Psychedelic Use, Microdosing, Motives, and Information and Product Sources Among Young Adults in the United States
Carla J. Berg, Darcey M. Mccready, Cassidy R Loparco, Laura C. Schubel, Katelyn F. Romm, Shriya Thakkar, Jessica Williams, Patricia A. Cavazos-Rehg, Y. Tony Yang
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs June 19, 2026 DOI: 10.1080/02791072.2026.2685527 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Cross-sectional survey Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1,614 |
| Population | Young adults with high past-month cannabis use |
| Topics | Addiction Microdosing |
| Keywords | Young adult Product mathematics Substance use Developmental psychology |
| Key findings | Mental health symptoms and adverse childhood events were associated with psychedelic use, microdosing, and higher use motives, even among those using exclusively for nonmedical purposes. |
Abstract
= 26.38, ~50% past-month cannabis use by design) completed an online survey. Multivariable regression assessed sociodemographics, mental health, and adverse childhood events (ACEs) in relation to: (1) past-year psychedelic use; and (2) among those reporting lifetime use: (a) lifetime microdosing and (b) use motives. Lifetime and past-year psychedelic use were 27.7% and 11.9% (commonly psilocybin/amanita, MDMA, and LSD); 48.8% used only for nonmedical purposes. Of those reporting lifetime use, 26.5% ever microdosed. Correlates of use-related outcomes varied: (1) lifetime use: older, male (vs female), Black (vs White), metropolitan/urban (vs rural), more depressive symptoms and ACEs; (2) microdosing: not having children, more anxiety symptoms and ACEs; (3) higher expansion motives: male, White (vs Asian), more anxiety symptoms and ACEs; (4) higher mood/social enhancement motives: more depressive symptoms; and (5) higher symptom management motives: male, Hispanic, more depressive symptoms and ACEs. Despite half using exclusively for nonmedical purposes, mental health symptoms and ACEs were associated with use, microdosing, and higher use motives. Understanding the role of mental health across sociodemographic groups is necessary to address possible adverse outcomes.
Comparable studies
Other cross-sectional and survey studies on microdosing, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Motives and Side-Effects of Microdosing With Psychedelics Among Users Psychedelic users with microdosing experience | 2019 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 1,116 |
| Microdosing psychedelics: Motivations, subjective effects and harm reduction People aged 16 years or older who had used psychedelics and could comprehend written... | 2019 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 525 |
| Psychedelic Microdosing: Prevalence and Subjective Effects Anonymous online survey respondents | 2020 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 2,347 |
| Self-Rated Effectiveness of Microdosing With Psychedelics for Mental and Physical Health Problems Among Microdosers Adults 18 or older diagnosed with at least one mental or physiological disorder by a... | 2019 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 410 |
| Microdosing psychedelics: Demographics, practices, and psychiatric comorbidities Adults recruited primarily from the online forum Reddit | 2020 | Cross-sectional survey | n = 909 |
Citations in the library
Cites 46
- The abuse potential of medical psilocybin according to the 8 factors of the Controlled Substances Act Neuropharmacology June 5, 2018
- Hallucinogens in Mental Health: Preclinical and Clinical Studies on LSD, Psilocybin, MDMA, and Ketamine Journal of Neuroscience November 30, 2020
- Self-blinding citizen science to explore psychedelic microdosing. Elife March 2, 2021
- Adverse Events in Studies of Classic Psychedelics JAMA Psychiatry September 4, 2024
- Microdosing psychedelics: Motivations, subjective effects and harm reduction International Journal of Drug Policy November 25, 2019
and 41 more in the library