sensory deprivation

American  

noun

Psychiatry.

1. the experimental or natural reduction of environmental stimuli, as by physical isolation or loss of eyesight, often leading to cognitive, perceptual, or behavioral changes, as disorientation, delusions, or panic.

---

sensory deprivation British  

noun

1. psychol an experimental situation in which all stimulation is cut off from the sensory receptors

---

sensory deprivation Cultural  

1. A natural or experimentally arranged situation in which stimulation of a subject's senses is greatly reduced. Experiments have included floating subjects in soundproof water chambers. Though short periods of sensory deprivation can be relaxing, extended deprivation can result in extreme anxiety, hallucinations, bizarre thoughts, depression, and antisocial behavior. Sensory deprivation experiments have demonstrated that humans need constant sensory contact with their environment in order to function.

---

Example Sentences

I will spend 72 hours in a sensory deprivation tank eating nothing but Feastables if someone will just explain to me once and for all what Salesforce actually does.

From Slate • Feb. 8, 2026

"Essentially the minds of patients were manipulated using verbal cues," she says, adding he also looked at the effects of sleep drugs, forced sensory deprivation, and induced coma.

From BBC • Nov. 14, 2025

Vision and hearing services help prevent dementia and increase independent living, possibly by mitigating sensory deprivation, protecting cognitive energy and reducing social isolation.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 10, 2025

From deconstructed pianos to sensory deprivation rooms that play her sermons to colorful laser projections, Coltrane’s legacy is in the hands of these American artists.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 14, 2025

Come critique time, most students behaved as if the assignment had been to confine the stories in a dark, enclosed area and test their reaction to sensory deprivation.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris