Perceived attachment history predicts psychedelic experiences: A naturalistic study
Aaron D. Cherniak, Mario Mikulincer, Joel Gruneau Brulin, Pehr Granqvist
Journal of Psychedelic Studies March 5, 2024 DOI: 10.1556/2054.2024.00330 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 185 |
| Population | International Jewish adults with psychedelic experience |
| Keywords | Naturalism Naturalistic observation Developmental psychology |
| Citations | 7 |
| Key findings | Perceptions of an insecure attachment history are positively linked to psychedelic phenomenology, but adult attachment orientations are unrelated to psychedelic phenomenology, and psychedelic experiences do not moderate the link between perceived insecure attachment history and adult attachment orientations. |
Abstract
Abstract Background and aims Emerging research indicates that psychedelics may have therapeutic potential by fostering meaningful experiences that act as “inflection points” in people's narratives of personal development. However, psychedelic research has largely failed to address pertinent developmental considerations. We investigated whether attachment-related variables were associated with psychedelic experiences and whether psychedelic experiences moderated expected links between perceived attachment history and current adult attachment orientations.
Methods: We administered an online survey to an international Jewish sample ( N = 185) with psychedelic experience. The survey included measures about recollection of attachment interactions with parents (perceived attachment history), adult attachment orientations (anxiety, avoidance), and psychedelic phenomenology (mystical experiences, challenging experiences, emotional breakthrough, ego dissolution, sensed presence) associated with respondents' most memorable psychedelic experiences.
Results: Perceptions of an insecure attachment history were positively linked to all measures of psychedelic phenomenology ( r 's = 0.19–32, p 's mostly < 0.01). In contrast, adult attachment orientations were unrelated to psychedelic phenomenology. Also, psychedelic phenomenology mostly did not moderate the links observed between perceptions of an insecure attachment history and adult attachment orientations.
Conclusions: Our findings suggest that perceptions of early attachment experiences may be relevant to psychedelic phenomenology. However, subjective experiences associated with naturalistic psychedelic use do not typically attenuate links between a perceived insecure attachment history and attachment insecurity at present.