Global Drug Survey
Rotem Petranker, Thomas Anderson, Larissa J. Maier, Monica J Barratt, Jason Ferris, Adam Winstock
April 12, 2020 preprint DOI: 10.31234/osf.io/xb8ve (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey Placebo-controlled Double-blind |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 6,753 |
| Population | People who reported microdosing LSD or psilocybin at least once in the last 12 months, recruited through the Global Drug Survey 2019 |
| Duration | Last 12 months |
| Topics | Psilocybin |
| Keywords | Microdose Mood Pharmacology Hallucinogen |
| Citations | 14 |
| Key findings | Microdosing was associated with enhanced mood, creativity, focus, and sociability, with most participants reporting no challenges, but approach-intention predicted fewer benefits. |
Abstract
Background: Microdosing psychedelics – the practice of taking small, sub-hallucinogenic doses of substances like LSD or psilocybin-containing mushrooms – is becoming increasingly popular. Despite its surging popularity, little is known about the effects of this practice.
Aims: This research had three main aims. First, we attempted to replicate previous findings regarding the subjective benefits and challenges reported for microdosing. Second, we assessed whether people who microdose test their substances for purity before consumption. Third, we examined whether having an approach-intention to microdosing was predictive of more reported benefits.
Methods: The Global Drug Survey (GDS) runs the world’s largest drug survey. Participants who reported last year use of LSD or psilocybin in GDS2019 were offered the opportunity to answer a sub-section on microdosing.Results: Data from 6,753 people who reported microdosing at least once in the last 12 months were used for analyses. Our results suggest a partial replication of previously reported benefits and challenges among the present sample often reporting enhanced mood, creativity, focus, and sociability. Counter to our prediction, the most common challenge participants associated with microdosing was “none”. As predicted, most participants reported not testing their substances. Counter to our hypothesis, approach-intention – microdosing in order to approach a desired goal – predicted less rather than more benefits when microdosing. We discuss alternate theoretical frameworks that may better capture the reasons people microdose.Conclusion: Our results suggest that the benefits associated with microdosing greatly outweigh the challenges. Microdosing may have utility for a variety of uses while having minimal side-effects. However, double-blind, placebo-controlled experiments are still required in order to substantiate these reports.