Overview
- A PLOS ONE paper published Thursday, August 6, 2026, reports results from a validated 47-question survey given to 5,117 Brazilians that asked about sensing presences, visions, out-of-body episodes and related unusual events.
- The study found most experiences happened while people were awake and alert and a large share occurred when individuals were alone, with more than 60% awake/alert and about 39% alone at the time.
- Most episodes were brief or rare for each person: about 36% lasted a few minutes, 27% were almost instantaneous, 38% occurred two to three times, and 30% were single events.
- A majority described neutral or positive outcomes when reflecting back, with 51% reporting positive long-term effects while roughly 20% reported negative impact and about 25% reported suffering or discomfort.
- Authors highlight that the new instrument strengthens measurement, urge destigmatizing these reports, recommend professional help only when daily life is impaired, and note limits from self-report data and a single-country sample.