About the Author

Dr. Peter Nelson is a registered psychologist and social science researcher who consults with individuals and organizations in the USA, Australia and New Zealand. For the past 30 years he has also conducted research into non-ordinary experience and published his findings in academic journals and books in several countries and has been the subject of numerous interviews in the popular media. A native of New York City, he began his career in neurophysiology with research programs in the USA, England and Denmark. Then, in the 1980s, he switched to social science, focusing on how people create and experience reality. In the late 1980s he conducted ground breaking research into non-ordinary experiencing, for which he gained a Ph.D. degree from the University of Queensland in Australia. For the next decade he taught psychology and conducted research at universities in Australia, New Zealand and the US. Since then he has worked for governments, non-profits and businesses as a research consultant on projects including statistical surveys, usability research, end-user ethnography and corporate cultural analysis. He also has been a counselor, life coach and a psychological consultant, including working as a forensic psychologist for the Australian criminal courts.