Psychedelics can reorient beliefs, but they may also lead to false insights and false beliefs. A review of laboratory research on false insights and false memories is connected to belief formation under psychedelics through the active inference framework. Psychedelics increase both the quantity and subjective intensity of insights and beliefs, including false ones. Future research should aim to minimize the risk of false and potentially harmful beliefs arising from psychedelics. Understanding this risk is crucial for safely leveraging the therapeutic potential of psychedelics.
A laboratory method called FIAT elicits 'Aha' moments for incorrect anagram solutions, i.e. false insights. Because psychotic symptoms often accompany strong feelings of insight, the authors tested whether people who experience more false insights are more prone to psychosis and delusion. In 200 participants, they found no association between experimentally induced false insights and measures of Schizotypy, Need for Cognition, Jumping to Conclusions, Aberrant Salience, Faith in Intuition, or the Cognitive Reflection Task. The authors conclude that false insights may not be limited to any particular personality type but can arise for anyone under the right circumstances.