Scientists from Argentina and Spain conducted a linguistic analysis of lucid dreams, out-of-body experiences, and other phase states to try to find the differences between them. They recruited 60 volunteers and collected nearly a thousand reports that participants had to fill out immediately after waking up. The participants were divided into three groups: (1) those who have never experienced phase states, (2) those who practice lucid dreaming, and (3) those who practice lucid dreaming and have had out-of-body experiences.
Using specialized software, the scientists analyzed the reports for patterns and frequent words. The words “see” and “home” were popular in all types of reports. However, the word “remember” was specific to practitioners of lucid dreaming, while “person” was associated with those who had out-of-body experiences.
The words “body,” “to leave,” and “to feel” were more commonly mentioned in reports of out-of-body experiences. This may seem obvious since out-of-body experiences are precisely about leaving the body. However, the analysis showed that these words were not directly related. For example, participants often wrote about leaving the room.
The authors noted another interesting fact: compared to reports of lucid dreaming, narratives of out-of-body experiences were more coherent and consistent, had a clearer structure, and were more similar to reality.
Do you perceive lucid dreaming and out-of-body experiences differently?
The article was published in November 2023 in Scientific Reports.
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