In an exploratory study of peak communication experiences (PCEs), 36 male and 50 female undergraduates from a speech communication course were asked to describe their PCEs using 19 descriptors derived from A. Maslow's model of the generalized peak experience. Two-thirds or more of both sexes used 10 of these 19 descriptors to characterize their PCEs: a sense of the significance, beauty, and value of their communication; loss of awareness of time and place; an experience of spontaneity, and affection for and acceptance of the other person; and a recognition of the other person's uniqueness. Corroborating Maslow's speculation that males and females might not come by their peak experiences in the same ways, a larger percentage of females than males portrayed their PCEs as (1) seeing the other in a richer way, (2) feeling that the experience was almost more than one could bear, (3) resolving opposites, (4) giving acceptance and love, (5) being released from fear, (6) experiencing spontaneity and effortlessness, and (7) feeling playful and creative. The three experiences identified least frequently by both males and females involved the surrender of longstanding cognitive styles: disappearance of self, dropping of labels, and a moving away from a dualistic mindset. (MM)