2023/02/21 by Zoltán Dienes, Peter Lush · 1 voice · 1 citation
Neuroscience · Psychology · #Pain Management and Placebo Effect #Paranormal Experiences and Beliefs #Psychotherapy Techniques and Applications
paper · pdf · doi:10.1177/09637214221150521
openalex publication_date 2023/02/21 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
To varying degrees, people have the capacity to alter their subjective experience such that it misrepresents reality in ways consistent with their goals and such that the misrepresentation can be sustained over at least minutes despite clear contrary evidence. In other words, people have a capacity for phenomenological control. People can use this capacity to fulfill requirements of social situations or personal needs. One such prominent situation is hypnosis. Another situation that psychologists often place people in is the psychological experiment, in which it is often clear to subjects what experiences are desired. Situations in life may also call for certain experiences, for example, encountering a spiritual world according to one’s religious beliefs. These experiences can be constructed so that they seem to confirm the beliefs of all the people involved.