BIO

Michel van Elk obtained degrees in philosophy, biological psychology and the psychology of religion.

He pursued his PhD in Cognitive Neuroscience at the Donders Institute in Nijmegen, followed by a post-doc position at the UCSB in CA, (USA) and the EPFL in Switzerland. He has been affiliated as a lecturer and Fulbright scholar at Stanford University and as research fellow at The Netherlands Institute of Advanced Studies.

After positions at the University of Amsterdam and VU University he is now affiliated as associate professor at Leiden University, where he heads the Psychedelic, Religious, Spiritual and Mystical (PRSM) experiences lab.

He studies altered states of consciousness using a variety of different methods including field research, phenomenology, psychophysical tools and neuroimaging techniques.

TITLE OF THE TALK

Experimental Research on Altered States

ABSTRACT

In this talk I will give an overview of different experimental methods that can be used to study altered states of consciousness (ASC). I will first present a series of studies aimed at testing the hypothesis that ASCs are a by-product of our ability for agency-detection and mentalizing. Next, I will discuss research that provides insight in the cognitive precursors of ASCs, with a specific focus on the personality trait of absorption and cognitive biases, such as dualistic thinking. I highlight the potential of using placebo-brain stimulation as a tool to obtain insight in the role of prior expectations for inducing ASCs and end by discussing new developments in psychedelic research to occasion ASCs. Ultimately, these different experimental methods and approaches provide complementary insight in the mechanisms (i.e., neurocognitive and psychological) underlying the emergence of ASCs.