Ayahuasca Tourism: Participants in Shamanic Rituals and their Personality Styles, Motivation, Benefits and Risks
Veronika Kavenská, Hana Šimonová
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs October 20, 2015 DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2015.1094590 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 77 |
| Population | Foreigners who traveled to South America to use ayahuasca |
| Topics | Ayahuasca Shamanism |
| Keywords | Tourism Personality Curiosity Optimism |
| Citations | 109 |
| Key findings | Participants scored significantly above the norm on intuition, optimism, ambition, charm, and helpfulness, and significantly lower on distrust and quietness. |
Abstract
Ayahuasca continues to attract tourists to South America, where there has been a growth in the number of centers offering hallucinogenic ayahuasca experiences. The aims of this study were to (1) discover the reasons foreigners seek this type of experience; (2) define what an ayahuasca experience entails; (3) discover subjective perceptions of ayahuasca's benefits and risks; and (4) describe personality styles of participants using the personality questionnaire (PSSI). Participants (N=77) were persons who had travelled to South America to use ayahuasca. Among the most frequent motivations were curiosity, desire to treat mental health problems, need for self-knowledge, interest in psychedelic medicine, spiritual development, and finding direction in life. Frequently mentioned benefits included self-knowledge, change in the way one relates to oneself, spiritual development, improved interpersonal relations, overcoming mental and physical problems, and gaining a new perspective on life. Stated potential risks included lack of trust in the shaman or organizer, inaccurate information provided by the shaman or organizer, and exposure to dangerous situations. PSSI results showed that people using ayahuasca scored significantly above the norm on the scales of intuition, optimism, ambition, charm, and helpfulness and significantly lower on the scales of distrust and quietness.
In the evidence
This study is part of the evidence base for a synthesis in the library. Here is how each one recorded it.
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State of the evidence: Shamanism Supports
Ayahuasca tourists were motivated by curiosity, mental health treatment, self-knowledge, and spiritual development, and reported benefits including self-knowledge, spiritual growth, and improved relationships, while naming distrust of shamans and dangerous situations as risks.
Synthesized
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on shamanism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Examining changes in personality following shamanic ceremonial use of ayahuasca. Participants from three ayahuasca healing and spiritual centers in South and Central... | 2021 | Observational cohort | n = 256 |
| New mescaline concentrations from 14 taxa/cultivars of Echinopsis spp. (Cactaceae) (“San Pedro”) and their relevance to shamanic practice 14 taxa/cultivars of Echinopsis (Cactaceae) subgenus Trichocereus | 2010 | Observational study | n = 14 |
| Neural Correlates of the Shamanic State of Consciousness Shamanic practitioners and healthy controls | 2021 | Observational cohort | n = 48 |
| The experience of altered states of consciousness in shamanic ritual: the role of pre-existing beliefs and affective factors. Participants in a sweat lodge ceremony | 2010 | Observational study | n = 55 |
| Long-term outcomes of shamanic treatment for temporomandibular joint disorders. Women aged 25 to 55 diagnosed with TMD | 2012 | Phase I feasibility and efficacy study with longitudinal follow-up | n = 23 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 72
- Current perspectives on psychedelic therapy: use of serotonergic hallucinogens in clinical interventions International Review of Psychiatry July 4, 2018
- Ayahuasca: Psychological and Physiologic Effects, Pharmacology and Potential Uses in Addiction and Mental Illness Current Neuropharmacology March 2, 2018
- Serotonergic psychedelics and personality: A systematic review of contemporary research Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews February 13, 2018
- Effects of ayahuasca on mental health and quality of life in naïve users: A longitudinal and cross-sectional study combination Scientific Reports March 5, 2020
- An exploratory study of experiences with conventional eating disorder treatment and ceremonial ayahuasca for the healing of eating disorders. Eating and Weight Disorders - Studies on Anorexia Bulimia and Obesity April 1, 2020
and 67 more in the library
Cites 19
- Monoamine oxidase inhibitors in South American hallucinogenic plants: Tryptamine and β-carboline constituents of Ayahuasca Journal of Ethnopharmacology April 1, 1984
- Human Psychopharmacology of Hoasca, A Plant Hallucinogen Used in Ritual Context in Brazil The Journal of Nervous and Mental Disease February 1, 1996
- Ayahuasca-Assisted Therapy for Addiction: Results from a Preliminary Observational Study in Canada Current Drug Abuse Reviews June 1, 2013
- Personality, Psychopathology, Life Attitudes and Neuropsychological Performance among Ritual Users of Ayahuasca: A Longitudinal Study PLoS One August 8, 2012
- Clinical investigations of the therapeutic potential of ayahuasca: rationale and regulatory challenges. Pharmacology & Therapeutics May 1, 2004
and 14 more in the library