Longitudinal and transcultural assessment of the relationship between hallucinogens, well-being, and post-traumatic growth during the COVID-19 pandemic
Alcázar-Córcoles, M. A., Bouso, J. C., Dos Santos, R. G., Hallak, J. E., Ona, G., Révész, D., Rocha, J. M., Rossi, G. N.
This longitudinal transcultural study (n=2971) conducted during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in April 2020 collected data through an online survey from English-, Spanish-, and Portuguese-speaking participants. The study found that users of hallucinogenic drugs, particularly regular users, had higher psychological well-being and lower psychopathology scores both at baseline and during follow-ups. Regular hallucinogen users also showed higher scores for post-traumatic growth, especially among subjects with more psychological distress. The study noted variations between cultural contexts, with more English-speaking participants reporting regular use of hallucinogenic drugs.
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on the health and wellbeing of the global population. This paper presents the results of a longitudinal transcultural study that was begun at the peak of the pandemic (in April, 2020). An online survey was used to collect data from English-, Spanish-, and Portuguese-speaking participants. The survey collected information about sociodemographics, lifestyle activities, COVID-19-related circumstances, and drug use (with an emphasis on hallucinogenic drugs), as well as involving psychometric questionnaires. Users of hallucinogenic drugs had higher psychological well-being and lower scores on psychopathology scales, both at baseline and during follow-ups. This difference was larger when users were distinguished by frequency of use, as regular users scored higher on psychological well-being and lower on psychopathology scales. Subjects with more psychological distress had lower scores for all scales of post-traumatic growth, but if they were regular hallucinogens users, they had higher scores for post-traumatic growth. When comparing the results between cultural contexts, heterogeneous results were obtained. There were more English-speaking regular users of hallucinogenic drugs. Further research should analyse the potential role of hallucinogens in large-scale catastrophes, with a special focus on post-traumatic growth.