The Lab Route to Out-of-Body Experiences

[son of light]

The Lab Route to Out-of-Body Experiences
Jan 22, 2008
by Susana Martinez-Conde, PhD
Director, Laboratory of Visual Neuroscience
Barrow Neurological institute
Phoenix, Arizona

...But this trick alone did not induce an out-of-body experience. (And a good thing too. Otherwise you might have an out-of-body experience every time you check out your own backside in the fitting room at the mall). To complete the illusion, the scientists used two plastic rods to stroke synchronously, for 1 or 2 minutes at a time, the participant's back and the back of the virtual body. Next, the participants were asked to complete a questionnaire to evaluate their subjective perception of the illusion. Amazingly, they reported feeling as if they were being behind their physical bodies and looking at them from this location. The illusion failed when the stroking was asynchronous...

Allegedly, it felt quite real to the participants but, from what I read, I think what they are describing is just simple disorientation. jmvho