The Psychedelic Renaissance in Clinical Research: A Bibliometric Analysis of Three Decades of Human Studies with Classical Psychedelics

Introduction

Human research on the therapeutic potential of classical psychedelics has undergone a marked resurgence over the past two decades after a near three-decade hiatus following strict prohibitions in the late 20th century. Earlier research lines from the 1950s–1960s were largely halted by regulatory constraints, and since around 2000 investigators have re‑examined psychedelics across clinical trials, neuroimaging, psychotherapeutic interventions, basic science, and ethnographic contexts. This renewed interest has been reinforced by regulatory acknowledgements such as FDA 'breakthrough therapy' designations, but it remained unclear whether the recent growth in publications and influence is globally distributed or concentrated among a limited set of researchers, institutions, countries, and journals, and to what extent the field exhibits diversity in its investigator and participant base. Hadar and colleagues set out to map and quantify the ‘‘psychedelic renaissance’’ in clinical human research by performing a bibliometric analysis covering three decades (1990–2020). The study aimed to (1) identify the 100 most‑cited articles in human psychedelic research, (2) determine the most influential authors, institutions, journals, and countries, and (3) explore collaboration, co‑citation, and historiography patterns among the top publications. The authors framed this as a tool to inform researchers, clinicians, funders, and policymakers about the structure and impact of contemporary psychedelic clinical science.