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 ayahuasca, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Antidepressant effects of a single dose of ayahuasca in patients with recurrent depression: a preliminary report Patients with a depressive disorder | 2015 | Observational study | |
| The Psychedelic State Induced by Ayahuasca Modulates the Activity and Connectivity of the Default Mode Network Experienced subjects | 2015 | Observational cohort | n = 10 |
| Human Psychopharmacology of Hoasca, A Plant Hallucinogen Used in Ritual Context in Brazil Long-term members of a syncretic church that uses hoasca as a psychoactive sacrament... | 1996 | Observational cohort with matched controls | n = 30 |
| Ayahuasca-Assisted Therapy for Addiction: Results from a Preliminary Observational Study in Canada Rural aboriginal population | 2013 | Observational study | |
| Personality, Psychopathology, Life Attitudes and Neuropsychological Performance among Ritual Users of Ayahuasca: A Longitudinal Study Regular ayahuasca users and active controls in non-ayahuasca religions | 2012 | Observational cohort | n = 242 |
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