Psychology of Consciousness:

Theory, Research, and Practice

© 2018 American Psychological Association 2019, Vol. 6, No. 1, 99 –121
2326-5523/19/$12.00 http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/cns0000165

A Survey Exploring Synesthetic Experiences: Exceptional

Experiences, Schizotypy, and Psychological Well-Being
Christine A. Simmonds-Moore Carlos S. Alvarado
University of West Georgia Parapsychology Foundation, New York, New York

Nancy L. Zingrone
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.

Northcentral University
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.

We used an online survey to investigate the relations among synesthesia, schizotypy,

exceptional experiences (ExEs), and well-being. Participants (N ⫽ 1,628 [listwise N ⫽
767]; male ⫽ 619, female ⫽ 1,064) completed a Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire
(SEQ), a general question about synesthetic experiences (Hartmann, 1991), the Anomalous
Experience Subscale (AES) of the Anomalous Experience Inventory (Gallagher, Kumar, &
Pekala, 1994), questions about parapsychological experiences, a multidimensional measure
of schizotypy (Oxford-Liverpool Inventory for Feelings and Experiences Short [O-LIFE
Short]; Mason, Linney, & Claridge, 2005), and the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS;
Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985). Cronbach’s alphas for these measures ranged
from .63 to .90 in our data set. Approximately half (54.4%) of the sample reported 1 or more
synesthetic experiences, although the rate was much lower for synesthesias experienced on
a consistent basis (3.1%). The SEQ was highly internally reliable and correlated positively
with the AES, number of parapsychological experiences, and unusual experiences, and
negatively with introvertive anhedonia. The SEQ was not directly related to the SWLS.
Unusual experiences and synesthesia were the strongest predictors of the AES and para-
psychological experiences in multiple regression models. A cluster analysis of schizotypy
found 4 clusters of schizotypy, including 1 cluster reflecting healthy schizotypy, 1 reflecting
high schizotypy, 1 reflecting low schizotypy, and 1 reflecting negative schizotypy. We
compared clusters in terms of the SWLS, ExEs, and the SEQ and found significant
differences for all variables and higher scores for healthy compared with high schizotypy
on all variables. We discuss the complex relations among synesthesia, schizotypy, and
well-being.

Keywords: synesthesia, positive schizotypy, exceptional experiences, cluster analysis,

satisfaction with life

Synesthesia occurs when a given stimulus
produces an additional sensory or conceptual
response (Marks & Mulvenna, 2013; Simner &
This article was published Online First September 17,
2018.
Christine A. Simmonds-Moore, Department of Psychology,
University of West Georgia; Carlos S. Alvarado, Parapsychol-
ogy Foundation, New York, New York; Nancy L. Zingrone,
Department of Psychology, Northcentral University.
The authors would like to acknowledge the Bial Founda-
tion for funding this research project.
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed
to Christine A. Simmonds-Moore, Department of Psychology,
University of West Georgia, 1601 Maple Street, Carrollton,
GA 30117. E-mail: csimmond@westga.edu
99
Hubbard, 2013). Synesthetic experiences span a
range of experiences and are comprised of an
inducer, such as a word, the usual sensory re-
sponse, and a concurrent experience in a differ-
ent modality, such as a color or a physical
sensation (Grossenbacher & Lovelace, 2001).
For example, in response to the inducing stim-
ulus of spice in a curry, a person may experi-
ence a visual color in addition to the sensations
associated with spicy food. Synesthetic concur-
rents are experienced in a variety of ways: as
projected out into the external world, experi-
enced in the mind’s eye (Simner & Hubbard,
2013), and sometimes in more complex ways
(Alvaraz & Robertson, 2013; Eagleman, 2012).
Most research has explored grapheme-color
 100 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
synesthesia, which describes the experience of a
color or colors (a concurrent) in response to
hearing or reading a letter or number (Brang &
Ramachandran, 2010). However, there are
many other types of synesthesia, which vary in
prevalence (Marks, 2014). For example, another
commonly experienced type of synesthesia is
time-space synesthesia, which describes the ex-
perience of time as organized spatially (Mann,
Korzenko, Carriere, & Dixon, 2009). In addi-
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tion, mirror-touch1 synesthesia, in which indi-
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
viduals feel they are being touched when they
see someone else being touched (Banissy, Co-
hen Kadosh, Maus, Walsh, & Ward, 2009), is
also relatively common among synesthetes.
Less common synesthesias include those asso-
ciated with taste, smell, and pain (Cytowic,
1995).
A subset of individuals report the experience of
synesthesia for as long as they can remember
(Simner & Hubbard, 2013). Simner et al. (2006)
found a prevalence rate of lifelong synesthesia to
be 4.4% in an unselected sample, but the esti-
mated prevalence rate varies with the sample stud-
ied and the definition of synesthesia (Marks,
2014). For individuals who experience lifelong
synesthesia, experiences occur consciously and
explicitly in response to everyday stimuli (Simner
& Hubbard, 2013). Such experiences are often
labeled as strong or developmental synesthesia, as
they are typically congenital. These experiences
tend to be consistent and automatic in nature. In
addition, most synesthetic experiences are unidi-
rectional in terms of the stimulus and response,
with a few exceptions in which the concurrent
experience can also lead to experiences associated
with the inducer2 (Brang & Ramachandran,
2011). However, synesthesia can also be “ac-
quired” following brain damage and induced dur-
ing altered states of consciousness (Grossenbacher
& Lovelace, 2001), including meditation (Walsh,
2005), hypnagogia (Sagiv, Ilbeigi, & Ben-Tal,
2011), hypnosis (Cardeña, 2005), and the inges-
tion of psychoactive substances (Luke & Terhune,
2013). Some synesthetic experiences have oc-
curred after training to produce such experiences
(Marks, 2014; Rothen & Meier, 2014).
Marks (2014) recently described synesthesia
as a “teeming multiplicity,” reflecting the vari-
ety of ways in which it can arise and be expe-
rienced. Some theorists contend that synesthesia
varies on a continuum, with some people expe-
riencing it in weaker forms and others experi-
encing it more frequently or consistently (e.g.,
Martino & Marks, 2001). Other theorists (e.g.,
Deroy & Spence, 2013) have argued that syn-
esthesia should only be defined as such when it
occurs automatically and consistently in re-
sponse to an inducing stimulus (cf. Marks &
Mulvenna, 2013; Simner & Hubbard, 2013).
Although much research focuses on so-called
strong synesthesia, empirical research supports
a spectrum of synesthetic experiences (Eagle-
man, 2012; Marks, 2014). Still other approaches
conceptualize synesthesia as a family tree of
synesthesias with categories and subcategories
of related but different phenomena (Marks,
2014). Novich, Cheng, and Eagleman’s (2011)
cluster analytic work lends some support to the
idea of different synesthesias.
We adopt a broad approach to synesthetic ex-
periences and contend that either a monist or plu-
ral approach is potentially valid. We generally
align with a pluralistic approach—which ac-
knowledges a general category of synesthesias—
that can encompass both strong experiences in
addition to a continuum of synesthetic experi-
ences. Diverse ways of experiencing synesthesia
may reflect a family tree of related phenomena,
with different etiologies.
Herein we develop and employ a new scale to
assess synesthesia. The Synesthesia subscale of
the Tellegen Absorption Scale (Tellegen & At-
kinson, 1974) is often used to examine synes-
thesia in unselected samples; however, it taps
only weak forms of synesthesia (Terhune, 2009)
and not the full range of synesthesias. We seek
to explore how the synesthesias are distributed
in a self-selected sample and examine a number
of potential correlates of synesthesia, including
exceptional experiences, positive schizotypy,
and psychological well-being.
Exceptional Experiences and Synesthesia
More specifically, we examine how synes-
thetic experiences and positive schizotypy cor-
relate with several human experiences that oc-
1
Some, however, have challenged the inclusion of mir-
ror-touch synesthesia as a true synesthesia because it does
not share all of the features of other synesthesias (Marks &
Mulvenna, 2013; Rothen & Meier, 2013).
2
In addition, there is some evidence for unconscious
bidirectionality in synesthetic experiences (Knoch, Gianotti,
Mohr, & Brugger, 2005).
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
cur infrequently or deviate from ordinary
experiences. Such anomalous or exceptional ex-
periences (ExEs), such as out-of-body experi-
ences and extrasensory perception (ESP), can
often challenge the accepted explanations of
reality according to the dominant Western par-
adigm (Cardeña, Lynn, & Krippner, 2014), and
are frequently labeled as paranormal (Belz &
Fach, 2012). Rhea White (Brown, 2000) first
employed the term exceptional experience in
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her discussion of exceptional human experi-
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ences, but more recently, the term has been
employed as an inclusive descriptor for a range
of unusual phenomena (Belz & Fach, 2012;
Simmonds-Moore, 2012b), including (see Belz
& Fach, 2012) (a) anomalies in the experience
of the self (the “self- model”; e.g., internally
experienced voices and somatic phenomena that
are felt to derive from an outside/paranormal
source), (b) anomalies in ways the physical
world is experienced (the “world-model”; ex-
ternal and body-based phenomena, including
purported psychokinesis and experiences of
ghosts), (c) dissociative phenomena (dissocia-
tion between ways in which one experiences the
self and the world models; e.g., mediumistic
experiences and out-of-body phenomena;
Cardeña & Alvarado, 2014), and (d) phenom-
ena related to perceiving coincidences (coinci-
dence phenomena; e.g., synchronicities and
some experiences of ESP). A sizable subset of
the general population reports the full range of
ExEs (e.g., approximately 38% of a randomly
selected sample report experiencing ESP;
Palmer, 1979). ExEs have been reported across
different cultures and times (Irwin & Watt,
2007), are often associated with altered states of
consciousness (Alvarado, 1998), and can
emerge spontaneously or as a result of practices
intended to alter consciousness (Belz, 2012).
Previous studies have indicated that synes-
thesia may be implicated in the etiology of
ExEs. Cytowic (1995), for example, observed
that strong synesthetes reported several types of
ExEs, including déjà vu, clairvoyance, precog-
nition (in dreams), sense of presence, empathic
healing, and psychokinesis, although these re-
ports do not provide evidence for a causal rela-
tionship. Other researchers have proposed that
synesthesia may actually underpin or play an
integral role in several types of ExEs (Alvarado,
1994; Irwin, 1985; Marwaha & May, 2015;
Williams, 1997; Zingrone, Alvarado, & Agee,
101
2009). Aura vision, for example, might result
from information about another person, which
is experienced as energy, light, or colors (Zin-
grone et al., 2009). Ramachandran, Miller, Liv-
ingstone, and Brang (2012) found empirical ev-
idence for a systematic transformation of
emotions as a colorful aura, which the synes-
thete “TK” experienced as projected around an-
other person’s face and body. However, Milán
et al. (2012) compared the experiences of indi-
viduals who claim to be able to read auras and
those with personality-color synesthesia and
concluded that the experiences differ qualita-
tively.
Irwin (1985) has proposed a model of out-of-
body experiences (OBEs) that incorporates syn-
esthesia, dissociation from the body, and ab-
sorbed mental imagery. Synesthetic processes
work to combine the representation of a sepa-
rated self with strong visual imagery, which
produces a realistic OBE (Irwin, 1985). Re-
search has supported the proposed relationship
between synesthesia and OBEs (Terhune,
2009), and has identified a potential role for
synesthesia in apparitions and haunting experi-
ences alongside somatic focus and hyperaesthe-
sia (Houran, Wiseman, & Thalbourne, 2002).
Accordingly, synesthesia might enable a con-
crete experience of somatic and environmen-
tally derived stimuli. Moreover, synesthesias
appear to play a role in representing emotional
information and abstract information as well as
auras and precognitive dreams (Simmonds-
Moore, 2016). In the current study, we attempt
to clarify the relationships among the synesthe-
sias, different categories of ExEs, and schizo-
typy. We hypothesize positive correlations be-
tween a general tendency to experience
synesthesia and ExEs.
Schizotypy, ExEs, and Synesthesia
Few studies have evaluated personality or
individual difference correlates of synesthesia,
which may be because of a focus on individual
case studies of individuals with strong synes-
thesia rather than on general population trends.
Schizotypy—a multidimensional construct that
reflects personality traits distributed on a con-
tinuum in the population—is one such variable
that merits study (Claridge, 1997). Positive
schizotypy is one of four factors comprising the
schizotypy construct and reflects magical think-
 102 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
ing, hallucinations, and altered perceptual expe-
riences. Researchers have reported that positive
schizotypy is associated with ExEs and unusual
beliefs (e.g., Irwin, Dagnall, & Drinkwater,
2013). The other factors that comprise schizo-
typy include (a) cognitive disorganization,
which reflects attentional difficulties and anxi-
ety; (b) negative schizotypy (i.e., introvertive
anhedonia), which refers to a preference for
solitude and lack of enjoyment from social
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sources; and (c) and impulsive nonconformity,
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some of which relate to manic tendencies (e.g.,
Loughland & Williams, 1997). Synesthetes
score higher than controls on both positive and
disorganized schizotypy but comparably with
controls on negative or impulsive schizotypy
(Banissy et al., 2012). Synesthesia also corre-
lates with openness to experiences (Banissy et
al., 2013), empathy (Banissy & Ward, 2007),
transliminality (Thalbourne, Houran, Alias, &
Brugger, 2001), boundary thinness (Hartmann,
1991), and absorption (Rader & Tellegen,
1987). Positive schizotypy shares variance with
several of these variables, including translimi-
nality and absorption (Simmonds-Moore,
2010).
Banissy et al. (2012) have proposed that syn-
esthesia may be linked to a broader phenotype
that includes ExEs, creativity, mental imagery,
and mitempfindung (i.e., “referral of a tactile
sensation to a location far away from the stim-
ulation site,” Burrack, Knoch, & Brugger, 2006,
p. 151). The relationship between synesthesia
and schizotypy could either be explained by a
“co morbidity between synaesthesia and other
cognitive traits that are related to schizotypy” or
via “similarities in the underlying mechanisms
that give rise to the perceptual reports associ-
ated with schizotypy and synaesthesia” (p.
1086). Two such mechanisms are (a) cortical
hyperconnectivity, which is an enhanced ten-
dency for cortical neurons to interconnect; and
(b) a tendency to experience very vivid mental
imagery and strong mental representations. In
terms of the former, transliminality and synes-
thesia are both underpinned by increased neural
interconnectedness (Thalbourne et al., 2001).
Synesthesia is associated with both structural
(i.e., increased connections among cortical ar-
eas) and functional hyperconnectivity (Mitchell,
2013; Rouw, 2013), which emerges from re-
duced neural inhibition and excitation (Banissy
et al., 2012; Nelson & Rawlings, 2010) exe-
cuted chemically, perhaps via serotonergic
mechanisms (Brogaard, 2013; Luke & Terhune,
2013). Research on the effects of psilocybin on
the brain supports a serotonergic mechanism for
hyperconnectivity (Petri et al., 2014).
The positive schizotypal nervous system (as
we refer to it) is similarly characterized by
hyperconnectivity (McCreery & Claridge,
1996), which enables rapid shifts in states of
consciousness (Fleck et al., 2008) and a “loose”
cognitive style that has been associated with
ExEs (Farias, Claridge, & Lalljee, 2005; Gi-
anotti, Mohr, Pizzagalli, Lehmann, & Brugger,
2001). Simmonds-Moore (2010) has proposed
that an interconnected cognitive-perceptual sys-
tem is a defining feature of proneness toward
ExEs (anomaly proneness), which can occur as
a trait or a state of consciousness.
Synesthesia, schizotypy, and ExEs may also
be facilitated by stronger mental imagery (Sim-
monds-Moore, 2016), which is experienced
more vividly in positive schizotypes (Oertel et
al., 2009) and synesthetes (Spiller, Jonas, Sim-
ner, & Jansari, 2015). Moreover, mental repre-
sentations are stronger and more accessible
among synesthetes (Murray, 2010; Terhune,
Wudarczyk, Kochuparampil, & Cohen Kadosh,
2013), and more available to consciousness
among positive schizotypes (Claridge, Clark, &
Davis, 1997) and high scorers on transliminality
(Crawley, French, & Yesson, 2002). These
traits may contribute to ExEs via the ability to
mentally represent subtle and abstract aspects of
human experience that usually fall outside of
conscious awareness.3
Our study further explores relationships be-
tween synesthesia and schizotypy. We hypoth-
esize that positive schizotypy will correlate pos-
itively with a general tendency to experience
synesthesia and that positive schizotypy will
correlate positively with ExEs. We also explore
the correlations between measures of schizo-
typy and both synesthesia and ExEs.
Mental Health and Well-Being
Researchers have associated ExEs with psycho-
pathology (Bradbury, Stirling, Cavill, & Parker,
2009; Nettle, 2006) as well as with good mental
3
Examples might include somatic information and usu-
ally imperceptible information from the environment such
as infrasound.
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
health (Goulding, 2004, 2005; Goulding &
Ödéhn, 2009), finding meaning in life (Kennedy,
Kanthamani, & Palmer, 1994), and other adaptive
traits, including creativity (Holt, 2012). Similar
patterns are evident regarding synesthesia, marked
by associations with both psychopathology (Bar-
on-Cohen et al., 2013; Gimmestad, 2012; Glick-
sohn, Alon, Perlmutter, & Purisman, 2001; Marks,
2014) and positive mental health (Cytowic, 1995;
Rader & Tellegen, 1987). Like ExEs, synesthesia
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is associated with adaptive benefits, including cre-
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ativity (Brang & Ramachandran, 2011). Marks
(2014) has noted that synesthesia can interact with
cognition by enhancing perception or engendering
perceptual interference. Researchers have associ-
ated synesthesia with efficient sensory processing
and strong encoding of information that facilitates
better memory and other cognitive advantages
(Brang & Ramachandran, 2011; Terhune et al.,
2013). Clearly, the relationships among ExEs,
synesthesia, and mental health are multifaceted,
potentially complicated, and in need of further
exploration. Kerns, Karcher, Raghavan, and Be-
renbaum (2014) have argued that the shared vari-
ance between psychopathology and ExEs might
be better understood in terms of a third variable
that contributes to both. We consider that this third
variable might reflect the mechanisms that con-
tribute to positive schizotypal traits characterized
by hyperconnectivity, although the hyperconnec-
tivity associated with synesthesia might arise from
psychopathology among some people (Marks,
2014).
Previous schizotypy research has used cluster
analysis to identify individuals who score high on
measures of positive schizotypy. The first type or
cluster is represented by high scores on positive
schizotypy and all three of the other factors (i.e.,
high schizotypy), whereas the second type is rep-
resented by high scores on positive schizotypy and
low scores on the other aspects of schizotypy (i.e.,
healthy schizotypy). Both types are associated
with elevated levels of ExEs, but social and emo-
tional factors (i.e., negative schizotypy) and the
extent to which cognitions are organized (i.e.,
cognitive disorganization) play key roles in deter-
mining whether ExEs are experienced as positive
or negative. Accordingly, researchers have sug-
gested that proneness to ExEs is actually neutral in
terms of mental health (Goulding, 2004, 2005;
Goulding & Ödéhn, 2009; Schofield & Claridge,
2007).
103
Individuals that exhibit healthy schizotypy
also exhibit increased creativity and mating suc-
cess (Nettle & Clegg, 2006), which implies that
these traits are also associated with increased
evolutionary fitness (i.e., the tendency for a
given trait to be passed on to the next genera-
tion). Comparing healthy schizotypy with high
schizotypy will help to clarify the relationships
among synesthesia, ExEs, and mental health.
Given that synesthetes score significantly dif-
ferent from a control group in terms of cognitive
disorganization (Banissy et al., 2012), synes-
thetes that exhibit cognitive disorganization
might be more prone to poor mental health. In
our study, we do not explicitly examine mental
health but assess perceptions of well-being. We
evaluate the hypothesis that a correlation exists
between synesthetic experiences and psycho-
logical well-being and that each type of schizo-
typy will correlate with well-being. We predict
that participants that conform to a healthy
schizotypy cluster will score higher than partic-
ipants that conform to a high schizotypy cluster
on measures of synesthesia, ExEs, and psycho-
logical well-being. We also aim to clarify the
nature of the relationships among schizotypy,
the synesthesias, different types of ExEs, and
well-being using correlational analyses and
multiple regression. Our final aim is to explore
the prevalence and frequency of different types
of synesthesias.
Method
Participants
A total of 1,789 people commenced the survey,
but 161 terminated the study before answering any
questions. Twenty-eight participants under 18
years of age were redirected out of the survey by
the system. Six hundred nineteen males and 1,064
females completed at least part of the survey. The
listwise valid N for the variables in this study was
767. For all hypotheses, data analysis was carried
out using valid Ns per analysis. In terms of re-
ported handedness, 1,353 participants were right-
handed, 125 were left-handed, and 137 partici-
pants were ambidextrous. Age data were collected
in terms of the following categories: under 18
(n ⫽ 28), 18 to 24 (n ⫽ 307), 25 to 30 (n ⫽ 223),
35 to 40 (n ⫽ 286), 45 to 50 (n ⫽ 261), 55 to 60
(n ⫽ 214), 61 to 65 (n ⫽ 106), 66 to 70 (n ⫽ 57),
 104 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
71 to 75 (n ⫽ 27), 76 to 80 (n ⫽ 10), and over 80
(n ⫽ 4).
Materials
Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire. A
56-item synesthesia questionnaire (the Synes-
thesia Experience Questionnaire; SEQ) was de-
veloped from Barnett et al.’s (2008) synesthesia
screening questionnaire. The SEQ extends the
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Barnett measure to include 54 main types of
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synesthesia listed by Murray (2010) in addition
to time-space and mirror-touch synesthesia.
Each type of synesthesia was presented as a
personal statement with the synesthetic concur-
rent listed first, followed by the inducing stim-
ulus. For example, “I see colors for days of the
week” (or other units of time). Respondents
indicated the frequency that they experienced
each type of synesthesia on a Likert scale in-
cluding the responses never, at least once, oc-
casionally, often, and consistently (range ⫽
0 –224). Next, four open-ended questions asked
about the state of consciousness associated with
synesthetic experiences, whether experiences
occur in response to just thinking about the
inducer, any other circumstances that might af-
fect the synesthetic experiences, and any synes-
thetic experiences that were not covered by the
questionnaire (see the Appendix for the full list
of SEQ items).
General question from Hartmann’s (1991)
Boundary Questionnaire. Hartmann’s (1991)
Boundary Questionnaire includes one item that
asks a general question about synesthesia. The
question is, “I have often had the experience of
different senses coming together. For example,
I have felt that I could smell a color, or see a
sound, or hear an odor.” Respondents indicated
the frequency they experienced general synes-
thesia on a Likert scale ranging from 0 to 4 (0 ⫽
never, 1 ⫽ at least once, 2 ⫽ occasionally, 3 ⫽
often, 4 ⫽ consistently).
The Anomalous Experiences Subscale of
the Anomalous Experiences Inventory (Gal-
lagher, Kumar, & Pekala, 1994). The
Anomalous Experience Inventory’s Anomalous
Experience Subscale (AES) comprises a range
of traditionally parapsychological items in con-
junction with a broader spectrum of phenomena
such as experiences of altered states of con-
sciousness; mystical experiences; encountering
aliens; and visiting fortune tellers, palm readers,
tarot card readers, or astrologers, among others.
The AES has 29 items4 and was originally for-
mulated from the Mental Experience Inventory
(Kumar & Pekala, cited in Gallagher et al.,
1994). The total number of “yes” responses
forms the total score. An example item is “I
have had memories of a past life.” The instru-
ment possesses good internal consistency
(KR20 reliability value, Kuder–Richardson cal-
culation for assessment of internal consistency
of a test or scale of .85; Gallagher et al., 1994).
In the current study, the Cronbach’s alpha was
.89.
Traditional parapsychological experiences.
Five items asked about waking ESP, dream
ESP, apparitions, OBEs, and auras. Zingrone et
al. (2009) used these items in previous survey
investigations. Items indicate how often partic-
ipants experience these phenomena on a 5-point
Likert scale (including the responses never,
rarely, occasionally, frequently, most of the
time). An example of an item is
Have you ever had an experience in which you felt that
‘you’ were located ‘outside of,’ or ‘away from,’ your
physical body; that is, that your consciousness, mind,
or center of awareness was in a different place than
your physical body?
Measures of traditional parapsychological expe-
riences were based on a total score in addition to
individual scores for each experience. In this
sample, Cronbach’s alpha was .81.
The Oxford-Liverpool Inventory of Feel-
ings and Experiences-Short (O-LIFE Short;
Mason et al., 2005). The O-LIFE Short con-
sists of four subscales—Unusual Experiences,
Cognitive Disorganization, Introvertive An-
hedonia, and Impulsive Nonconformity—
which correspond to the four major compo-
nents of schizotypy. The scale includes 43
total items (12 items, Unusual Experiences
subscale; 11 items, Cognitive Disorganiza-
tion subscale; 10 items, Introvertive Anhedo-
nia subscale; 10 items, Impulsive Nonconfor-
mity subscale). Mason et al. (2005) reported
alpha values for subscales that ranged from
.63 for Impulsive Nonconformity to .80 for
Unusual Experiences. The subscales each cor-
related over .90 with the subscales in the
original version of the O-LIFE. In the current
study, the Cronbach’s alpha values for the
4
Because of an error, we used 28 of the 29 original items.
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
subscales were .79 for Unusual Experiences,
.80 for Cognitive Disorganization, .64 for In-
trovertive Anhedonia, and .63 for Impulsive
Nonconformity.
The Satisfaction With Life Scale (SWLS;
Diener, Emmons, Larsen, & Griffin, 1985).
The SWLS is a general measure of psycholog-
ical well-being that correlates with indices of
mental health (Pavot & Diener, 1993). The
SWLS is a five-item, 7-point Likert scale (in-
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cluding the responses strongly agree, slightly
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agree, agree, neither agree nor disagree, dis-
agree, slightly disagree, and strongly disagree).
The scale has good internal reliability and tem-
poral reliability scores (Diener et al., 1985). In
addition, the scale demonstrates good conver-
gent and discriminant validity (Pavot & Diener,
1993). In the current study, the Cronbach’s al-
pha was .90.
Procedure
The study URL (via SurveyMonkey5) was
distributed widely for a 4-week period. The
survey link was sent via e-mail lists and web-
sites to all faculty, staff, and students at the
University of West Georgia, the mailing lists of
the Rhine Research Center the Association for
Research and Enlightenment, and Charles
Tart’s (i.e., a well-known consciousness and
parapsychology researcher) e-mail list. The
measures were presented in the following order:
demographic items, Hartmann’s synesthesia
item, the SEQ, the AES, the parapsychological
items, the O-LIFE Short, and the SWLS.
Results
Response Patterns
We obtained 372 responses from the Univer-
sity of West Georgia, 21 responses from the
Rhine Research Center (i.e., a well-known cen-
ter for research on parapsychology), 47 re-
sponses from Atlantic University, five re-
sponses from the Monroe Institute (i.e., a center
for research on consciousness, spirituality, and
parapsychology), and 646 responses labeled as
“other,” which included a variety of websites,
blogs, and mailing lists pertaining to interests in
ExEs, including Tart’s e-mail list. The data
from participants that failed to complete the
questionnaire beyond the demographic section
105
were removed from the data set; all calculations
were performed on complete data sets only.
Responses to the General Synesthesia Question
Responses to Hartmann’s (1991) general
question about synesthesia (using the Likert re-
sponses never, at least once, occasionally, of-
ten, and consistently) revealed that 3.1% (n ⫽
56) of participants reported that they experience
synesthetic phenomena consistently, 8.5% (n ⫽
152) reported the experience often, 19.1% (n ⫽
341) reported the experience occasionally,
14.5% (n ⫽ 259) reported at least one synes-
thetic experience, and 45.6% (n ⫽ 816) reported
never having experienced synesthesia.
Frequencies of the Forms of Synesthesias
Measured by the SEQ
The frequencies and percentages of the various
forms of synesthesia are presented in Table 1.
Descriptive Statistics
We conducted preliminary analyses to ascer-
tain the internal reliability and factor structure6
of the new SEQ scale. Cronbach’s alpha was
.98, which suggests that a total score provides
meaningful information. The SEQ correlated
positively and significantly with the Hartmann
boundary question (␳ ⫽ .66). Table 2 presents
descriptive statistics for the SEQ, the SWLS,
the O-LIFE Short, and both ExE measures.
The SEQ distribution was negatively skewed,
such that the mean is very low, and there was a
significant proportion of outliers. Stem-and-leaf
plots indicated 32 outliers (scores above 126)
and five very extreme high scorers. We included
outliers to reflect the true distribution of these
experiences.
A Kolmogorov–Smirnov normality test
found that the distribution was significantly dif-
ferent from normal (D(1627) ⫽ .1, p ⬍ .0001).
The O-LIFE, the SWLS scale, the AES, and the
5
The survey may be found at the following URL: https://
www.surveymonkey.com/s/UWG_Human_Experiences_Survey.
6
The factor analysis indicated that the scale may consist
of one large factor and seven smaller ones, which aligned
with the main categories of synesthestic concurrents and
inducers—for example, with colors as a concurrent formed
one of these factors. The authors are happy to provide the
details of this analysis to any interested reader.
 106 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE

Table 1
Frequency Tables for Types of Synesthesias
Frequency of occurrence
Type of synesthesia Never At least once Occasionally Often Consistently
Written word/color 1,032 (63.9%) 150 (9.3%) 305 (18.9%) 91 (5.6%) 37 (2.3%)
Heard letters/color 1,259 (78.2%) 106 (6.6%) 155 (9.6%) 48 (3.0%) 42 (2.6%)
Read letters/color 1,272 (78.9%) 117 (7.3%) 149 (9.2%) 43 (2.7%) 32 (2.0%)
Heard numbers/color 1,269 (80.6%) 119 (7.6%) 113 (7.2%) 44 (2.8%) 29 (1.8%)
Read numbers/color 1,285 (81.8%) 105 (6.7%) 105 (6.7%) 46 (2.9%) 30 (1.9%)
Sound/color 976 (62.4%) 163 (10.4%) 290 (18.6%) 93 (6.0%) 41 (2.6%)
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Heard music/color 774 (49.7%) 171 (11.0%) 356 (22.8%) 174 (11.2%) 83 (5.3%)
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Read music/color 1,351 (86.4%) 78 (5.0%) 96 (6.1%) 20 (1.3%) 19 (1.2%)

Time/color 1,212 (79.8%) 90 (5.9%) 120 (7.9%) 39 (2.6%) 58 (3.8%)
Taste or smell/color 976 (64.5%) 148 (9.8%) 266 (17.6%) 87 (5.8%) 36 (2.4%)
Touch or pain/color 843 (55.8%) 206 (13.6%) 301 (19.9%) 117 (7.7%) 44 (2.9%)
Personality/color 869 (57.5%) 161 (10.6%) 261 (17.3%) 135 (8.9%) 86 (5.7%)
Emotion/color 774 (51.1%) 196 (12.9%) 306 (20.2%) 161 (10.6%) 79 (5.2%)
Temperature/color 971 (66.5%) 147 (10.1%) 217 (14.9%) 89 (6.1%) 36 (2.5%)
Orgasm/color 956 (65.6%) 132 (9.1%) 205 (14.1%) 103 (7.1%) 61 (4.2%)
Vision/sound 813 (55.9%) 194 (13.3%) 252 (17.3%) 145 (10.0%) 50 (3.4%)
Kinetics or movement/sound 913 (63.1%) 163 (11.3%) 219 (15.1%) 111 (7.7%) 42 (2.9%)
Temperature/sound 1,182 (81.5%) 110 (7.6%) 109 (7.5%) 34 (2.3%) 16 (1.1%)
Taste or smell/sound 1,139 (82.4%) 100 (7.2%) 109 (7.9%) 23 (1.7%) 12 (.9%)
Touch/sound 1,038 (75.2%) 133 (9.6%) 142 (10.3%) 49 (3.6%) 18 (1.3%)
Taste/shapes 1,147 (83.5%) 79 (5.8%) 86 (6.3%) 40 (2.9%) 21 (1.5%)
Spoken words/smell 956 (69.7%) 172 (12.5%) 193 (14.1%) 35 (2.6%) 15 (1.1%)
Written words/smell 980 (71.1%) 144 (10.4%) 196 (14.2%) 44 (3.2%) 14 (1.0%)
Emotions/smell 874 (65.8%) 150 (11.3%) 224 (16.9%) 59 (4.4%) 21 (1.6%)
Visual experiences/smell 846 (63.7%) 167 (12.6%) 222 (16.7%) 68 (5.1%) 25 (1.9%)
Temperature/smell 1,014 (76.9%) 113 (8.6%) 123 (9.3%) 45 (3.4%) 24 (1.8%)
Sounds/smell 1,034 (78.5%) 120 (9.1%) 120 (9.1%) 28 (2.1%) 16 (1.2%)
Personalities/smell 1,004 (75.7%) 113 (8.5%) 137 (10.3%) 50 (3.8%) 23 (1.7%)
Letters or numbers/personality 934 (71.7%) 108 (8.3%) 149 (11.4%) 64 (4.9%) 48 (3.7%)
Objects/personality 655 (50.2%) 127 (9.7%) 310 (23.7%) 153 (11.7%) 61 (4.7%)
Letters or numbers/gender 911 (70.2%) 112 (8.6%) 148 (11.4%) 77 (5.9%) 49 (3.8%)
Time/space 908 (70.2%) 99 (7.7%) 102 (7.9%) 75 (5.8%) 110 (8.5%)
Mirror/touch 582 (44.7%) 202 (15.5%) 340 (26.1%) 117 (9.0%) 61 (4.7%)
Emotion/touch 486 (38.1%) 188 (14.7%) 360 (28.2%) 154 (12.1%) 89 (7.0%)
Personality/touch 914 (72.0%) 117 (9.2%) 146 (11.5%) 56 (4.4%) 37 (2.9%)
Sound/touch 871 (68.3%) 146 (11.4%) 169 (13.2%) 60 (4.7%) 30 (2.4%)
Visual experiences/touch 789 (62.3%) 168 (13.3%) 189 (14.9%) 76 (6.0%) 44 (3.5%)
Temperature/touch 912 (71.7%) 118 (9.3%) 143 (11.2%) 64 (5.0%) 35 (2.8%)
Taste/touch 982 (78.8%) 93 (7.5%) 117 (9.4%) 33 (2.6%) 21 (1.7%)
Smell/taste 430 (34.4%) 123 (9.8%) 337 (27.0%) 239 (19.1%) 121 (9.7%)
Emotion/taste 823 (66.2%) 147 (11.8%) 199 (16.0%) 55 (4.4%) 19 (1.5%)
Visual experiences/taste 773 (62.2%) 188 (15.1%) 206 (16.6%) 58 (4.7%) 18 (1.4%)
Touch/taste 962 (76.9%) 114 (9.1%) 129 (10.3%) 36 (2.9%) 10 (.8%)
Words or parts of words/taste 932 (76.4%) 126 (10.3%) 127 (10.4%) 28 (2.3%) 7 (.6%)
Heard music/taste 998 (81.9%) 102 (8.4%) 86 (7.1%) 26 (2.1%) 6 (.5%)
Read music/taste 1,136 (94.0%) 33 (2.7%) 28 (2.3%) 7 (.6%) 4 (.3%)
Sound/taste 949 (78.8%) 127 (10.5%) 104 (8.6%) 18 (1.5%) 6 (.5%)
Temperature-taste 1,008 (83.1%) 101 (8.3%) 85 (7.0%) 10 (.8%) 9 (.7%)
Emotion/temperature 491 (41.1%) 148 (12.4%) 322 (27.0%) 161 (13.5%) 72 (6.0%)
Heard sounds/temperature 812 (68.1%) 135 (11.3%) 166 (13.9%) 54 (4.5%) 25 (2.1%)
Visual experiences/temperature 691 (58.2%) 161 (13.6%) 220 (18.5%) 85 (7.2%) 30 (2.5%)
Smell or taste/temperature 803 (67.7%) 160 (13.5%) 160 (13.5%) 41 (3.5%) 22 (1.9%)
Touch/temperature 589 (49.4%) 139 (11.7%) 252 (21.1%) 134 (11.2%) 78 (6.5%)
Sound/kinetics 638 (56.3%) 135 (11.9%) 224 (19.8%) 95 (8.4%) 42 (3.7%)
Visual experiences/kinetics 632 (56.0%) 49 (13.2%) 214 (19.0%) 87 (7.7%) 47 (4.2%)
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES 107

Table 2 deviations from normality, particularly when

Descriptive Statistics for the SEQ, SWLS, O-LIFE the sample size is large (Howell, 1989, p. 299).
Short, and ExE Measures In terms of demographic data, females scored
Measure (n) M SD Skewness Kurtosis higher on the SEQ (M ⫽ 41.45, SD ⫽ 38.45)
than did males (M ⫽ 28.65, SD ⫽ 34.39),
SEQ (903) 37.75 38.34 1.54 2.88
t(877) ⫽ ⫺4.84, p ⬍ .0001, and their responses
SWLS (1,123) 23.63 7.19 ⫺.64 ⫺.33
AES (1,032) 10.23 6.27 .25 ⫺.91 were more variable. In addition, participants
Parapsychological who reported they were ambidextrous scored
Experiences (1,115) 5.46 4.09 .74 .07 higher on synesthesia (M ⫽ 62.78, SD ⫽ 50.22)
Unusual Experiences compared with right-handed (M ⫽ 34.78, SD ⫽
⫺.91
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(1,095) 5.45 3.17 .11 34.74) or left-handed (M ⫽ 38.97, SD ⫽ 39.52)

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Cognitive Disorganization
(1,101) 4.27 3.09 .39
Impulsive Nonconformity
(1,100) 2.85 2.10 .67
Introvertive Anhedonia
(1,090) 3.20 2.25 .51
Note. SEQ ⫽ Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire;
SWLS ⫽ Satisfaction with Life Scale; O-LIFE Short ⫽
Schizotypy measures; ExE ⫽ Exceptional experiences;
AES ⫽ Anomalous Experiences Scale; Parapsychological
experiences ⫽ number of parapsychological experiences.
parapsychological experiences were also tested
for normality and were all statistically non-
normal. Data should ideally be analyzed using
nonparametric statistics; however, we opted to
use parametric statistics for most of the analy-
ses, as there are no parametric alternatives for
some of the key analyses (factor analysis, re-
gression, cluster analysis). In addition, paramet-
ric statistics are robust in the face of minor
⫺.85
participants, F(2, 892) ⫽ 20.34, p ⬍ .0001.
There were no significant differences between
⫺.12 the age group categories on the SEQ.
⫺.47 Correlational Analyses
A correlation matrix was computed between
the O-LIFE Short, the SWLS scale, the AES,
and the traditional parapsychological items and
is presented in Table 3.
A correction for multiple analysis reset the
alpha level to .00625. In terms of ExEs, total
scores on the SEQ correlated positively and
significantly with the AES and the total number
of parapsychological items, thus supporting our
hypotheses concerning synesthesia and ExEs.
The AES correlated positively and significantly
with traditional parapsychological experiences.
Moreover, total SEQ scores correlated posi-
tively and significantly with unusual experi-
ences, as predicted. For the nondirectional hy-

Table 3
Pearson’s Correlation Matrix Between the SEQ, ExE Variables, O-LIFE Short Subscales, and SWLS
Unusual Introvertive Cognitive Impulsive
Variable (n) AEI Parapsychological experiences anhedonia disorganization nonconformity SWLS SEQ
ⴱⴱⴱ ⴱⴱⴱ ⴱⴱⴱ ⴱⴱ
AES (1,032) 1 .82 .63 ⫺.09 ⫺.03 .06 ⫺.08 .51ⴱⴱⴱ
Parapsychological
(1,115) 1 .57ⴱⴱⴱ ⫺.06ⴱ ⫺.01 .05 ⫺.03 .56ⴱⴱⴱ
Unusual experiences
(1,095) 1 ⫺.11ⴱⴱ .36ⴱⴱ .38ⴱⴱ ⫺.18ⴱⴱⴱ .43ⴱⴱⴱ
Introvertive anhedonia
(1,090) 1 .39ⴱⴱ .23ⴱⴱ ⫺.30ⴱⴱⴱ ⫺.09ⴱⴱⴱ
Cognitive disorganization
(1,101) 1 .57ⴱⴱ ⫺.33ⴱⴱⴱ ⫺.01
Impulsive nonconformity
(1,100) 1 ⫺.31ⴱⴱⴱ .08ⴱ
SWLS (1,123) 1 .03
SEQ (903) 1
Note. Valid N ⫽ 767. SEQ ⫽ Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire; ExE ⫽ Exceptional experiences measures; O-LIFE
Short Subscales ⫽ Schizotypy measures; SWLS ⫽ Satisfaction with Life Scale; AES ⫽ Anomalous Experiences Scale;
Parapsychological ⫽ number of parapsychological experiences.
ⴱ
p ⬍ .05. ⴱⴱ p ⬍ .01. ⴱⴱⴱ p ⬍ .00625.
 108 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE

potheses concerning the other subscales of the
O-LIFE Short, the only correlation that survived
the correction for multiple analysis was a neg-
ative correlation with introvertive anhedonia.
Unusual experiences correlated positively and
significantly with the AES and with the tradi-
tional parapsychological experiences. Intro-
vertive anhedonia correlated negatively with the
AES but not traditional parapsychological ex-
periences. In contrast to our hypothesis, there
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perience of auras, after Zingrone et al., 2009;
␳ ⫽ .42, p ⬍ .0001).
Consistent Versus Inconsistent Synesthesia
As a crude assessment of differences between
consistent and inconsistent synesthesia, re-
sponses to the Hartmann synesthesia item were
recoded to compare consistent experiencers
with individuals who experienced some synes-

was no significant relationship between scoring thesia, by combining once, occasionally, and
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on the SEQ and SWLS. Following the correc-
tion for multiple analysis, neither measure of
ExEs correlated with the SWLS. All of the
schizotypy subscales correlated negatively and
significantly with the SWLS.
As the responses to the individual questions
about parapsychological experiences were or-
dinal, a Spearman’s rho (␳) correlation matrix
was computed between responding to the five
individual parapsychological items and the
SEQ to examine how synesthesia relates to
different types of parapsychological experi-
ence. The Spearman’s correlations are pre-
sented in Table 4.
A correction for multiple analysis reset the
alpha level to .0007. In line with our hypothe-
ses, the SEQ correlated positively and signifi-
cantly with all traditional parapsychological
items. In addition, all parapsychological items
intercorrelated positively and significantly. We
also computed a post hoc Spearman’s correla-
tion to explore the relationship between a par-
ticular type of synesthesia and a corresponding
ExE (personality-color synesthesia and the ex-
often responders together. Mann–Whitney U
tests were run to compare consistent with in-
consistent synesthesia on SWLS and the two
measures of ExEs. The Mann–Whitney U test
was statistically significant for scoring on the
parapsychological items (z ⫽ ⫺3.668, p ⱕ
.0001). Specifically, consistent synesthetes had
an average higher rank of 305.95, whereas in-
consistent synesthetes had an average rank of
245.65. The Mann–Whitney U test was also
statistically significant for scoring on the AES
(z ⫽ ⫺3.378, p ⱕ .0001). Specifically, consis-
tent synesthetes had an average higher rank of
282.95, whereas inconsistent synesthetes had an
average rank of 229.75. Finally, the Mann–
Whitney U test was also statistically significant
for scoring on the SWLS (z ⫽ ⫺2.322, p ⱕ
.020). Specifically, consistent synesthetes had a
higher average rank of 292, whereas inconsis-
tent synesthetes had an average rank of 253.82.
Finally, we calculated separate correlations for
consistent and inconsistent synesthetes on the Un-
usual Experiences subscale of the O-LIFE Short
and the SEQ. The correlation for consistent syn-

Table 4
Spearman’s Correlation Matrix for SEQ and Five Traditional
Parapsychological Experiences
Parapsychological
experience (N) Dream ESP Waking ESP Apparition OBE Aura SEQ
a a a a
Dream ESP (1,135) 1 .59 .42 .39 .34 .41a
Waking ESP (1,138) 1 .51a .42a .41a .43a
Apparitions (1,137) 1 .49a .49a .42a
OBE (1,132) 1 .48a .35a
Aura (1,133) 1 .39a
SEQ (903) 1
Note. SEQ ⫽ Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire; Dream ESP ⫽ Extrasensory experi-
ences in dreams; Waking ESP ⫽ Extrasensory experiences while awake; Apparitions ⫽
Perception of a figure; OBE ⫽ Out of body experiences; Aura ⫽ Perception of a light
surrounding a person.
a
p ⬍ .007 level (following a correction for multiple analysis).
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
esthetes was .30 (p ⬍ .0001), and the correlation
for inconsistent synesthetes was .37 (p ⬍ .0001).
Exploring Predictors of ExEs Using
Multiple Regression
We employed multiple regression analysis (us-
ing the “enter” method) to test whether schizotypy
subscales, the SEQ, and the SWLS significantly
predicted the scores on the AES. We found that
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the six predictors explained 52% of the variance
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(R2 ⫽ .52), F(6, 771) ⫽ 144.24, p ⬍ .0001. All
variables were significant predictors of scoring on
the AES: unusual experiences (␤ ⫽ .62), t(771) ⫽
20.37 p ⬍ .0001; SEQ (␤ ⫽ .234), t(771) ⫽ 8.24,
p ⬍ .0001; cognitive disorganization (␤ ⫽ ⫺.19),
t(771) ⫽ ⫺5.75, p ⬍ .0001; impulsive noncon-
formity (␤ ⫽ ⫺.094), t(771) ⫽ ⫺3.05, p ⬍ 002;
SWLS (␤ ⫽ ⫺.083), t(771) ⫽ ⫺3.08, p ⬍ .002;
and introvertive anhedonia (␤ ⫽ ⫺.067), t(771) ⫽
⫺2.45 p ⬍ .002. A stepwise regression analysis
indicated that the model explained 41% of the
variance, with unusual experiences as the sole
predictor, which increased to 47% with the addi-
tion of cognitive disorganization, and 51% with
the addition of synesthesia, 52% with the addition
of impulsive nonconformity, and only a .5% in-
crease with the addition of the SWLS.
A second multiple regression analysis exam-
ined how the schizotypy subscales, synesthesia,
and psychological well-being statistically pre-
dicted the scores on traditional parapsychological
experiences. Six predictors explained 47.4% of
the variance (R2 ⫽ .47), F(6, 803) ⫽ 122.38, p ⬍
.0001. The following variables were significant
predictors of the traditional Parapsychological Ex-
periences scale: unusual experiences (␤ ⫽ .49),
t(803) ⫽ 15.77, p ⬍ .0001; SEQ (␤ ⫽ .35),
t(803) ⫽ 12.24, p ⬍ .0001; cognitive disorgani-
zation (␤ ⫽ ⫺.13), t(803) ⫽ ⫺3.95, p ⬍ .0001;
and impulsive nonconformity (␤ ⫽ ⫺.094),
t(803) ⫽ ⫺2.96, p ⬍ .003. Satisfaction with life
and introvertive anhedonia did not significantly
predict traditional parapsychological experiences.
A stepwise regression analysis indicated that the
model explained 32% of the variance, with un-
usual experiences as the sole predictor, which
increased to 44% with the addition of synesthesia,
47% with the addition of cognitive disorganiza-
tion, and only a .5% increase with the addition of
impulsive nonconformity.
109
Cluster Analysis of Schizotypy Variables
Psychological well-being was further ex-
plored in terms of schizotypy clusters. Follow-
ing Goulding and Ödéhn (2009), two comple-
mentary cluster analyses were undertaken on
standardized forms of these data. First, we per-
formed a hierarchical cluster analysis using the
Ward method and defining similarities between
participant profiles by squared Euclidean dis-
tance. Inspection of the dendrogram plot sug-
gested three to four clusters. Following this, we
performed a second K-means cluster analysis,
prespecifying a four-cluster solution, given that
previous cluster analyses have found a four-
cluster solution (Goulding, 2005; Loughland &
Williams, 1997). The four subscales of the
O-LIFE were saved as standardized variables
for the purposes of the cluster analysis. The
cluster analyses were undertaken without the
inclusion of impulsive nonconformity, follow-
ing the precedent set by Goulding (Goulding,
2004, 2005; Goulding & Ödéhn, 2009; Lough-
land & Williams, 1997). Loughland and Wil-
liams (1997) have argued that impulsive non-
conformity might reflect manic rather than
schizotypal tendencies and should not be in-
cluded in cluster analysis conducted on schizo-
typy variables. Table 5 provides a summary of
the cluster analysis.
Cluster 1 reflects above-average scoring on
cognitive disorganization, above-average scor-
ing on unusual experiences, and above-average
scoring on introvertive anhedonia (we label this
cluster high schizotypy). Cluster 2 reflects
above-average scoring on unusual experiences,
with below-average scoring on cognitive disor-
ganization and introvertive anhedonia (we label
this cluster healthy schizotypy). Cluster 3 re-
Table 5
Cluster Analysis for Z Scores of O-LIFE Short
Subscales (Four-Cluster Solution)
Cluster number
O-LIFE Short subscale 1 2 3 4
Unusual experiences .87 .66 ⫺.90 ⫺.73
Cognitive disorganization 1.20 ⫺.32 ⫺.73 .01
Introvertive anhedonia .78 ⫺.60 ⫺.78 .90
Note. O-LIFE Short ⫽ Schizotypy scales; Cluster 1 ⫽
High schizotypy; Cluster 2 ⫽ Healthy schizotypy; Cluster
3 ⫽ Low schizotypy; Cluster 4 ⫽ Negative schizotypy.
 110 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
flects below-average scoring on all variables
(we label this cluster low schizotypy). The final
cluster (Cluster 4) reflects high scoring on in-
trovertive anhedonia, average scoring on cogni-
tive disorganization, and low scoring on un-
usual experiences (we label this cluster negative
schizotypy).
We compared quality of life, synesthesia, and
ExEs among these cluster groupings. Descrip-
tive statistics are presented in Table 6. Partici-
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pants in the low schizotypy cluster had the
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highest scores on the SWLS, followed by par-
ticipants in the healthy schizotypy cluster, then
the negative schizotypy cluster, with the lowest
score on SWLS for the high schizotypy cluster.
For synesthesia, the highest scoring group was
the healthy schizotypy cluster, followed by the
high schizotypy cluster, then low schizotypy,
and, finally, negative schizotypy. For the AES
and parapsychological items, the highest score
was for the healthy schizotypy cluster, followed
by the high schizotypy group, then the low
schizotypy group, and, finally, the negative
schizotypy group. ANOVAs for differences be-
tween the four schizotypy cluster groups found
that all main effects were statistically signifi-
cant. There was a significant difference between
these groups in terms of satisfaction with life,
F(3, 1038) p ⬍ .0001, anomalous experiences,
F(3, 830) ⫽ 38.751, p ⬍ .0001, parapsycholog-
ical experiences, F(3, 1025) ⫽ 82.43, p ⬍
.0001, and synesthesia, F(3, 965) ⫽ 113.86, p ⬍
.0001. The hypotheses that schizotypy clusters
would differ for each dependent variable were
supported. Tukey’s tests found significant dif-
ferences between participants in the high com-
pared with healthy cluster groups for parapsy-
chological experiences (p ⱕ .003), anomalous
experiences (p ⬍ .0001), synesthesia (p ⱕ
.037), and satisfaction with life (p ⬍ .0001).
Table 6
Descriptive Statistics for Scoring on ExE, Satisfaction With Life, and Synesthesia
Between Clusters of Schizotypy
Cluster of schizotypy AES
High schizotypy 12.12 (5.67)
Healthy schizotypy 13.87 (5.66
Low schizotypy 7.80 (5.56)
Negative schizotypy 5.82 (4.48)
Note. ExE ⫽ Exceptional experiences measures; AES ⫽ Anomalous Experiences Scale;
Parapsychological ⫽ number of parapsychological experiences SWLS ⫽ Satisfaction with
Life Scale; SEQ ⫽ Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire.
Our hypotheses concerning healthy schizotypy
were therefore supported.
Discussion
We documented a high rate of synesthesia,
depending on how we defined synesthesia.
When synesthesia was judged present when it
occurs “at least once,” 54.3% of participants
reported synesthesia. Because the question re-
fers to a general description of synesthetic ten-
dencies, it may be subject to interpretation.
However, because it is possible to have a “one
off” experience, our finding implies that a com-
plete account of synesthesias should not be re-
stricted to a definition based entirely on a con-
sistent response to an inducing stimulus.
Relatedly, Simner (2012) has challenged “con-
sistency” as the defining characteristic of syn-
esthesia. Indeed, the occasional synesthetic ex-
perience could imply that synesthesia (or
synesthesia-like experiences) might occur in
certain contexts for some people, consistent
with the idea of state (contextually bound) and
trait anomalous experience proneness, which
could extend to synesthetic experiences.
When we defined general synesthesia in
terms of consistency, 3.1% of the participants
reported synesthetic experiences, a statistic
somewhat lower than the 4.4% reported in a
sample of undergraduate students (Simner et al.,
2006). Our finding contributes to the existing
discussion of congenital synesthesia, as the re-
ported frequencies of synesthesias differ across
surveys (Marks, 2014). The presence of “at least
once” or “occasionally” options in our survey
could have encouraged more affirmative en-
dorsements compared with presentation of only
a categorical choice. In addition, the imprecise
wording of the general question (e.g., specific
Parapsychological SWLS SEQ
6.35 (3.74) 20.39 (7.67) 43.91 (40.08)
7.63 (4.10) 24.20 (6.73) 53.92 (42.55)
3.93 (3.46) 26.75 (5.52) 27.90 (30.45)
3.21 (3.10) 22.22 (7.46) 19.43 (24.30)
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
forms of synesthesias were not specified) may
also have encouraged more positive responses.
The fact that more than half of our sample
reported synesthesia confirms that synesthetic
experiences (when broadly defined) are not un-
common.
The SEQ explored the varieties and frequen-
cies of synesthesias. As with the responses to
the general Hartmann question, the SEQ was
not normally distributed and exhibited a nega-
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tive skew. Synesthetic experiences appear to
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
reflect a tendency or set of traits that are dis-
tributed on a continuum of frequency of occur-
rence. However, the N for participants respond-
ing to the items was much lower than the other
items in the questionnaire battery, indicating
that many respondents may have skipped these
questions, which could have falsely inflated the
levels of synesthetic experiences reported
among the overall sample. However, the graded
nature of synesthetic tendencies identified in
this study implies that synesthesias occur on a
continuum rather than bimodally, which sug-
gests a monist or pluralist, rather than a dualist,
interpretation of synesthesia.
The question concerning the exact nature of
the relationships between inconsistent and con-
sistent synesthesia remains open. Our post hoc
analyses suggest that consistent and inconsis-
tent synesthetes differed in their responses re-
garding the main variables in this study, which
lends support to the notion of a continuum of
similar traits (which may yet have different
explanations) that vary in their level of expres-
sion.
Multiple Types of Synesthesia
The SEQ was internally reliable and corre-
lated with the Hartmann item, thereby providing
support for the concurrent validity of the latter
measure. Responses to the SEQ support the
existence of multiple types of synesthesias (af-
ter Marks, 2014). The most commonly reported
types of synesthesia (i.e., percentage of people
that experience a type of synesthesia on a con-
sistent basis) were taste-smell synesthesia
(9.7%), time-space synesthesia (8.5%), touch-
emotion synesthesia (7%), temperature-touch
synesthesia (6.5%), personality-color synesthe-
sia (5.7%), music-color synesthesia (5.3%), and
mirror-touch synesthesia (4.7%). Some of these
(congenital) synesthetic experience rates are
111
similar to previous findings (e.g., personality-
color; Murray, 2010), whereas rates of other
experiences differ from previous estimates (cf.
Simner & Hubbard, 2013). For example, Brang,
Teuscher, Ramachandran, and Coulson (2010)
estimated the time-space synesthesia prevalence
to be 2.2%, which is lower than the level found
in our study, whereas other research indicates a
higher estimate of around 12% (cf. Sagiv &
Ward, 2006). Grapheme- and phoneme-color
synesthesias, which are generally understood to
be the most common types, were all consis-
tently reported at around 2% in our sample,
which corresponds with previous studies (Brang
& Ramachandran, 2011).
Some of our findings may reflect ways that
our sample differs from a general population
sample. For example, participants with interests
in ExEs may experience different rates and
types of synesthesia compared with individuals
with no or little special interest in ExEs, which
likely characterizes the general population.
Moreover, some senses are more likely to be
experienced together; for example, the co-
occurrence of taste and smell and temperature
and touch may not reflect genuine examples of
synesthesia, therefore raising questions about
the meaning of frequencies reported regarding
such types of synesthesia.
If synesthetic experiences or types are de-
fined in terms of their phenomenology, as in our
study, they may well have different etiologies.
In addition, different types of synesthesia have
different prevalence rates. A parsimonious ap-
proach to understanding the synesthesias is that
they reflect a family tree of phenomena that
occur on a negatively skewed continuum; as
such, we echo Marks’s (2014) description of
synesthesia as a “teeming multiplicity” rather
than a unitary phenomenon.
Synesthesia and Positive Schizotypy
As predicted, we found a relationship be-
tween unusual experiences (a measure of pos-
itive schizotypy) and the SEQ, which corrob-
orates Banissy et al.’s (2012) findings and
might be explained by the similarities be-
tween attributes of the positive schizotypal
nervous system and individuals more likely to
experience the world synesthetically (i.e., a
higher SEQ score). Both nervous systems ex-
hibit increased cortical hyperconnectivity
 112 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
(McCreery & Claridge, 1996; Mitchell, 2013;
Rouw, 2013), which may facilitate the psy-
chological tendencies associated with both
variables. However, contrary to Banissy et al.
(2012), we did not find an association be-
tween synesthesia and cognitive disorganiza-
tion. Instead, we found a negative relationship
with introvertive anhedonia. These differ-
ences in findings may be because of method-
ological differences across studies: We exam-
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
ined synesthesia in a self-selected sample,
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
whereas Banissy et al. contrasted levels of
schizotypy between strong synesthetes and
matched control participants. Differences
across studies may also be explained by self-
selection biases, as noted previously. We
found the relationship between synesthesia
and unusual experiences to be moderate, at
best; thus, other factors are implicated in the
etiology and/or reports of synesthetic experi-
ences.
Predictors of ExEs
Schizotypy. Consistent with predictions,
positive schizotypy (unusual experiences) cor-
related positively with broadly defined ExEs
(i.e., the AES) and with traditional parapsycho-
logical experiences. The moderate correlations
(around .4) suggest that the etiology or concom-
itants of ExEs include additional factors. A gen-
eral tendency to endorse different types of
anomalous experiences could account for the
positive relations we found among variables.
However, responses to the other schizotypy
subscales do not exhibit similar relationships
with synesthesia or ExEs, so the positive asso-
ciations observed are unlikely to be explained
by a general tendency to endorse unusual expe-
riences indiscriminately.
The most meaningful and strongest predictor
of ExEs in both multiple regression analyses
was the Unusual Experiences subscale of the
O-LIFE Short, such that higher scoring on un-
usual experiences was associated with reporting
more ExEs. In addition, Unusual Experiences
contributed most of the variance in both models
of ExEs. The other subscales of the O-LIFE
Short (Cognitive Disorganization, Impulsive
Nonconformity, and Introvertive Anhedonia)
were each associated with a tendency for report-
ing fewer ExEs. In both regression models, cog-
nitive disorganization independently predicted
reported ExEs. Our data indicate a marginally
stronger role for cognitive disorganization in
explaining the variance for AES than for tradi-
tional parapsychological experiences. Impulsive
nonconformity, introvertive anhedonia, and sat-
isfaction with life all significantly and indepen-
dently predicted scoring on the AES. Neverthe-
less, their individual contributions to the overall
model were small. Impulsive nonconformity
also significantly and independently predicted
scoring on parapsychological experiences, but,
again, its individual contribution was small. Ad-
ditionally, and in contrast to the first model,
introvertive anhedonia did not significantly pre-
dict parapsychological experiences. These pat-
terns imply that schizotypy might play different
roles in different types of ExEs, which warrants
attention in future studies.
The strongest predictor of ExEs in both mod-
els was the unusual experiences measure of
positive schizotypy, which supports the view
that positive schizotypy— but not so much other
types of schizotypy—is associated with greater
proneness to anomalous experiences (anomaly
proneness). This finding is in line with previous
research and may reflect increased brain con-
nectivity, tendencies to experience shifts in
states of consciousness, a “loose” cognitive
style, and stronger, more “available” mental
imagery characteristic of the positive schizo-
typal nervous system (cf. Simmonds-Moore,
2010).
The negative relationships between cognitive
disorganization and both measures of ExEs in
the regression models could imply that a disor-
ganized system is less conducive to ExEs. How-
ever, given the correlational nature of these
relationships, it is not possible to ascertain their
causal direction. In addition, cognitive disorga-
nization did not correlate with either measure of
ExEs, although cognitive disorganization may
moderate ExEs in terms of mental health, such
that positive appraisals of ExEs are associated
with better cognitive organization (Schofield &
Claridge, 2007).
Cognitive disorganization explained more of
the variance for AES than traditional parapsy-
chological experience in our regression models,
which could be related to our selected sample,
as described previously. Although it is possible
that self-selected participants possessed a more
organized cognitive system for understanding
their ExEs, we found no differences in descrip-
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
tive statistics between our sample and norma-
tive values for cognitive disorganization (see
Mason et al., 2005). It is also possible that
traditional parapsychological experiences are
more aligned with an organized system com-
pared with other types of ExEs. Future research
could explore how cognitive disorganization
mediates different types of ExEs.
Synesthesia. Consistent with our predic-
tions, the SEQ correlated positively and signif-
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icantly with the AES and traditional parapsy-
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
chological experiences. The SEQ was the
second strongest contributor to the overall vari-
ance for ExEs in both regression models, after
unusual experiences. The SEQ played a stron-
ger role in the regression model for parapsycho-
logical experiences than it did for AES, which
suggests that traits associated with synesthesia
are important in relation to a variety of ExEs,
particularly traditional parapsychological expe-
riences. Future research could explore the rela-
tive contribution of synesthetic experiences to
different types of ExEs.
The relationships between synesthesia and
ExEs could be explained by a tendency to en-
dorse a wide range of unusual experiences
among synesthetes. Alternatively, participants
who score higher on positive schizotypy (un-
usual experiences) might be more likely to re-
spond positively to both synesthesia and ExE
items. When we examined how a particular
synesthetic experience was associated with a
related ExE (personality-color synesthesia and
aura experiences), the correlation was around
.4, a moderate effect size that implies that (a)
the type of synesthesia, albeit related to a type
of ExE, is only one of several potential vari-
ables that contributes to the overall experience;
and (b) there may be qualitative differences
between the experiences of individuals who
claim to be able to read auras and individuals
with personality-color synesthesia (after Milán
et al., 2012). Certainly, more empirical work is
needed to determine the contributions of synes-
thesia to a variety of ExEs.
Synesthesia is related to a heterogeneous set
of experiences, encompassing anomalous per-
ceptions, experiences, and cognitions, which
may all contribute to ExEs (Kerns et al., 2014).
Brang and Ramachandran (2011) note that syn-
esthesia might be related to an enhancement of
“sensory and inter-sensory processing” (p. 4),
which we suggest might contribute to the etiol-
113
ogy of ExEs. Enhanced conscious access to
unusual experiences is consistent with previous
speculations regarding how synesthesia contrib-
utes to ExEs (Irwin, 1985; Zingrone et al.,
2009), and is also supported by a phenomeno-
logical analysis of the experiences of a synes-
thete who also experiences ExEs (Simmonds-
Moore, 2016).
Schizotypy, synesthesia, and ExEs. Although
it is not possible to discern causal relationships
among variables, the shared variance between un-
usual experiences, synesthesia, and ExEs may be
associated with a common neural substrate shared
by synesthesia and positive schizotypy, such as
hyperconnectivity and the enhanced vividness and
accessibility of mental imagery. Moreover, synes-
thesia and ExEs can both emerge in altered states
of consciousness. In addition, participants who
score high on measures of positive schizotypy
shift rapidly among different states of conscious-
ness (Fleck et al., 2008) and may therefore be
more likely to report both synesthetic experiences
and ExEs, related to neural characteristics that
enable both. For other individuals, synesthetic ex-
periences and ExEs might occur contextually via
the hyperconnectivity that emerges as a product of
an altered state of consciousness. Therefore, cer-
tain states of consciousness or contexts may stim-
ulate a synesthetic potential, which might only
become manifest in the presence of certain altered
states of consciousness. Context-based experi-
ences suggest an interaction between a hypercon-
nected neural system (characteristic of individuals
high in positive schizotypy) and the influence of
serotonergic agents in the etiology of some syn-
esthetic experiences (Brogaard, 2013; Luke &
Terhune, 2013). Such agents may, in turn, pro-
mote neural hyperconnectivity that enables synes-
thetic experiences and ExEs. Still, brain imaging
studies are necessary to document more defini-
tively the role of hyperconnectivity.
Responses to the open-ended questions re-
vealed that the synesthesias occur in multiple
states of awareness—ranging from full wake-
fulness in strong synesthetes to drug-induced,
sleep-related, and meditative states of con-
sciousness in individuals that do not experience
synesthesia consistently. Post hoc analysis cor-
relating unusual experiences with the SEQ for
consistent and inconsistent synesthetes found a
correlation of similar strength in both groups,
which suggests that positive schizotypy may
contribute to synesthesia similarly for both
 114 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
ways (i.e., consistent vs. inconsistent) of being
synesthetic. Future research might investigate
different etiologies of synesthetic experiences
and ExEs among high scorers on positive
schizotypy using qualitative methodologies.
The cluster analysis informs how schizotypy
and synesthesia might work together in terms of
ExEs. As in Goulding (2005), our cluster analysis
identified four clusters, including two with higher
scores on the unusual experiences subscale of the
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O-LIFE Short— high schizotypy and healthy
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
schizotypy. Members of the high schizotypy and
healthy schizotypy clusters both scored higher
than members of the other two clusters on ExEs.
However, participants in the healthy schizotypy
cluster also scored significantly higher than did
individuals in the high schizotypy cluster on both
measures of ExEs. Accordingly, unusual experi-
ences (as a measure of positive schizotypy) ap-
pears to reflect a trait that is generally associated
with an increased tendency for both ExEs and
synesthesia. When the trait co-occurs with cogni-
tive disorganization, reports of synesthetic experi-
ences and the level of reported ExEs decrease.
These findings suggest that the otherwise direct
relationship between positive schizotypy and both
synesthesia and ExEs is attenuated by the traits
associated with cognitive disorganization, which
include attentional difficulties. In terms of synes-
thesia, Rich and Mattingley (2013) have noted
that a stimulus must be “attended to or con-
sciously perceived to trigger a concurrent experi-
ence” (p. 265). The disruption of attentional
mechanisms in a cognitive-perceptual system,
which might otherwise be prone to synesthesia
(e.g., a system that exhibits greater hyperconnec-
tivity), may thus attenuate synesthetic experiences
and ExEs. Cognitive disorganization in synesthe-
sia bears study among preselected participants that
represent different schizotypy clusters to better
understand how synesthetic experiences vary
across cluster membership.
Psychological Well-Being
Synesthesia. Synesthesia did not correlate
positively with well-being, although schizotypy
clusters differed significantly in terms of both
well-being and synesthesia. In addition, the
cluster group with the highest level of synesthe-
sia was also the group with the second highest
score on SWLS (healthy schizotypy cluster). In
line with predictions, the healthy and high
schizotypy clusters also differed statistically on
SWLS, such that healthy schizotypy was asso-
ciated with greater psychological well-being.
This finding implies that higher levels of syn-
esthesia and unusual experiences (without cog-
nitive disorganization and introvertive anhedo-
nia) are associated with good mental health to
the extent that mental health is associated with
well-being.
Our findings align with previous research that
has tied both healthy positive schizotypy (Nettle,
2006) and synesthesia (Brang & Ramachandran,
2011) to the adaptive traits of creativity, although
creativity has a complicated relationship with
well-being and mental health (Holt, 2012). In ad-
dition, previous work has found evidence for in-
creased evolutionary fitness among those with
traits associated with positive schizotypy, perhaps
via the association with creativity (Nettle, 2006).
Accordingly, positive schizotypy may also be se-
lected, in part, because of the variety of other
benefits associated with synesthesia, including en-
hancements of sensory processing, mental repre-
sentation, and memory (Brang & Ramachandran,
2011). Given the association between psycholog-
ical well-being and mental health, our results may
help to explain some of the discrepancies in the
literature regarding synesthesia and mental health.
First, there may be healthy and less healthy forms
of synesthesia given that healthy schizotypy and
high schizotypy are both associated with synes-
thetic experiences. In addition, higher scores on
SWLS for consistent, compared with inconsistent,
synesthetes suggest that congenital synesthesia is
potentially associated with better psychological
well-being than induced or acquired synesthesias.
These findings warrant further exploration in stud-
ies comparing the diverse ways synesthesias are
experienced.
Psychological well-being and ExEs. Psycho-
logical well-being did not correlate with tradi-
tional parapsychological experiences. Notably,
psychological well-being was excluded from
the final regression model for traditional para-
psychological experiences. In contrast, psycho-
logical well-being added a small amount of
variance to the overall model for AES. Our
research implies that well-being is not related to
traditional parapsychological experiences,
which lends support to the idea that ExEs are
neutral in terms of well-being and perhaps men-
tal health (Simmonds-Moore, 2012a).
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
Methodological Limitations
Online sampling. As noted previously, the
possibility exists that self-selection biases pro-
duced a sample that overrepresented individuals
with active interests in ExEs. Descriptive statis-
tics for the AES were slightly higher in our
study (M ⫽ 10.23) than in a prior survey based
on a general population sample (M ⫽ 7.5; Sim-
monds-Moore, 2009), and therefore may have
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overrepresented the frequencies of synesthetic
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
experiences. Our findings thus require replica-
tion in more representative random samples.
Methodological limitations with the SEQ.
Some participants might have scored high on
the SEQ because they experienced one or only
a few synesthesias consistently, whereas other
participants could have obtained the same score,
or an even higher score, by reporting more
synesthesias that occurred less often. Accord-
ingly, a person might be a strong or congenital
synesthete yet score relatively low on the SEQ.
Future development of the scale could weight
scores based on the consistent experience of
synesthesia. Still, the observation of different
types of responders to questions about synes-
thesia is revealing with regard to the multifac-
eted nature of synesthesia.
SEQ responses may reflect how frequently a
participant encounters a given inducer. Some
inducers are rarer than others—for example,
reading words or letters is an everyday experi-
ence, whereas experiencing emotions associated
with numbers is less common. Although differ-
ences in base rates of inducers might add noise
to the interpretation of our questionnaire find-
ings, the relationships revealed in our research
are, nevertheless, noteworthy with regard to
synesthetic experiences and how they relate to
ExEs and the traits associated with positive
schizotypy. Another issue is whether partici-
pants truly experience the world synesthetically
or whether they report that they do so in the
absence of synesthesia. Presenting questions re-
garding synesthesias in the same survey that
also enquires about ExEs might inflate the cor-
relations obtained, as the measures are admin-
istered in the same test context. Future studies
could examine the role of such context effects
(Council, 1993) by assessing the reliability of
the correlations when the measures are pre-
sented in independent test contexts.
115
Multiple analysis and non-normality. We
acknowledge the possibility of Type I errors,
despite corrections for multiple analysis, and
our results should be interpreted with caution,
as some of the effect sizes were small. More-
over, the non-normality of the variables could
have reduced the reliability of findings, and
missing SEQ data could have compromised fre-
quency estimates. Future studies should seek to
replicate and validate our findings with a more
representative sample.
Future Research
Our correlational design does not permit the
determination of causal relationships. Kerns et al.
(2014) articulated the need for longitudinal studies
to further understand “peculiarity” and to ascertain
causality. To address this need, synesthetes’ and
positive schizotypes’ reports of ExEs could be
assessed over a period of time using experience or
descriptive sampling methods. Longitudinal stud-
ies, beginning in childhood, would prove invalu-
able in specifying the causal direction of relation-
ships. It would also be worthwhile to study the
experiences of people who score high on synes-
thesia but low on positive schizotypy, and high on
positive schizotypy but low on synesthesia, using
qualitative methods. Differences between healthy
and high scorers on schizotypy measures using
such methods could also be investigated. Sim-
monds-Moore (2016) identified an interesting re-
lationship between synesthesia and mental health.
Although synesthesia and ExEs are an integral and
accepted part of the experiencer’s life, when they
occurred at an earlier time in life, they were ap-
praised negatively. Similar studies might explore
how synesthesia and ExEs impact everyday expe-
riences in terms of mental health, psychopathol-
ogy, positive functioning, and mental imagery.
The fact that some synesthesias were one-off
or occasional warrants further attention. Con-
textual synesthesia might be more systemati-
cally studied by interviewing individuals who
report synesthesias that occur less commonly
and by examining individuals who report syn-
esthesias that are drug and/or meditation re-
lated, for example, versus more consistent and
automatic (congenital). Studies of training syn-
esthesia (Marks, 2014) could be extended to
evaluate whether healthy positive schizotypes
are more likely to respond to training to incul-
 116 SIMMONDS-MOORE, ALVARADO, AND ZINGRONE
cate synesthetic experiences compared with
their less psychologically healthy counterparts.
Researchers could also incorporate perfor-
mance-based tests of genuineness of synesthe-
sia to explore these relationships and examine
ExEs among strong synesthetes. Preselecting
people who regularly experience different types
of ExEs and determining the associated inci-
dence and types of synesthesia could also be
revealing. For example, individuals who expe-
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rience auras might be more likely to report
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
personality-color or emotion-color synesthesia
than people who experience other synesthesias.
In addition, participants that report experiencing
ESP might be more likely to report mirror-touch
synesthesia or emotion-color or other concur-
rent responses to an emotional inducer. Another
approach would be to survey synesthetes about
ExEs in a more representative sample that
would enable replication of our findings and
provide additional insights into the shared vari-
ances among variables considered herein.
Conclusions
We found support for a not-uncommon ten-
dency to experience synesthetic phenomena, and
we replicated findings that some experiences of
synesthesia are more common than others. We
also determined that synesthesia shares variance
with positive schizotypy (unusual experiences)
and with ExEs, when defined broadly, and tradi-
tional parapsychological experiences. Regression
analyses supported the potential contributing roles
of both unusual experiences and synesthesia in the
etiology of ExEs.
Synesthesia and traditional parapsychological
experiences were unrelated to psychological well-
being, although we found a small relationship
between anomalous experiences (defined more
widely) and poorer psychological well-being.
Cluster analyses implied that healthy schizotypy is
more aligned with synesthesia than high schizo-
typy. Our research supports the hypothesis that the
traits associated with positive schizotypy (when
not accompanied by cognitive disorganization) re-
flect a healthy anomaly prone personality, which
can encompass the experience of synesthesia.
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Appendix
Items From the Synesthesia Experience Questionnaire
1. I see colors when I hear spoken words
2. I see colors when I read written words
3. I see colors when I hear individual letters
of the alphabet
4. I see colors when I read individual letters
of the alphabet
5. I see colors when I hear individual numbers
6. I see colors when I read individual numbers
7. I see colors when I hear sounds
8. I see colors when I hear music
9. I see colors when I read music
10. I see colors for days of the week (or other
units of time)
11. I see colors when I experience tastes or smells
12. I see colors when I experience touch or pain
13. I see colors for personalities
14. I see colors when I experience emotions
15. I see colors when I experience temperatures
16. I see colors when I experience an orgasm
17. I hear sounds when I have visual experiences
18. I hear sounds when I experience kinetics
(movement)
19. I hear sounds when I experience temperatures
20. I hear sounds when I experience taste or
smells
21. I hear sounds when I experience touch
22. I experience shapes when I taste food
(Appendix continues)
synesthesia. Journal of Nervous and Mental Dis-
ease, 189, 190–192. http://dx.doi.org/10.1097/
00005053-200103000-00009
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Journal of Consciousness Studies, 12, 1–13.
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construction of anomalous experience. Unpub-
lished PhD Thesis. Edinburgh University.
Zingrone, N., Alvarado, C., & Agee, N. (2009). Psy-
chological correlates of aura vision: Psychic expe-
riences, dissociation, absorption, and synaesthesia-
like experiences. Australian Journal of Clinical &
Experimental Hypnosis, 37, 131–168.
23. I experience smells when I hear spoken words
24. I experience smells when I read written words
25. I experience smells when I experience emo-
tions
26. I experience smells when I have visual expe-
riences
27. I experience smells when I experience tem-
peratures
28. I experience smells when I hear sounds
29. I experience smells for personalities
30. I experience personalities for letters or num-
bers
31. I experience personalities for objects
32. I experience gender for letters or numbers
33. I experience numbers, days of the week, or
months of the year in a spatial arrangement
(e.g., a circle, ellipse, oval)
34. I experience touch when I see someone else
being touched
35. I experience touch or pain when I experience
emotions
36. I experience touch for personalities
37. I experience touch when I hear sounds
38. I experience touch when I have visual expe-
riences
39. I experience touch when I experience temper-
ature
 SYNESTHETIC EXPERIENCES
40. I experience touch when I experience smell or
taste
41. I experience taste when I experience smell
42. I experience taste when I experience emotions
43. I experience taste when I have a visual expe-
rience
44. I experience taste when I experience touch
45. I experience taste when I experience words
(or parts of words)
46. I experience taste when I hear music
This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly.
47. I experience taste when I read music
This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers.
48. I experience taste when I hear sounds
49. I experience taste when I experience temper-
ature
50. I experience temperature when I experience
emotions
51. I experience temperature when I hear sounds
52. I experience temperature when I have visual
experiences
53. I experience temperature when I experience
smells or tastes
54. I experience temperature when I experience
touch
55. I experience kinetics (movement) when I hear
a sound
56. I experience kinetics (movement) when I
have a visual experience
121
Experiences where people experience sen-
sory responses in addition to the normal sense
are known as “synesthesia.” Please use the
space below to tell us more details about your
“synesthetic” experiences (if you have them).
We are particularly interested in:
1. The state of consciousness associated
with your experience—i.e., did it, or
does it occur when you are wide awake,
in a meditative state, in another altered
state (e.g., a drug-related state) or when
you are falling asleep or just waking up?
2. Do your experiences (also) occur when
you just think about the inducer (the per-
ceptual experience which leads to your
synesthetic concurrent experience)
3. Are there any other circumstances which
affect your “synesthetic” experiences?
4. Please also use this space to describe a
“synesthetic” experience that is not cov-
ered by this questionnaire
Received February 24, 2016
Revision received April 30, 2018
Accepted July 20, 2018 䡲