Increased introspection

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Increased introspection is a metacognitive effect defined as the state of mind in which a person feels encouraged to reflect upon and examine their internal psychological processes, judgements, or perceptions.[1][2][3][4][5][6] Questions such as "Why am I feeling so?", "How can I describe it?", "How may I cease/sustain this undesirable/desirable experience?" are examples of introspection.[7] It is important to note that introspection is only an inner observation; verbalizing the contents, especially outloud, is considered an entirely different process.[8]

This state of mind is effective at facilitating therapeutic self-improvement and positive personal growth. Contrary to early psychological assumptions, introspection appears to be an ability that can be honed; humans do not have automatic or unbiased access to experience.[4][5] Increasing introspection often results in insightful resolutions to the present situation, future possibilities, insecurities, and goals coinciding with personal acceptance of insecurities, fears, hopes, struggles, and traumas.

Increased introspection is likely the result of a combination of an appropriate setting in conjunction with other coinciding effects such as analysis enhancement, mindfulness,[4] and personal bias suppression. It is most commonly induced during meditation[5] or under the influence of moderate dosages of hallucinogenic compounds, such as psychedelics[9] and dissociatives.[3][10][11] However, it can also occur in a less consistent form under the influence of entactogens.


Relational Embeddedness

Relational embeddedness is defined as a remarkable insight or transformation involving a significant personal relationship.[12] A small sample size of psilocybin therapy patients unanimously addressed crucial aspects of their personal relationship histories without interviewer prompting. These insights are most likely to be about immediate family members or loved ones.

This experienced is marked by radical acceptance and forgiveness for the focused loved one along with a catharsis. Occasionally participants describe loved ones appearing as spirits sent to guide them.

Psychoactive substances

Compounds within our psychoactive substance index which may cause this effect include:

Experience reports

Annectdotal reports which describe this effect with our experience index include:

See also

External links

References

  1. APA Dictionary of Psychology, retrieved 15 October 2022 
  2. Schwitzgebel, E. (2019). "The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy". In Zalta, E. N. Introspection (Winter 2019 ed.). Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 Palhano-Fontes, F., Andrade, K. C., Tofoli, L. F., Santos, A. C., Crippa, J. A. S., Hallak, J. E. C., Ribeiro, S., Araujo, D. B. de (18 February 2015). Hu, D., ed. "The Psychedelic State Induced by Ayahuasca Modulates the Activity and Connectivity of the Default Mode Network". PLOS ONE. 10 (2): e0118143. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0118143. ISSN 1932-6203. Retrieved 19 October 2022. 
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 Frank, P., Sundermann, A., Fischer, D. (4 October 2019). "How mindfulness training cultivates introspection and competence development for sustainable consumption". International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education. 20 (6): 1002–1021. doi:10.1108/IJSHE-12-2018-0239. ISSN 1467-6370. Retrieved 19 October 2022. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 Fox, K. C. R., Zakarauskas, P., Dixon, M., Ellamil, M., Thompson, E., Christoff, K. (25 September 2012). Martinez, L. M., ed. "Meditation Experience Predicts Introspective Accuracy". PLoS ONE. 7 (9): e45370. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0045370. ISSN 1932-6203. Retrieved 20 October 2022. 
  6. Overgaard, M., Mogensen, J. (March 2017). "An integrative view on consciousness and introspection". Review of Philosophy and Psychology. 8 (1): 129–141. doi:10.1007/s13164-016-0303-6. ISSN 1878-5158. Retrieved 20 October 2022. 
  7. Xue, H., Desmet, P. M. A. (July 2019). "Researcher introspection for experience-driven design research". Design Studies. 63: 37–64. doi:10.1016/j.destud.2019.03.001. ISSN 0142-694X. Retrieved 20 October 2022. 
  8. Ericsson, K. A., Fox, M. C. (2011). "Thinking aloud is not a form of introspection but a qualitatively different methodology: Reply to Schooler (2011)". Psychological Bulletin. 137 (2): 351–354. doi:10.1037/a0022388. ISSN 1939-1455. Retrieved 20 October 2022. 
  9. Riga, M. S., Soria, G., Tudela, R., Artigas, F., Celada, P. (August 2014). "The natural hallucinogen 5-MeO-DMT, component of Ayahuasca, disrupts cortical function in rats: reversal by antipsychotic drugs". The International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology. 17 (08): 1269–1282. doi:10.1017/S1461145714000261. ISSN 1461-1457. Retrieved 19 October 2022. 
  10. Barker, S. A. (6 August 2018). "N, N-Dimethyltryptamine (DMT), an Endogenous Hallucinogen: Past, Present, and Future Research to Determine Its Role and Function". Frontiers in Neuroscience. 12: 536. doi:10.3389/fnins.2018.00536. ISSN 1662-453X. Retrieved 19 October 2022. 
  11. Santos, R. G. dos, Osório, F. L., Crippa, J. A. S., Hallak, J. E. C. (December 2016). "Classical hallucinogens and neuroimaging: A systematic review of human studies". Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews. 71: 715–728. doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.10.026. ISSN 0149-7634. Retrieved 19 October 2022. 
  12. Belser, Alexander B.; Agin-Liebes, Gabrielle; Swift, T. Cody; Terrana, Sara; Devenot, Neşe; Friedman, Harris L.; Guss, Jeffrey; Bossis, Anthony; Ross, Stephen (2017). "Patient Experiences of Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis". Journal of Humanistic Psychology. 57 (4): 354–388. doi:10.1177/0022167817706884. ISSN 0022-1678.