Editorial: Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies: from clinical trials to credibility
Malkanthi Evans, Andrew Charrette
Frontiers in Neuroscience March 23, 2026 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2026.1816932 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Commentary Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | Addiction DMT Psilocybin Psychedelic-assisted therapy |
| Keywords | Emotional processing Neuroimaging Psychedelic medicine |
| Key points | Argues that despite growing interest in psychedelic therapies for chronic and treatment-resistant psychological disorders, unresolved questions about regulation and an ethical framework for widespread delivery remain, and that methodological challenges such as masking, expectancy effects, and therapeutic allegiance threaten reproducibility across clinical trial sites. |
Abstract
While the limitations of existing treatment options have spurred investigations into the applicability of psychedelic therapies for chronic and treatment-resistant psychological disorders, there remain significant unresolved issues pertaining to how these treatments should be regulated and the implementation of an ethical framework for their widespread delivery in practice. Research investigating psychedelic research is challenged by methodological limitations such as proper masking of clinical trials, assessment of expectancy effects and therapeutic allegiance, which can lead to reproducibility issues across clinical trial sites.