Rehabilitating LSD history in postwar America: Dilworth Wayne Woolley and the serotonin hypothesis of mental illness

A chemist at the Rockefeller Institute, Dilworth Wayne Woolley, proposed an early biochemical theory of mental illness based on his research with LSD and serotonin. His work helped establish a biochemical paradigm for mental functioning and contributed to the medicalization of mental illness. Revisiting Woolley's ideas and the history of postwar LSD research suggests possible new approaches to mental health and illustrates a shift toward a biopsychosocial model that recognizes the interplay between biology and culture.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Revisiting the history of postwar LSD (lysergic acid diethylamide) research illuminates how the work of a chemist at the Rockefeller Institute contributed to the development of a biochemical paradigm for mental functioning. Dilworth Wayne Woolley proposed one of the first theories of the biochemistry of mental illness based on empirical evidence. His research with LSD and serotonin had wide-ranging repercussions for pharmacology and fit neatly into the emerging medicalization of mental illness. Reevaluating Woolley’s ideas and the fruits of psychopharmacology leads to possible new approaches toward mental health and illness when considered alongside lessons learned from past research with psychedelic substances, and exemplifies a broader paradigm shift in cultural studies toward a biopsychosocial model that acknowledges the intersections between biology and culture.