Predictors of attitudes toward psychedelics among psychologists in the USA

Introduction

Psychedelics such as psilocybin, LSD and DMT have long been highly stigmatised in the United States, yet recent clinical research has produced promising early-stage evidence for therapeutic benefits across conditions including end-of-life anxiety, treatment-resistant depression and some substance use disorders. The introduction situates this changing evidence base against persistent public and professional beliefs that psychedelics are high-risk, noting prior surveys that found substantial proportions of the public and some psychiatrists believe psychedelics increase psychiatric risk or are unsafe even under medical supervision. Because psychologists are likely to have a role in disseminating any approved psychedelic-assisted therapies, understanding variation in psychologists' attitudes is presented as important for anticipating barriers to implementation and for designing stigma-reduction strategies. Luoma and colleagues state that relatively little is known about psychologists' attitudes toward psychedelics specifically. Using a secondary analysis of a survey of 366 US-licensed clinical or counselling psychologists, the study aimed to examine individual difference predictors of attitudes toward psychedelics. Hypotheses focused on demographic and experiential variables: that male gender, residence in politically liberal regions (Northeast/West), greater familiarity with psychedelics, religious non-affiliation, and direct or indirect contact with positive psychedelic experiences would be associated with more favourable attitudes. Training in addictions treatment was examined but not expected to be positively associated with attitudes based on prior uncertainty.