Altered States of Consciousness as an Instrument of Cognitive Processes and State Control
The article deals with one of the little studied functions of altered states of consciousness (ASC): control, regulation of cognitive processes and cognitive states. The presence of this function is noted in separate psychological, psychiatric, and neuroscience studies. In modern psychology addictive behavior is associated with altered states of consciousness. Some researchers consider that the aim of addictive behavior and, consequently, of altered states of consciousness is structural transformations of the personality and cognitive sphere to eliminate psychological discomfort, relieve mental stress, that is, in other words, a consciously controlled, purposeful transformation of mental processes and states. In psychiatry, researchers put forward the idea of existential adaptation as the main function of altered states of consciousness, which can also be interpreted in terms of intended, controlled changes in the cognitive sphere to achieve pragmatic (existential) goals. On the level of neurophysiology, the neurological correlates of ASC are fixed when there is a transition to a new functional state of the cognitive system, concerning other regulatory systems, including the systems that control the physiological processes of the body. Altered states of consciousness are "responsible" for the quality characteristics (phenomenal contents) of conscious experience. Creative ASC, according to the evidence from the first person, also serve the purpose of controlling the states of the psyche and consciousness. Thus, a variety of cognitive states, expressed in the presence of a multitude of accessible altered states of consciousness and based on the natural variability of consciousness, appears to be a necessary condition for a purposeful regulation of the cognitive sphere.