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Dissociative States Through New Age and Electronic Trance Music
Abstract
Music has long been associated with altered states of consciousness. In recent years, the popularity of New Age/ambient and trance music has grown. New Age/ambient music includes quiet, contemplative music commonly used by individuals for relaxation and meditation. In contrast, trance music is repetitive, rhythmic music often played at dance parties to produce trance states among a group of dancers. Both genres of music are used to produce dissociative, trance-like states, but in different ways. This article provides an overview of these relatively new forms of music and their relationships to dissociation. Similarities and differences between these modern forms of music and more ancient forms are discussed.
... From tribal cultures to western electronic dance music (EDM) contexts, trance music helps listeners achieve altered listening states (Kartomi, 1973;Kakouri, 1965). The precise musical features and mechanisms responsible elucidating these altered states are still a topic of investigation by scientists around the world (Becker-Blease, 2004;Becker, 2012;Fachner, 2011;Neher, 1962;Trost, Frühholz, Schön, Labbé, Pichon, Grandjean & Vuilleumier, 2014). The relationship between harmonic structure and enjoyment of EDM has previously been investigated by the authors (Agres, Herremans, Bigo & Conklin, 2017), however, the influence of chord progressions on absorptive listening (AL) states has remained unexplored. ...
... Different terms have been used in the literature to refer to the wide range of experiences that may be elicited from music, such as 'trancing' and 'altered states of consciousness' (see for example Ludwig, 1966;Silverman, 1968;and Becker-Blease, 2004). Different connotations are attached to each of these alternatives. ...
... Existing research has examined the influence that rhythmic and percussive elements have, through entrainment and auditory driving, on heightened enjoyment (Becker-Blease, 2004;Becker, 2012;Fachner, 2011;Neher, 1962;Trost et al., 2014). Because ample research suggests that these temporal cues do have an impact on absorptive listening states, the authors have instead chosen to examine a feature of trance music less studied in this context: harmonic structure. ...
The field of music cognition has given comparatively little consideration to the topic of altered listening states, such as audience flow, trancing, and absorptive states. Some research has investigated the relationship between musical features (such as repetitiveness or information-theoretic characteristics) and enjoyment of the music, but the impact of musical structure on absorptive states has yet to be thoroughly addressed. The present study sought to fill this gap in the literature by examining harmonic structure, enjoyment, and absorptive listening states in Uplifting Trance (UT), a sub-genre of Electronic Dance Music (EDM). Rather than examine the obvious (and previously considered) connection between driving rhythmic cues and absorptive listening states, we aimed to investigate the effect of harmonic repetition on listening states. Based on previous work (Agres, et al, 2017), we generated a number of UT excerpts with varying degrees of harmonic repetition. These excerpts were used in an online listening task with 19 experienced trance/EDM listeners. We discovered that chord progressions significantly influenced both listeners' enjoyment of the music as well as their reported absorptive listening states. Overall, the results from this study indicate that moderately complex chord sequences elicit greater enjoyment than very repetitive chord sequences or sequences that violate listeners' expectations. A significant correlation between highly enjoyed sequences and absorptive listening states was also observed.
... In recent years, trance music becomes one of the most popular types of music. Trance music is defined as electronic and loud music, with repetitive rhythmic that is produced to cause a state of trance among its listeners (see Becker-Blease, 2004). A state of trance is defined as a temporary change in the state of consciousness, associated with altered states of consciousness (Flor-Henry et al., 2017). ...
Mind wandering (MW) reflects a situation in which the cognitive system is detached from the main task and involved with inner thoughts. It has been well document that music and other background sounds can have positive effects on number of cognitive functioning. In addition, other body of literature suggests that background sounds might have specifically positive effect on individuals with more attention deficiencies. Hence, the current study examines the effect of background sounds on MW. In two experiments, the effect of background sounds: music (Experiment 1) or an alerting tone (Experiment 2) while performing sustained attention tasks was examined among typical development participants with different severity of attention deficiency. Background sounds were found to reduce MW especially in individuals with more ADHD symptoms. This was further discussed in the context of several theories, and it was suggested that background sound might be used as a tool for MW reduction.
... These activities still occur today in various cultures, as well as at EDM events. EDM has similar features to the music, specifically, the drumming and rhythms, used in shamanism and spirit-possession ceremonies known to generate ASCs (Becker-Blease, 2004;Maurer, Kumar, Woodside, & Pekala, 1997;Neher, 1961Neher, , 1962Nencini, 2002;Reynolds, 2012;Rouget, 1985;Sylvan, 2002;Takahashi, 2004bTakahashi, , 2005Takahashi, , 2017Vaitl et al., 2005;Walsh, 1990;Winkelman, 2003). Drawing from the cross-cultural work of ethnomusicologist Rouget (1985), Takahashi (2005Takahashi ( , 2017 explained that a similar method of "tension and release" (p. ...
Electronic dance music (EDM) events may function as a ritual space for psycho-spiritual exploration and personal development, often linked to the occurrence of non-ordinary states of consciousness in participants. This paper reviews the literature addressing the spiritual, religious, and transpersonal facets of participants’ experiences at EDM events, with an emphasis on the subsequent integration of these experiences into daily life. Several empirical studies conducted in the past two decades, of which the most recent was conducted by the first author of the present paper (Redfield, 2017, this issue), provides grounds to argue that EDM events can be vectors for enhancing personal and psychosocial wellbeing for their participants—a discussion that was omitted in previous studies that strictly emphasized either the dangers or the purely hedonistic nature of EDM participation. The paper concludes with suggestions for further research into the specific ways in which EDM events may benefit individual participants.
... Consistently with previous literature, the music condition facilitated alterations in affect and vivid memory (Becker-Blease, 2004;Héjja-Nagy & Szabó, 2006). Contrary to our expectations, we did not find that the Wiki condition would have been less hypnosis like in the phenomenological reports compared to listening to music or hypnosis with low hypnotizable participants. ...
A new control condition called Wiki is introduced. Key themes of each test suggestion of the Stanford Hypnotic Susceptibility Scale, Form C, were matched by a corresponding extract from Wikipedia.org. The authors compared phenomenological reports of participants across 4 conditions: hypnosis split into high and low hypnotizable subgroups, music, and Wiki condition, using the Phenomenology of Consciousness Inventory. High hypnotizables undergoing hypnosis reported higher altered experience and altered states of awareness than individuals in the Wiki condition, supporting the authors’ hypothesis that the Wiki condition does not evoke an altered state of consciousness (internal dialogue, volitional control, and self-awareness did not differ). Wiki might be a viable control condition in hypnosis research given further examination. Copyright
... Whereas previous research has focused upon the intuitive connection between repeated rhythmic/percussive elements and the physiological entrainment underpinning heightened enjoyment and trance states (Neher, 1962;Becker-Blease, 2004;Fachner, 2011;Becker, 2012;Trost et al., 2014;Hove et al., 2016), the particular repeated elements influencing affective response in listeners remain unclear, and, to our knowledge, no research has hitherto explored the relative influence of harmonic repetition on affective or physiological responses to trance music. The present study would provide the first evidence, to the authors' knowledge, that harmonic structure contributes to the enjoyment of trance music. ...
An empirical investigation of how local harmonic structures (e.g., chord progressions) contribute to the experience and enjoyment of uplifting trance (UT) music is presented. The connection between rhythmic and percussive elements and resulting trance-like states has been highlighted by musicologists, but no research, to our knowledge, has explored whether repeated harmonic elements influence affective responses in listeners of trance music. Two alternative hypotheses are discussed, the first highlighting the direct relationship between repetition/complexity and enjoyment, and the second based on the theoretical inverted-U relationship described by the Wundt curve. We investigate the connection between harmonic structure and subjective enjoyment through interdisciplinary behavioral and computational methods: First we discuss an experiment in which listeners provided enjoyment ratings for computer-generated UT anthems with varying levels of harmonic repetition and complexity. The anthems were generated using a statistical model trained on a corpus of 100 uplifting trance anthems created for this purpose, and harmonic structure was constrained by imposing particular repetition structures (semiotic patterns defining the order of chords in the sequence) on a professional UT music production template. Second, the relationship between harmonic structure and enjoyment is further explored using two computational approaches, one based on average Information Content, and another that measures average tonal tension between chords. The results of the listening experiment indicate that harmonic repetition does in fact contribute to the enjoyment of uplifting trance music. More compelling evidence was found for the second hypothesis discussed above, however some maximally repetitive structures were also preferred. Both computational models provide evidence for a Wundt-type relationship between complexity and enjoyment. By systematically manipulating the structure of chord progressions, we have discovered specific harmonic contexts in which repetitive or complex structure contribute to the enjoyment of uplifting trance music.
... Second, this genre is popular among youth and party-goers (Becker-Blease, 2004, p. 94;Fritz, 1999), making it an unexpected arena for exploring the deep strife and turmoil in individuals' lives. While these individuals may not necessarily engage in explicit, discursive discussions about these kinds of issues, trance music is known to enable individuals to enter into trance-like states and dissociate from their everyday lives (Becker-Blease, 2004). Examining the lyrics of these songs will enable me to demonstrate that this trance may best be captured not strictly as dissociation, however, but also as active engagement with one's problems. ...
How do people move on after moments of crisis? Using a form of modern folklore – “trance” music, and specifically songs that deal with break-ups and pain – as a medium for engaging with the narratives individuals recite when contemplating their lives, I use song lyrics as a tool for exploring how people both interpret and navigate their way through crises. Taking a theoretical stance inspired by Carl Jung, Soren Kierkegaard and American Pragmatism, I argue that the lyrics of trance music expose the ways in which individuals flatten their varied experiences into a single dimension of meaning in order to both make sense of their lives and, crucially, plan their next steps while experiencing moments of crisis. Seeing this process of flattening experience gives researchers and service providers new means for exploring how and why individuals may seek to “escape” their problems and delve into trance-like or, flattened, states.
... Repetition is thought to be crucial for evoking these listening states (Walsh, 1989), yet the particular repeated elements influencing affective response in listeners remain unclear. Previous research focuses upon the intuitive connection between rhythmic/percussive elements and the physiological entrainment underpinning heightened enjoyment (Becker-Blease, 2004;Becker, 2012;Fachner, 2011;Neher, 1962;Trost, Frühholz, Schön, Labbé, Pichon, Grandjean & Vuilleumier, 2014), but we focus on a less understood element of trance music: harmonic repetition. We aim to elucidate how local harmonic structure (e.g., chord progressions) contributes to the experience and enjoyment of 'uplifting trance' (UT) music, a sub-genre of electronic dance music characterized by repetitive melodies, chord sequences, and rhythmic patterns (Madrid, 2008). ...
Whereas previous studies have examined the effect of rhythmic structures in trance music, the present research explores the impact of harmonic repetition on enjoyment through empirical testing. A number of uplifting trance (UT) excerpts were generated with different semiotic patterns (structures defining the order of chords in the sequence) each with varying levels of harmonic repetition. Listeners then provided enjoyment ratings for each of the excerpts. The results of the experiment indicate that harmonic repetition, not only rhythmic or percussive structure, does in fact contribute to the enjoyment of uplifting trance music. Depending on the harmonic context, greater chord diversity or maximal repetition elicits high enjoyment.
... Schafer and Fachner (2014, in press) reports (Fachner, 2011;Gabrielsson, 2011;Herbert, 2011aHerbert, , 2013 to indicate that listening to music can induce changes in listeners' perception of space-time and that listening to enjoyable or absorbing music increases such effects. Timelessness, time dilation, spatial mental images, and space cessation have all been reported (Becker-Blease, 2004;Herbert, 2011aHerbert, , 2013, in addition to myriad other altered states of consciousness (Cardena, 2005;Rouget, 1985;Vaitl et al., 2005). Such reports suggest, according to Schafer and Fachner (2014, in press), that music might induce an inward shift of attention, focused on thoughts, memories, or emotions, which could be responsible for distortions in environmental spacetime (Schafer & Fachner, 2014, in press). ...
Eyeblinks have yet to attract significant attention in music cognition research, though they have been studied extensively in other domains. Rather than an artifact to be removed in eye tracking or EEG data, eyeblinks, and their connection with musical behaviors, warrant proper exploration.
Background: Eyeblinks tend to occur at structurally salient breaks during both reading and speech; they are likely to occur at the ends of sentences and paragraphs in a text, or at pauses and turns in speech (Orchard & Stern, 1991; Cummins, 2012). Interestingly, blinks are often synchronized, or temporally coordinated, between speakers (Nakano & Kitazawa, 2010); however, individuals with autism spectrum disorders fail to show such synchrony, perhaps indicating that temporal coordination is at the root of social communication impairments (Nakano et al., 2011).
Further, eyeblinks can be read as indicators of a variety of psychological and clinical states (Oh et al., 2012). Mirroring attention/arousal and modulated by dopamine (DA), eyeblinks reveal information about sleepiness, attentiveness, and the difficulty of a task (Ponder & Kennedy, 1927; Schleicher et al., 2008). Blink rate (BR) is directly proportional to DA levels, with Parkinson’s patients (low DA/low BR) and schizophrenics (high DA/high BR) at opposite ends of the dopamine/blinking spectrum (Barbato et al., 2012; Colzato et al., 2009; Esteban et al., 2004). Such dopamine-linked disorders typically involve disruptions in timing and/or motor processes, mediated by brainstem structures like the basal ganglia and cerebellum.
Eyeblink analysis is an established neuropsychological tool – used to evaluate dopamine function, cognitive load, and both temporal and social coordination. Such analysis can reasonably be expected to be relevant in the scientific study of music.
Present Aims: Because eyeblinks have clear social and clinical implications, the goal of this thesis is to examine the role eyeblinks might play in music cognition and to discuss the results of a sight- reading experiment conducted at the Conservatorium van Amsterdam. Results of the experiment suggest that, in general, eyeblinks are suppressed while sight-reading; however, blinks that do occur tend to be at musical phrase transitions or at other structurally relevant musical instances. While there is variability across participants in average number of blinks per reading, there is an incredible amount of consistency on an individual basis in average number of blinks, as well as musical/temporal location of blinks across readings. Overall, it seems that eyeblinks provide insights into an individual’s chunking of musical information and are likely to be a particularly useful evaluative tool in pedagogical and/or therapeutic settings, in addition to experimental ones.
... In addition, subjective reports suggest that musical experiences can cause feelings of timelessness or time dilation. Regarding the representation of visual information, data from subjective reports have shown that music can trigger experiences such as spatial mental images or "space ceasing to exist" (e.g., Becker-Blease, 2004;Gabrielsson & Lindström Wik, 2003;Gromko, 2004;Herbert, 2011Herbert, , 2013Tart, 1971). ...
Listening to music can change the way that people visually experience the environment, probably as a result of an inwardly directed shift of attention. We investigated whether this attentional shift can be demonstrated by reduced eye movement activity, and if so, whether that reduction depends on absorption. Participants listened to their preferred music, to unknown neutral music, or to no music while viewing a visual stimulus (a picture or a film clip). Preference and absorption were significantly higher for the preferred music than for the unknown music. Participants exhibited longer fixations, fewer saccades, and more blinks when they listened to music than when they sat in silence. However, no differences emerged between the preferred music condition and the neutral music condition. Thus, music significantly reduces eye movement activity, but an attentional shift from the outer to the inner world (i.e., to the emotions and memories evoked by the music) emerged as only one potential explanation. Other explanations, such as a shift of attention from visual to auditory input, are discussed.
... She also suggested a need for temporal decomposition of self-awareness that can be managed through music and dance. Hill (2002, as cited in Becker-Blease, 2004, p. 92) described new-age and ambient music as “celestial or cosmic music [that] removes listeners from their ordinary acoustical surroundings by creating stereo sound images of vast, apparently dimensionless spatial environments, in a word—spacey.” When listeners described their experiences under the influence of mind-altering drugs, subjective alterations of “acoustic space” were mentioned (Tart, 1971). ...
Music is known to alter people's ordinary experience of space and time. Not only does this challenge the concept of invariant space and time tacitly assumed in psychology but it may also help us understand how music works and how music can be understood as an embodied experience. Yet research about these alterations is in its infancy. This review is intended to delineate a future research agenda. We review experimental evidence and subjective reports of the influence of music on the representation of space and time and present prominent approaches to explaining these effects. We discuss the role of absorption and altered states of consciousness and their associated changes in attention and neurophysiological processes, as well as prominent models of human time processing and time experience. After integrating the reviewed research, we conclude that research on the influence of music on the representation of space and time is still quite inconclusive but that integrating the different approaches could lead to a better understanding of the observed effects. We also provide a working model that integrates a large part of the evidence and theories. Several suggestions for further research in both music psychology and cognitive psychology are outlined.
... Sufis in Turkey, also known as the "whirling dervishes," similarly use music to experience their altered state of consciousness. Trance-like experiences with music have also been reported in other situations such as opera singers (Becker-Blease, 2004). Rosik (1995) considers "wholeness" as the common aim of modern psychology and ancient religions and compares the mystical growth of a person in Christianity with the process of treatment of a Dissociative Identity Disorder patient. ...
Historically, the concept of dissociation was mainly developed by the French psychologist, philosopher and medical doctor Pierre Janet. He suggested that it is possible for a group of thoughts, feelings and memories to become dissociated from the mainstream consciousness of the person and function independently. This concept was further developed by other psychologists like Morton Prince, William James and Carl Gustavo Jung. But, under the influence of Freudian psychoanalysis and Skinnerian Behaviourism, it was neglected for a period of time. After World War II, the interest in hypnosis for the treatment of the soldiers who were traumatized psychologically during the war led to the rediscovery of dissociation and development of the neodissociation theory by Ernest Hilgard. On the one hand, dissociation is a normal process in the function of the mind which can be seen in phenomena like hypnosis, entertaining activities like watching movie, dreaming and spiritual experiences. On the other hand, dissociation is involved in the development of different kinds of psychopathology like Dissociative Identity Disorder (DID), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), psychosis and substance abuse. Although some researchers have tried to define a dissociation continuum which encompasses pathologic and normal phenomena, others believe that there are different types of dissociation which are qualitatively different. For example, pathological dissociation has been categorized into detachment and compartmentalization. There was less research conducted about normal dissociative experiences. In this context, a comprehensive theory of dissociation which can explain different dissociative experiences in health and disease is needed.
... R. Hilgard, 1977), specifically those actively sought experiences that fill up conscious awareness, thereby temporarily supplanting personal concerns or preoccupations or dissociating them to the periphery of awareness. Many people experience such dissociations while listening to music, watching films, reading fiction (e.g., Becker-Blease, 2004; Butler & Palesh, 2004; Goldsmith & Satterlee, 2004) and, perhaps, during contemplative religious trance or meditative states (e.g., Luhrmann, 2004; Waelde, 2004 ). In these cases, the absorbing material is introduced into consciousness by the external activity, rather than arising spontaneously . ...
Hilgard's comment has within it two observations: one regarding the ubiq-uity of dissociative experiences in everyday life, the other concerning our curi-ous lack of awareness of that fact. It is with pleasure, therefore, that I compose this editorial for this special issue of the Journal of Trauma & Dissociation on "Dissociation in Culture." 2 The articles that constitute this issue–articles that examine dissociative phenomena in aspects of popular culture and religion– represent one of the first efforts, to my knowledge, to explore dissociative ex-perience across a variety of relatively common, and surprisingly normative, life activities. 3 Although the topics covered here represent a small subset of those that could be examined, I hope the reader comes away, as I have, with a sense of excitement regarding the potential scope of these phenomena. In the following, I briefly describe these papers, revisit the dissociative continuum, and present several tentative observations regarding the nature, and perhaps the purpose, of dissociations of everyday life. Please note that this electronic prepublication galley may contain typographical errors and may be missing artwork, such as charts, photographs, etc. Pagination in this version will differ from the published version.
... traced it back to the Greek muses, and Grosso (1998) found evidence of it in Hesiod's Theogony. Researchers brought the concern to the modern artist and showed links between dissociation and creativity in the visual arts (Feldman, 1999), music (Becker-Blease & Butler, 2004;Schmidt, 2005), and writing (Brande, 1983). ...
An international sample of 130 working artists was divided into two domains: generators (writers, designers, choreographers, one composer) and interpreters (directors, actors, opera singers, dancers). The correlations between dissociation, trauma experiences, fantasy proneness, and affective states were examined, followed by a regression analysis to predict elevated levels of dissociation. Artists, regardless of creative domain, scored in the moderate range for dissociation and fantasy proneness. Both groups endorsed lower levels of affective variability than a normed group. Interpreters scored significantly higher than generators on total dissociation, absorption/imagination, absorption/changeability, and depersonalization/derealization. Additive factors of younger age, affective states of anger, sadness and spirituality, and higher scores on fantasy proneness and traumatic experiences predicted elevated levels of dissociation, with only sadness predicting pathological dissociative levels on the taxometric Dissociative Experiences Scale-II (DES-II) subscale. Given these findings, greater awareness about dissociation and the need for an elaborated model of affect regulation is recommended.
... experience in everyday activities, such as enhanced ability to divide attention (deRuiter, Rhaf, Veltman, Kok, & Dyck, 2003), retracting the field of concentration to a narrow absorbed state (van der Hart, Nijenhuis, & Steele, 2005), or engaging in intense imaginative explorations (Lynn & Rhue, 1988;Pekala, Angelini, & Kumar, 2001). Dissociative processes operate during spiritual trances (Thomson, 2006) and repetitive activities such as some forms of dance, drumming and electronic trance music (Becker-Blease, 2004). It has also been measured in high-stress/high-performance attentional activities such as in military service (Morgan et al., 2001). ...
The prevalence of pathological and nonpathological dissociation (as defined in the DSM-IV) was assessed in two elite populations, international rhythmic gymnasts (RGs) from the Bulgarian and US National Rhythmic Gymnastics Teams and professional concert dancers from Bulgaria, Canada and United States. The Dissociative Experience Scale–II was used to measure type and frequency of dissociation. Dissociative tendencies among RGs and dancers were similar, and different from controls. Dancers endorsed significantly more experiences of feeling their body did not belong to them. RGs had significantly greater ability to ignore pain and claimed increased experiences of ease when performing difficult tasks. Individuals from the two elite populations, and not the control group, scored in the pathological range for dissociative disorders. The results confirmed the need for further clarification of degree and severity of dissociation among elite populations; populations that place very high demands on their body and hold high expectations for success.
... Further, "self-reflective thinking ceases when the subject becomes increasingly absorbed in the action" and subjective changes can include "a distortion of the time sense, unusual bodily sensations (e.g., feeling light, warm, energized), vivid imagery, and strong positive emotions (e.g., joy, happiness, ecstasy) in conjunction with the impression of becoming one with the rhythm" (Vaitl et al., 2005, p. 107). Trance music is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by strong repetitive rhythmic percussion and is produced for the specific purpose of encouraging positive dissociative trance-like states among dancers at raves (Becker-Blease, 2004). Some people at raves and dance clubs also use psychoactive drugs like MDMA (ecstasy) because they further promote the trance-like states that dancers are seeking (Becker-Blease, 2004). ...
This paper presents a literature review to determine whether precipitating causes of depersonalization (DP) andderealization (DR) correspond to the circumplex model of emotion defined by the dimensions of valence andarousal. DP/DR precipitators are reviewed and classified in relation to the four quadrants of the circumplexmodel of emotion. The findings indicate that the valence and arousal dimensions were significant predictors ofemotions expressed in DP/DR precipitators. Implications are discussed with respect to the multidimensionalnature of DP/DR, clarifying normal and abnormal DP/DR, and identifying needed areas of research.
... The quest of ASC, often through music and dance, seems universally pleasing. Becker-Blease [34] argued that although dance has been converted into recreation in our society, the potential for trance dance as a healing, meditative, and spiritual activity still exists. She maintains that new-age ambient and electronic trance music genres in modern Western culture have much in common with ancient styles of music produced for the same purpose. ...
Frequently, culture-bound dissociative syndromes convey not only an individual quandary but also principal societal tensions between the sexes, among age groups, or between the clergy and the laity. Because of their shared meaning, these occurrences often take place in well-defined situations, particularly when presented in collectivist cultures. In these milieus, such societal tensions, demonstrated by the "ailing" individual, can be played out and resolved. Clearly, these syndromes also have personal meaning and ameliorative functions for the characteristically socially weak protagonists, who can thereby regulate their circumstances in otherwise uncontrollable and generally depriving or oppressive conditions. This outcome can be achieved by invoking consensual, often sanctified community beliefs [92]. In more individualistic and modern societies, most oppressive structures operate within the family. Dissociation among Western individuals functions intrapsychically as an emotional analgesic and functions socially as a protector of the family institution. The common psychologic mechanism in dissociative conditions worldwide is self-hypnosis. Individuals may seek to induce ASC recreationally to enjoy metaphysical experiences. This conscious-altering process is exceedingly useful in the face of inescapable stress. Spontaneous self-hypnosis under duress has been established as a universal mechanism resulting in analgesia [93] and ASC [94]. The ameliorative function of dissociative conditions seems to stem from two recurring features, regardless of cultural context: (1) stress-induced self-hypnotic emotional and physical analgesia and (2) disguised and disowned cathartic expressions of forbidden feelings and behaviors. This article highlights the great diversity of dissociative conditions globally and identifies probable commonalities in psychologic mechanisms and social functions. Future collaboration between anthropologists and mental health scholars is essential if we wish to advance cross-cultural investigation of dissociation. This sort of collaboration is essential for the refinement of the existing Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders/International Classification of Diseases diagnostic criteria, which need to be made more relevant, more sensitive, and more specific to indigenous dissociation.
This chapter is an inter-disciplinary reflection on musical practice, transcultural embodiment and heightened affective experience or “moments of grace”. It focuses on my multivalent musical practice as a case study for exploring consciousness through an integration of affect theory, phenomenology, autoethnography and ethnomusicology. Drawing upon a range of musical cultures from post-rock, North Indian classical music and the traditional music of the West of Ireland, this chapter explores sensorial experience or “the world of feeling” as mode of knowing and examines a variety of different discourse on the powerful generative states which music offers. I explore some of my own collaborations as a case study for the interplay between logic and feeling, by drawing upon a combination musical discourse, academic theory and reflective experiential writing. This chapter argues that feeling (bodily experience) and thinking (cognition) are best utilised as interdependent ways-of-Being without either state of knowing possessing more value. It offers an invitation to inhabit the sensual world of music as a way of transcending cultural difference and considers how a reorientation to the world of feeling may help create new collective futures beyond cultural frameworks.
This chapter details experimental embodied inquiry that was practiced in the studio to investigate ecstatic states. The practices Mullis discusses were developed by members of a cast who contributed to a performance project about ecstatic Pentecostalism of the Southeastern United States. After describing various auto-affective techniques that were used to generate hyperarousal and dissociation, Mullis considers interviews with cast members about their studio and performance experience, theorizes the nature of auto-affection, and considers dramaturgical and choreographic implications of auto-affective behavior in theatrical and religious contexts.
Rhythmic stimulation is a powerful tool to improve temporal prediction and parsing of the auditory signal. However, for long duration of stimulation, the rhythmic and repetitive aspects of music have often been associated to a trance state. In this study we conceived an auditory monitoring task that allows tracking changes of psychophysical auditory thresholds. Participants performed the task while listening to rhythmically regular and an irregular (scrambled but spectrally identical) music that were presented with an intermittent (short) and continuous (long) type of stimulation. Results show that psychophysical auditory thresholds increase following a Continuous versus Intermittent stimulation and this is accompanied by a reduction of the amplitude of two event-related potentials to target stimuli. These effects are larger with regular music, thus do not simply derive from the duration of stimulation. Interestingly, they seem to be related to a frequency selective neural coupling as well as an increase of network connectivity in the alpha band between frontal and central regions. Our study shows that the idea that rhythmic presentation of sensory stimuli facilitates perception might be limited to short streams, while long, highly regular, repetitive and strongly engaging streams may have an opposite perceptual impact.
The trance-dancing culture in Israel is expressed by dance parties held in open, rather than closed, spaces. This research wished to investigate the effect of open-air dancing on self-image, body image, and subjective well-being. This is a combined quantitative and qualitative research study, with 72 participants, 25 males and 47 females, ages 18–30. The results indicate a positive correlation between the degree to which young people prefer open-air parties and the level of their body image, but no positive connection was found between self-image and participation in open-air parties. Young people who greatly prefer participating in open-air parties report a higher level of subjective well-being.
In this introductory chapter, Garrido looks at the popularity of listening to sad music both historically and in the twenty-first century, and the philosophical paradox that an attraction to sad music presents. With a focus on key minds in history such as Aristotle and Dr. Robert Burton, Garrido introduces an argument that is central to the rest of the book: the need to consider individual differences when looking at the question of why we listen to sad music.
This chapter explores the roots of trance by taking a reflective and historical view of the influences of 1970s and 1980s music on the development of trance. The author reflects on concerts which he personally attended, analysing them for music, lyrics, style, performance, and concepts which formed the roots of trance. This includes performances from the following genres: space rock, psychedelia, Krautrock, and post punk. The chapter discusses performances by the Grateful Dead, Pink Floyd, Arthur Brown, The Edgar Broughton Band, Kraftwerk, Joy Division, and Public Image Limited. In each case those elements which have contributed to the development of trance are highlighted.
The role of individual differences in anxiety sensitivity was explored in a sample of 67 college-level music students. Individuals high in anxiety sensitivity report greater fear of bodily sensations. Although developed in research on panic disorder, anxiety sensitivity was hypothesized to predict performance anxiety. Anxiety sensitivity was found to predict performance anxiety and was a better predictor than trait anxiety. Overall, anxiety sensitivity was a better predictor of performance anxiety in women than men, and sensitivity to cognitive symptoms was a better predictor of performance anxiety than sensitivity to physiologic symptoms for both men and women. Gender differences emerged in the patterns of anxiety sensitivity, with men having stronger associations between fears of cognitive dyscontrol and performance anxiety than women, while women alone had associations between fears of cardiovascular and respiratory symptoms and performance anxiety. Those highest in anxiety sensitivity were found also to report less enjoyment while playing and more pain. Suggestions for future research are made, and implications for treatment programs are explored.
Dissociative experiences involving music have received little research attention outside the field of ethnomusicology. This paper examines the psychological characteristics of normative dissociation (detachment) across musical and non-musical experiences in ‘real world’, everyday settings. It draws upon a subset of data arising from an empirical project designed to compare transformative shifts of consciousness, with and without music in daily life, and the ways in which use of music may facilitate the processes of dissociation and absorption. Twenty participants kept unstructured diaries for two weeks, recording free descriptions of involving experiences of any kind as soon as possible after their occurrence. All descriptions were subsequently subjected to Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA).
Results suggest that dissociative experiences are a familiar occurrence in everyday life. Diary entries highlight an established practice of actively sought detachment from self, surroundings or activity, suggesting that, together with absorption, the processes of derealization (altered perception of surroundings) and depersonalization (detachment from self) constitute common means of self-regulation in daily life. Music emerges as a particularly versatile facilitator of dissociative experience because of its semantic ambiguity, portability, and the variety of ways in which it may mediate perception, so facilitating an altered relationship to self and environment.
At raves, young men and women dance to electronic music from dusk to dawn. Previous scholarship treats the rave as a hypertext of pleasure and disappearance. However, such a postmodern view does not attend to the poignant and meaningful spiritual experiences reported by those who go to raves. This article examines claims about altered states of consciousness at raves and the therapeutic results - "spiritual healing" - such states are said to bring. While physiological processes (exhaustive dancing, auditory driving) may contribute to altered states of consciousness, symbolic processes create appropriate frameworks for spiritual healing. Such therapeuticism can be more fully understood in the context of other modern western spiritual subcultures. Placing raves within the context of these other subcultures foregrounds questions for further research.
This study investigated Stambali, a Tunisian trance-dance prac- ticed in Israel as a healing and a demon exorcism ritual by Jewish-Tunisian immigrants. The authors observed the ritual and conducted semi-structured ethnographic interviews with key informants. Content analysis revealed that Stambali is practiced for prophylactic reasons (e.g. repelling the 'evil eye'), for the promotion of personal well-being, and as a form of crisis inter- vention. Crisis was often construed by our informants as the punitive action of demons, and the ritual aimed at appeasing them. Communication with the possessing demons was facilitated through a kinetic trance induction, produced by an ascending tempo of rhythmic music and a corresponding increased speed of the participant's movements of head and extremities. The experience was characterized by the emergence of dissociated eroticism and aggression, and terminated in a convulsive loss of consciousness. Stambali is discussed in terms of externalization and disowning of intrapsychic conflicts by oppressed women with few options for protest.
In February and March, 1973, 566 U.S. military prisoners (POWs) were released from North Vietnam. These men had been POWs for a period of time between 2 months and 9 years, with a mean incarceration of 4.44 years. They had faced physical and psychological stress similar to that experienced by POWs from previous wars: starvation, disease, inadequate shelter, lack of medical care, interrogations and torture (Deaton, Burge, Richlin & Latrownik, 1977; Mitchell, 1991). By definition, such prison conditions constituted a traumatic experience (Deaton et al., 1977). However, a unique stress for our POWs in North Vietnam was the additional trauma of solitary confinement. This paper reviews the coping and "time killing" activities of U.S. Navy Vietnam POWs who experienced solitary confinement and tortuous interrogation. This paper also reports the physical and psychological adjustment of our POWs following their release from captivity. Suggestions are made regarding the revision of the curriculum for captivity survival training programs such as Survival, Evasion, Resistance, and Escape (SERE) school.
Previous research on the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES) has demonstrated that (a) dissociation is quantifiable in both clinical and nonclinical samples and (b) a three-factor structure (amnesia, depersonalization, and absorption) is tenable for clinical samples. The factor structurefor nonclinical samples is less clear, with one- and multiple-factor solutions proposed. To clarify the DESfactor structure in nonclinical samples, confirmatory factor analyses were conducted on (a) one-, two-, three-, and four-factorfirst-order models and (b) two bifactor (hierarchical) models of DES scoresfor two samples of nonclinical university students. Results of delta(chi2) and goodness-of-fit indices support the three-factor (first-order) model as bestfitting of the datafor these samples. The utility of this DES model for screening both dissociative pathology and elevated normal dissociative behavior in clinical and nonclinical populations is discussed.
What do James Brown, Henri Bergson, Techno and Rave have in common? Rhythm, the body, intuition and freedom. I cannot quite imagine Henri Bergson moving his frail body to James Brown's beat, but his philosophy of elan vital addresses rhythm, the body, intuition and freedom in the constant awareness of movement which is at the core of his work. How do rhythm, dance and trance succeed in breaking down the barriers of identity, thus facilitating the elimination of social, cultural and gender boundaries? Funk and its children Techno and Rave give us a music that can be felt as much as heard, and whose percussive and repetitive nature recalls the frenetic drums of African tribal dances. Whether it is within the kitsch red leather confines of a juke joint, or the huge warehouses where Techno and Rave dance experiences happen, these dance floors have become a secular ritualistic locus of emancipation and liberation from society's ever growing stranglehold.
This article examined evidence for dimensional and typological models of dissociation. The authors reviewed previous research with the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES; E. B. Bernstein-Carlson & F. W. Putnam; see record
1987-14407-001) and note that this scale, like other dissociation questionnaires, was developed to measure that so called dissociative continuum. Next, recently developed taxometric methods for distinguishing typological from dimensional constructs are described and applied to DES item-response data from 228 adults with diagnosed multiple personality disorder and 228 normal controls. The taxometric findings empirically justify the distinction between two types of dissociative experiences. Nonpathological dissociative experiences are manifestations of a dissociative trait, whereas pathological dissociative experiences are manifestations of a latent class variable. The taxometric findings also indicate that there are two types of dissociators. Individuals in the pathological dissociative class (taxon) can be identified with a brief, 8-item questionnaire called the DES-T. Scores on the DES-T and DES are compared in 11 clinical and nonclinical samples. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2012 APA, all rights reserved)
Ecstatic religious trance and spirit possession occur across a broad cultural and socioeconomic range, from Pentecostal possession by the Holy Ghost to Ethiopian zar possession cults. nterestingly, this phenomenon is most frequently experienced by young women in their early teens. Folklorists such as Felicitas Goodman postulate that this generational and gendered proclivity for trance reception is a response to the powerlessness of girls within their communities.1 As such, spirit possession allows young women to claim a degree of cultural power through the performance of a spiritual manifestation. Although I want to make it clear that I am not questioning the very real physical (and perhaps metaphysical) effects of the trance state during religious ecstasy, I argue that the trance state is a consciously induced performance2 and the enactment of spiritual power. © 1994, American Society for Theatre Research. All rights reserved.
The skepticism regarding the existence of dissociative identity disorder as well as the abuse that engenders it persists for lack of objective documentation. This is doubly so for the disorder in murderers because of issues of suspected malingering. This article presents objective verification of both dissociative symptoms and severe abuse during childhood in a series of adult murderers with dissociative identity disorder.
This study consisted of a review of the clinical records of 11 men and one woman with DSM-IV-defined dissociative identity disorder who had committed murder. Data were gathered from medical, psychiatric, social service, school, military, and prison records and from records of interviews with subjects' family members and others. Handwriting samples were also examined. Data were analyzed qualitatively.
Signs and symptoms of dissociative identity disorder in childhood and adulthood were corroborated independently and from several sources in all 12 cases; objective evidence of severe abuse was obtained in 11 cases. The subjects had amnesia for most of the abuse and underreported it. Marked changes in writing style and/or signatures were documented in 10 cases.
This study establishes, once and for all, the linkage between early severe abuse and dissociative identity disorder. Further, the data demonstrate that the disorder can be distinguished from malingering and from other disorders. The study shows that it is possible, with great effort, to obtain objective evidence of both the symptoms of dissociative identity disorder and the abuse that engenders it.
Ceremonial dissociation in American Protestant worship
- C A Price
- M S Snow
Price, C.A., & Snow, M.S. (1998). Ceremonial dissociation in American Protestant worship. Journal of Psychology and Christianity, 17, 257-265.
What can cognitive psychology and parapsychology tell us about near-death experiences?
- A Parker
Parker, A. (2001). What can cognitive psychology and parapsychology tell us about near-death experiences? Journal of the Society for Psychical Research, 65, 225-240.
Interview: Dio the Wyrd: Trance scientist An overview of altered mind/body percep-tion
- A Frostick
Frostick, A. (1998). Interview: Dio the Wyrd: Trance scientist. Retrieved October 14, 2003, from http://www.trance.edu/alan.htm Gabbard, G.O., & Twemlow, S.W. (1986). An overview of altered mind/body percep-tion. Bulletin of the Menninger Clinic, 50, 351-366.
The two worlds of the prison inmate
- Kathryn A Becker-Blease Keen
- E Laird
Kathryn A. Becker-Blease Keen, E., & Laird, R. (1968). The two worlds of the prison inmate. Pennsylvania Psy-chiatric Quarterly, 7(4), 42-45.
Trance inducing music Self-hypnosis training and captivity survival
- D Wier
Wier, D. (2003). Trance inducing music. Retrieved October 4, 2003, from http:// www.trance.edu/music.htm Wood, D.P., & Sexton, J.L. (1997). Self-hypnosis training and captivity survival. American Journal of Clinical Hypnosis, 39, 210-211.
The sociology of Kung Bushman trance performances
- R B Lee
Lee, R.B. (1968). The sociology of Kung Bushman trance performances. In R. Prince (Ed.), Trance and Possession States (pp. 35-54).
What is Goa? The roles of music in society: The ethnomusicological per-spective The Social Psychology of Music
- Gav
Gav, & Anoebis. (n.d.). What is Goa? Retrieved October 14, 2003, 2003, from http:// hem.passagen.se/ovegrov/whatisgoa.html Gregory, A.H. (1997). The roles of music in society: The ethnomusicological per-spective. In D.J. Hargreaves & A.C. North (Eds.), The Social Psychology of Music (pp. 123-140).
Music and trance Serenity Supply. (n.d.) Retrieved Modulations: A history of electronic music Stambali: Dissociative possession and trance in a Tu-nisian healing dance
- G Rouget
- P E Shapiro
- M Saadon
Rouget, G. (1985). Music and trance (B. Biebuyck, Trans.). Chicago: University of Chicago Press. Serenity Supply. (n.d.). Retrieved October 2, 2003, from http://serenitysupply.com/ Shapiro, P. (2000). Modulations: A history of electronic music. New York: Caipirinha Productions. Somer, E., & Saadon, M. (2000). Stambali: Dissociative possession and trance in a Tu-nisian healing dance. Transcultural Psychiatry, 37, 580-601.
Rave culture: An insider's overview
- J Fritz
Fritz, J. (1999). Rave culture: An insider's overview. Victoria, BC: Smallfry Enter-prises.
Trance: From magic to technology
- D R Wier
Wier, D.R. (1996). Trance: From magic to technology. Ann Arbor, MI: Trans Media.