Skip to content

Development and psychometric validation of a novel scale for measuring 'psychedelic preparedness'.

Rosalind McAlpine, George Blackburne, Sunjeev K. Kamboj

Scientific Reports February 8, 2024 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-024-53829-z (opens in new tab)

Read Full Text
Relevant Not relevant

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Scale development and validation study with iterative Delphi-focus group methodology, qualitative pre-test interviews, psychometric validation in two online samples, and a prospective pre-post retreat group Peer reviewed
Sample size 1,278
Population Psychedelic users (online samples) and participants in a 5-7-day psilocybin retreat
Intervention psilocybin retreat
Duration 5-7-day psilocybin retreat
Topics Psychedelic-assisted therapy
Keywords Mental health assessment Psychological readiness Therapeutic screening Patient preparation
Citations 24
Key findings The Psychedelic Preparedness Scale (PPS) is a reliable and valid measure that predicts mental health and wellbeing outcomes after a psychedelic experience, with higher preparedness scores associated with better outcomes.

Abstract

Preparing participants for psychedelic experiences is crucial for ensuring these experiences are safe and, potentially beneficial. However, there is currently no validated measure to assess the extent to which participants are well-prepared for such experiences. Our study aimed to address this gap by developing, validating, and testing the Psychedelic Preparedness Scale (PPS). Using a novel iterative Delphi-focus group methodology ('DelFo'), followed by qualitative pre-test interviews, we incorporated the perspectives of expert clinicians/researchers and of psychedelic users to generate items for the scale. Psychometric validation of the PPS was carried out in two large online samples of psychedelic users (N = 516; N = 716), and the scale was also administered to a group of participants before and after a 5-7-day psilocybin retreat (N = 46). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis identified four factors from the 20-item PPS: Knowledge-Expectations, Intention-Preparation, Psychophysical-Readiness, and Support-Planning. The PPS demonstrated excellent reliability (ω = 0.954) and evidence supporting convergent, divergent and discriminant validity was also obtained. Significant differences between those scoring high and low (on psychedelic preparedness) before the psychedelic experience were found on measures of mental health/wellbeing outcomes assessed after the experience, suggesting that the scale has predictive utility. By prospectively measuring modifiable pre-treatment preparatory behaviours and attitudes using the PPS, it may be possible to determine whether a participant has generated the appropriate mental 'set' and is therefore likely to benefit from a psychedelic experience, or at least, less likely to be harmed.

Comparable studies

Other non-randomized and open-label trials on psychedelic-assisted therapy, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
Psilocybin with psychological support for treatment-resistant depression: six-month follow-up. Patients with severe, unipolar, treatment-resistant major depression 2017 Open-label trial n = 20
Durability of improvement in post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and absence of harmful effects or drug dependency after 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine-assisted psychotherapy: a prospective long-term follow-up study. Adults with chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD 2013 Long-term follow-up of a completed trial n = 19
Psilocybin therapy increases cognitive and neural flexibility in patients with major depressive disorder. Patients with major depressive disorder 2021 Open-label study n = 24
Ketamine Psychedelic Therapy (KPT): A Review of the Results of Ten Years of Research Alcoholic patients 1997 Controlled clinical trial n = 211
Exploratory study of the dose-related safety, tolerability, and efficacy of dimethyltryptamine (DMT) in healthy volunteers and major depressive disorder. Treatment-resistant individuals with major depressive disorder (MDD) and healthy controls 2022 Open-label, fixed-order, dose-escalation exploratory phase 1 study n = 10

Citations in the library

Cited by 25

and 20 more in the library

Cites 24

and 19 more in the library

Related reading

Explore topics

Psychedelic-assisted therapy Psilocybin