Altered states of consciousness induced by online chanting meditation
Gemma Perry, Yanan Sun, V. Polito, William Forde Thompson
Current Psychology May 21, 2025 DOI: 10.1007/s12144-025-07889-7 via Semantic Scholar
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA 10-minute online chanting session produced stronger ego dissolution and mystical-type experiences than listening to a narrative, but only among people who already had experience with chanting. Novice chanters showed no such difference. The effects were partly tied to participants' spiritual or religious beliefs. The findings suggest that even a brief, digitally delivered chanting practice can induce altered states of consciousness in experienced practitioners.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Experienced and novice meditators |
| Intervention | Online chanting |
| Dose | 10-minute |
| Duration | 10-minute intervention |
| Keywords | Psychology |
| Key finding | Online chanting led to higher ego dissolution and mystical state scores than listening, but only for experienced chanters. |
Abstract
Chanting is a universal practice with deep ethnocultural roots. More recently, chanting has become popular on online platforms and meditation apps which have extended chanting practices beyond their original cultural, sacred, and healing traditions. The aim of the current study was to determine if online chanting meditation promotes altered states of consciousness and psychosocial benefits when compared to a narrative listening control and whether there are different effects of online chanting for experienced and novice meditators. Experienced and novice chanters completed a 10-minute online chanting or listening activity prior to measures of ego dissolution, mystical states, mindfulness, social connection and anxiety. Differences between chanting conditions (chanting vs. listening) and experience (experienced vs. novice meditators) were examined using 2 × 2 ANOVAs and ANCOVAs, controlling for spirituality. Results showed ego dissolution and mystical state scores were higher in the chanting compared to the listening condition for experienced chanters, but not for novices. Spirituality was also a significant covariate for ego dissolution, mystical experience and mindfulness, suggesting these states of consciousness were partially dependent on spiritual or religious beliefs. This research shows that an online chanting intervention can lead to marked altered states of consciousness for individuals with prior experience with chanting. The findings may inform future design and development of contemplative activities.