摘要：Exceptional experiences (EE) occur frequently within the populations of many countries and across various sociocultural contexts. Although some EE show similarities with mental disorders, it would be a mistake to identify them in general as disorders. In fact, the vast number of individuals reporting EE includes subclinical and completely healthy subjects. We conducted a comparative empirical study of several characteristics of EE for two samples -- one from ordinary population and the other from clients seeking advice. We found surprisingly similar \Red{phenomenological patterns of EE in both samples, but} the frequency and intensity of EE for clients seeking advice significantly exceeded those for the ordinary population. Our results support the hypothesis of a continuous spectrum between mental health and mental disorder for the types of experiences analyzed.
