MDMA Is Not Ecstasy: The Production of Pharmaceutical Safety through Documents in Clinical Trials.
Medical Anthropology Quarterly March 1, 2021 DOI: 10.1111/maq.12548 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Ethnographic research Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Topics | MDMA |
| Keywords | Clinical trials Knowledge production Pharmaceuticals Psychedelics Science studies |
| Citations | 11 |
| Key findings | The difference between MDMA and Ecstasy is not a distinction in substance but a distinction in safety that must be produced through clinical trial documentary practices. |
Abstract
Nonprofit efforts to develop ±3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-better known as the street drug Ecstasy-as a prescription pharmaceutical provide the opportunity to examine recent theorizations of pharmaceuticals as fluid objects transformed in new informational and material environments. Drawing from ethnographic research, this article interrogates MDMA researchers' own distinction between MDMA and the street drug Ecstasy. While researchers maintain that pure MDMA is distinct from Ecstasy, this article argues that the difference between the two hangs not on a distinction in substance, but on a distinction in safety that must be produced through the trial. This article tracks the production of safety through the inter-connected work of clinical documents, which manage both which bodies are allowed to absorb the drug and which bodily events count as effects. MDMA's safety emerges from the careful management of relations through these documentary practices.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on MDMA, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Phenomenology and Sequelae of 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine Use Psychiatrists who had taken MDMA | 1992 | Qualitative study | n = 20 |
| MDMA and Sexual Behavior: Ecstasy Users' Perceptions About Sexuality and Sexual Risk Current and former users of MDMA | 2005 | Qualitative study | n = 98 |
| Perceived Benefits of MDMA-Assisted Psychotherapy beyond Symptom Reduction: Qualitative Follow-Up Study of a Clinical Trial for Individuals with Treatment-Resistant PTSD Veterans, firefighters, and police officers with chronic, treatment-resistant PTSD | 2019 | Qualitative study using interpretative phenomenological analysis | n = 19 |
| Negative Experiences on Ecstasy: The Role of Drug, Set, and Setting Current or former users of Ecstasy | 2002 | Qualitative study | n = 98 |
| A Qualitative Exploration of Relational Ethical Challenges and Practices in Psychedelic Healing Practitioners who have administered MDMA and psilocybin to clients in underground... | 2021 | Qualitative study | n = 23 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 7
- Socio-psychedelic imaginaries: envisioning and building legal psychedelic worlds in the United States European Journal of Futures Research April 30, 2022
- Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-Assisted Therapy in Hawaii: A Brief Review Cureus June 28, 2022
- MDMA-assisted therapy for borderline personality disorder Journal of Psychedelic Studies December 14, 2023
- Monday mood decline after weekend ecstasy use: A retrospective analysis of daily diary reports. Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports June 1, 2026
- Efficacy of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted therapy for posttraumatic stress disorder: A systematic review and meta-analysis of clinical and functional outcomes European Neuropsychopharmacology March 12, 2026
and 2 more in the library
Cites 17
- Psychedelics Promote Structural and Functional Neural Plasticity Cell Reports June 1, 2018
- Positron emission tomographic evidence of toxic effect of MDMA (“Ecstasy”) on brain serotonin neurons in human beings The Lancet October 1, 1998
- Subjective Reports of the Effects of MDMA in a Clinical Setting Journal of Psychoactive Drugs October 1, 1986
- Small Changes in Ambient Temperature Cause Large Changes in 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-Induced Serotonin Neurotoxicity and Core Body Temperature in the Rat Journal of Neuroscience July 1, 1998
- Oxytocin-dependent reopening of a social reward learning critical period with MDMA Nature April 3, 2019
and 12 more in the library