A Social History and Analysis of the Lsd Controversy
Roy F. Baumeister, Kathleen S. Placidi
Journal of Humanistic Psychology October 1, 1983 DOI: 10.1177/0022167883234003 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Review Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | LSD |
| Keywords | Cognitive dissonance Exhibitionism Curiosity Harm Opposition politics |
| Citations | 31 |
| Key findings | LSD use declined due to changes in social conditions and user attitudes that made the drug's experience less suited to the desires of youth. |
Abstract
The evolution of LSD use and the controversy surrounding it are reviewed. LSD is treated as a powerful drug whose mind-revealing effects embodied the potential for both psychological harm and personal insight. Predominant motives for LSD use appear to have shifted from desire for self-exploration to a desire for fun. Early LSD use, stimulated by curiosity and adventure seeking, focused on the personal, existential, and spiritual insights attributed (sometimes erroneously) to the drug. Opposition to LSD developed as LSD became a focus or symbol for generational conflict, parental worries, political dissent, irrational behavior and violence, personal cognitive dissonance, and threat to traditional values and institutions. LSD use declined because changes in the social conditions confronting youth created a desire for a type of drug experience LSD was ill-suited to provide, and because changes in users' attitudes and preparations changed the nature of the LSD experience. The relation of drug preference to social conditions, the attributional biases concerning drugs, and the similarities between LSD proponents' and opponents' behavior are discussed.
Comparable studies
Other narrative reviews on LSD, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Study of a New Schizophrenomimetic Drug—Sernyl | 1959 | Review | |
| Classic psychedelics: An integrative review of epidemiology, therapeutics, mystical experience, and brain network function. General population | 2019 | Integrative review | |
| The Pharmacology of Lysergic Acid Diethylamide: A Review | 2008 | Review | |
| Serotonin research: contributions to understanding psychoses | 2008 | Review | |
| ADVERSE REACTIONS TO PSYCHEDELIC DRUGS. A REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE | 1984 | Review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 12
- The Varieties of Self-Transcendent Experience Review of General Psychology May 1, 2017
- Of Roots and Fruits: A Comparison of Psychedelic and Nonpsychedelic Mystical Experiences Journal of Humanistic Psychology October 24, 2016
- Psychedelics and Psychotherapy: Cognitive-Behavioral Approaches as Default Frontiers in Psychology May 23, 2022
- Forbidden Therapies: Santo Daime, Ayahuasca, and the Prohibition of Entheogens in Western Society Journal of Religion and Health January 29, 2014
- American Trip The MIT Press eBooks July 14, 2020
and 7 more in the library
Cites 12
- LSD: My Problem Child The Antioch Review 1981
- LSD and Genetic Damage Science April 30, 1971
- Long Lasting Effects of LSD on Normals Archives of General Psychiatry November 1, 1967
- Prolonged Adverse Reactions to Lysergic Acid Diethylamide Archives of General Psychiatry May 1, 1963
- Lysergic Acid Diethylamide New England Journal of Medicine February 22, 1968
and 7 more in the library