for the Evaluation of the Fluidity of Consciousness
  • The Revised Transliminality Scale

Other scales

  • Appraisals of Anomalous Experiences Interview
  • Attitudes Related to Spirituality Scale
  • Bidirectional Spirituality Scale
  • Defense Mechanisms Rating Scales
  • FAD-Plus
  • Functional Assessment of Chronic Illness Therapy - Spiritual Well-Being
  • Imperial psychedelic predictor scale
  • Metaphysical Beliefs Questionnaire
  • Psychometric Validation and Translation of Religious and Spiritual Measures
  • Spiritual and Religious Dimensions Scale
  • Spirituality Assessment Scale
  • Spiritual Climate Scale
  • Spiritual Meaning Scale
  • Spirituality Scale
  • Spiritual Supporter Scale
  • Spiritual Transcendence Scale
  • Spiritual Wellbeing Scale
  • Spiritual Wellbeing Scale Meta-Analysis

References

  1. ↑ Prugger, J., Derdiyok, E., Dinkelacker, J., Costines, C., & Schmidt, T. T. (2022). The Altered States Database: Psychometric data from a systematic literature review. Scientific Data, 9(1), 720. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-022-01822-4
  2. ↑ Sandilands, O., & Ingram, D. M. (2024). Documenting and defining emergent phenomenology: theoretical foundations for an extensive research strategy. Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1340335. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1340335
  3. ↑ Petitmengin, C., Beek, M. V., Bitbol, M., Nissou, J.-M., & Roepstorff, A. (2017). Que vit le méditant ? Méthodes et enjeux d’une description micro-phénoménologique de l’expérience méditative. [What is it like to meditate?: methods and issues for a micro-phenomenological description of meditative experience.]. Intellectica. Revue de l’Association pour la Recherche Cognitive, 67(1), 219–242. https://doi.org/10.3406/intel.2017.1843
  4. ↑ Bitbol, M. (2019). Consciousness, Being and Life: Phenomenological Approaches to Mindfulness. Journal of Phenomenological Psychology, 50(2), 127–161. https://doi.org/10.1163/15691624-12341360
  5. ↑ Petitmengin, C. (2006). Describing one’s subjective experience in the second person: An interview method for the science of consciousness. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences, 5(3–4), 229–269. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-006-9022-2
  6. ↑ Petitmengin, C., Remillieux, A., & Valenzuela-Moguillansky, C. (2019). Discovering the structures of lived experience: Towards a micro-phenomenological analysis method. Phenomenology and the Cognitive Sciences, 18(4), 691–730. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11097-018-9597-4
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