Psychedelics and Psychotherapy: Is the Whole Greater than the Sum of its Parts?
Robert H. Dworkin, Michael P McDermott, Sandeep M. Nayak, Eric C. Strain
Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics October 5, 2023 DOI: 10.1002/cpt.3050 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Commentary Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Anxiety Mescaline Psilocybin |
| Keywords | Psychotherapist Clinical trial Hallucinogen Clinical psychology |
| Citations | 16 |
| Key points | Argues that because most psychedelic trials combine a psychedelic with psychotherapy-like support, and psychotherapy is costlier and harder to scale than harm-reduction support alone, factorial-design trials are needed to isolate the effects of the psychedelic, the psychotherapy, and their interaction, thereby informing safe and cost-effective treatment development. |
Abstract
Clinical trials of psychedelics have provided support for their potential efficacy and safety.Although most combined a psychedelic with psychological support akin to psychotherapy, providing psychotherapy is costlier and more difficult to scale than providing only support to reduce harms.Trials with factorial designs can evaluate the individual effects of a psychedelic and psychotherapy and any synergistic interaction between them.Such trials would provide an important evidence base for developing safe and cost-effective psychedelic treatments.
Citations in the library
Cited by 14
- Reconsidering evidence for psychedelic-induced psychosis: an overview of reviews, a systematic review, and meta-analysis of human studies. Molecular Psychiatry March 1, 2025
- Psychedelics for alzheimer's disease-related dementia: Unveiling therapeutic possibilities and pathways Ageing Research Reviews February 1, 2024
- Psychedelics for the Treatment of Psychiatric Disorders: Interpreting and Translating Available Evidence and Guidance for Future Research. American Journal of Psychiatry 2025
- How Psychedelics Modulate Multiple Memory Mechanisms in Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Drugs November 1, 2024
- Uncovering Psychedelics: From Neural Circuits to Therapeutic Applications Pharmaceuticals January 19, 2025
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Cites 6
- Psychedelics and the essential importance of context. Journal of Psychopharmacology February 15, 2018
- Global Street Food: la cocina de la calle Diseño interior 2009
- Psychedelics reopen the social reward learning critical period Nature June 14, 2023
- Psychedelics, placebo effects, and set and setting: Insights from common factors theory of psychotherapy Transcultural Psychiatry January 26, 2021
- Control Conditions in Randomized Trials of Psychedelics The Journal of Clinical Psychiatry May 4, 2023
and 1 more in the library