Transliminality – Converging Evidence of Associations With and Openness to Experience and Its Facets

Abstract: Transliminality refers to permeable mental boundaries that entail a susceptibility to, and awareness of, material from unconscious sources and the external environment. Here, we examined the extent to which transliminality is associated with the personality trait of Openness to Experience. Three samples of visitors to art galleries (total N = 770) completed measures of transliminality and Openness. Initial analyses suggested that the construct of transliminality was multidimensional, consisting of mild absorption-like experiences and more disintegrative-like experiences, respectively. Transliminality, at both manifest and latent levels, was significantly, positively, and with medium to large effect sizes associated with higher-order Openness. However, this correspondence was primarily driven by associations with three lower-order Openness facets (Fantasy, Aesthetics, and Values). These associations were replicable across all three samples and robust after accounting for participant sociodemographic variables. These convergent, internally replicating findings suggest that transliminality may lie at the end of a continuum of experiential openness.