The History of MDMA
June 29, 2023 DOI: 10.1093/oso/9780198867364.001.0001 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Historical analysis |
|---|---|
| Topics | MDMA |
| Citations | 4 |
| Key points | Argues that MDMA's history is characterized by parallel developments at different levels and their many interactions, forming a mosaic rather than a linear narrative. |
Abstract
Abstract This book is intended to provide an overview of the complex and dispersed history of MDMA, in the hope of making it more intelligible. In respect of the period up until the late 1980s, the book focuses on what was happening in Europe and the United States as other countries were not significant in this timeframe. This book does not describe the history of an illegal drug only as it is perceived in the public mind, but also in terms of the research into it, the political responses to it, its spread, and its medical use. It follows the early pharmaceutical history of MDMA shortly after the turn of the twentieth century, its researched military potential, and its early use in psychotherapy, followed by its distribution as a recreational drug and its spread throughout Europe and the United States and other parts of the world. Later chapters focus on the debate about its potential toxicity, its worldwide distribution as a dance drug since the 1990s, and the most recent research on MDMA and its therapeutic potentials. The history of MDMA is characterized by a range of parallel developments occurring at different levels and their many interactions. It is more of a mosaic than a linear story and cannot be described in terms of a simple narrative. This book tries to bring these multiple narratives and levels of its history and their complex interactions together in order to produce a coherent mosaic
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on MDMA, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Differences Between the Mechanism of Action of MDMA, MBDB, and the Classic Hallucinogens. Identification of a New Therapeutic Class: Entactogens | 1986 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| The Background and Chemistry of MDMA | 1986 | Historical analysis | |
| The origin of MDMA (ecstasy) revisited: the true story reconstructed from the original documents* Original documents in Merck's historical archive in Darmstadt, Germany, years 1900–1960 | 2006 | Historical analysis | |
| Distinct neural mechanisms for the prosocial and rewarding properties of MDMA | 2019 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| How could MDMA (ecstasy) help anxiety disorders? A neurobiological rationale | 2009 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
Citations in the library
Cited by 2
- Methylenedioxymethamphetamine is a connectogen with empathogenic, entactogenic, and still further connective properties: It is time to reconcile “the great entactogen—empathogen debate” Journal of Psychopharmacology July 28, 2024
- Für ein besseres Verständnis anhaltender Wahrnehmungsstörungen nach der Einnahme klassischer Psychedelika Fortschritte der Neurologie · Psychiatrie April 1, 2024
Cites 79
- Positron emission tomographic evidence of toxic effect of MDMA (“Ecstasy”) on brain serotonin neurons in human beings The Lancet October 1, 1998
- Differences Between the Mechanism of Action of MDMA, MBDB, and the Classic Hallucinogens. Identification of a New Therapeutic Class: Entactogens Journal of Psychoactive Drugs October 1, 1986
- Subjective Reports of the Effects of MDMA in a Clinical Setting Journal of Psychoactive Drugs October 1, 1986
- A randomized, controlled pilot study of MDMA (±3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine)-assisted psychotherapy for treatment of resistant, chronic Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) Journal of Psychopharmacology October 31, 2012
- Memory impairment in abstinent MDMA ("Ecstasy") users Neurology December 1, 1998
and 74 more in the library