A Mixed Methods Exploratory Analysis of Gender, Gender Traits, and the Mystical Experience
February 23, 2026 Sequoia Gavin-McCabe
Mystical experiences—feelings of unity, heightened connection, positive mood, transcendence of time and space, and ineffability—are common and impactful, and research in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy shows they can have enduring positive effects in psychiatric disorders. Gender differences in these experiences are under-researched, with evidence pointing to roles for femininity and masculinity. Using network analysis, Study A found that heightened femininity during mystical experiences linked gender and mystical communities through the connectedness community. Thematic analysis in Study B revealed that participants saw femininity as compatible with mystical experience but viewed typical masculine traits as a barrier. Together, the studies suggest femininity is best conceptualized as the absence of masculinity, and through this absence femininity correlates with mystical experience, indicating a significant role for both femininity and masculinity at quantitative and qualitative levels.