Among Berlin university students followed for one year, first-time psychedelic users showed small increases in Openness and decreases in Conscientiousness compared to never-users. After adjusting for age, sex, income, psychiatric diagnosis, and baseline substance use, the changes were attenuated and not statistically significant after correction for multiple comparisons. Exploratory analyses indicated that first-time users with psychiatric diagnoses experienced larger reductions in Neuroticism. The personality changes were not clearly different from those seen in first-time users of other illicit substances, and the authors caution against causal interpretation.
During the early COVID-19 pandemic, use of party drugs (stimulants, dissociatives, GHB/GBL) shifted substantially. Among 1,231 users surveyed, 48.0–64.8% ceased or decreased use, 11.9–25.5% maintained, and 23.6–29.1% increased consumption. MDMA/ecstasy showed the strongest decrease; GHB/GBL and dissociatives the highest increase. Price, quality, and supply remained mostly unaffected. Mood-related motivations (e.g., feeling exhilarated or high) were common before and during the pandemic, but social and mood-related reasons declined while coping with boredom rose. 16.4–35.6% found drug use helpful for pandemic-related stressors, which was linked to increased consumption. The findings suggest that users who increased use as a coping strategy may need targeted preventive measures.