Altering Consciousness : Multidisciplinary Perspectives [2 volumes]

Cardeña, Etzel (EDT)/ Winkelman, Michael J. (EDT)

Praeger Publishers Inc（2011/05発売）

• 言語 ENG
• 商品コード 9780313383083
• DDC分類 153.4

Full Description

This authoritative, multidisciplinary overview of altered states of consciousness (ASC) shows how their study is necessary to gain a fundamental understanding of human culture, history, and biology.

Altered consciousness is one of humanity's most mystical and life-altering aspects. These remarkable changes in mental state have understandably been a topic of general interest and scientific inquiry across time. Beyond simply satisfying our curiosity, however, studies focused upon altered consciousness can also bring valuable insights into our experience, biology, and culture.

This unprecedented two-volume set will intrigue anyone interested in psychology, biology and neurology, science, history, arts and the humanities, and literature on consciousness, from general readers to scholars and researchers. An impressive collection of international contributors address altered states of consciousness from the perspectives of history, evolution, psychology, culture, literature, human biology, contemporary science, and society, seeking to illuminate the causes, effects, and meanings of altered consciousness. The first volume provides an introduction and centers on the importance of altered states in history, culture, and the humanities, while the second volume presents biological and psychological perspectives on altered consciousness and examines their potential for healing and pathology.

Contents

Acknowledgments
Preface
Kenneth S. Pope
Introduction
Etzel Cardeña
Part I: Biological Perspectives
Chapter 1 Sleep, Dreams, and Other Biological Cycles as Altered States of Consciousness
Andrzej Kokoszka and Benjamin Wallace
Chapter 2 Neurochemistry and Altered Consciousness
David E. Presti
Chapter 3 Dopamine, Altered Consciousness, and Distant Space with Special Reference to Shamanic Ecstasy
Fred Previc
Chapter 4 Transcendent Experiences and Brain Mechanisms
Mario Beauregard
Chapter 5 DMT and Human Consciousness
Zevic Mishor, Dennis J. McKenna, and J.?C. Callaway
Chapter 6 LSD and the Serotonin System's Effects on Human Consciousness
David E. Nichols and Benjamin R. Chemel
Chapter 7 Peyote and Meaning
Stacy B. Schaefer
Chapter 8 Addiction and the Dynamics of Altered States of Consciousness
Andrea E. Blätter, Jörg C. Fachner, and Michael Winkelman
Chapter 9 Altering Consciousness Through Sexual Activity
Michael Maliszewski, Barbara Vaughan, Stanley Krippner, Gregory Holler, and Cheryl Fracasso
Chapter 10 Altered Consciousness and Human Development
Pehr Granqvist, Sophie Reijman, and Etzel Cardeña
Part II: Psychological Perspectives
Chapter 11 Altered States of Bodily Consciousness
Sebastian Dieguez and Olaf Blanke
Chapter 12 Altering Consciousness and Neuropathology
Quentin Noirhomme and Steven Laureys
Chapter 13 Altered Consciousness in Emotion and Psychopathology
Etzel Cardeña
Chapter 14 Visionary Spirituality and Mental Disorders
David Lukoff
Chapter 15 Altered States of Consciousness as Paradoxically Healing: An Embodied Social Neuroscience Perspective
Aaron L. Mishara and Michael A. Schwartz
Chapter 16 Anomalous Phenomena, Psi, and Altered Consciousness
David Luke
About the Editors
Advisory Board
About the Contributors
Index