Damage to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (measured in war veterans with head injuries from bullets or shards) is associated with higher rates of mystical experiences and increased reliance on intuition over rational cognition.

normativepending

Speaker

Robert Sapolsky

Evidence Quote

“if you have damage specific to the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, you have people reporting a higher rate of mystical experiences.”

Source

31. Religious Belief by Robert Sapolsky— Stanford School of Humanities and Sciences
Created: 8/12/2026, 5:59:56 PM

My Notes

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