Examining Volunteer Bias in Psychedelic Research.

Abstract

Since its resurgence, psychedelic research has garnered considerable attention, especially in mental health. Preliminary findings have indicated positive results regarding psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Despite promising findings, various researchers have voiced concerns regarding psychedelic research and its potential for volunteer bias. Participants willing to participate in clinical trials, for example, might differ dramatically from the general population. The current study attempts to identify the potential volunteer bias that might contribute to current results. Participants recruited on MTurk (N = 702) provided demographic information as well as self-reported psychedelic use. We used binary logistic regressions to assess whether demographic and reported psychedelic use variables predicted willingness to participate in six hypothetical psychedelic studies. Results indicated that psychedelic use increased willingness to participate in a single unpaid survey, multiple unpaid surveys presented longitudinally, as well as an unpaid administration study. No demographic variables predicted volunteering consistently. Differences between paid and unpaid participation suggested that compensation might help reach broader samples. Given the implications related to volunteer bias and impeded generalizability, these findings indicate a need for further research to fully address the concern of volunteer bias in psychedelic research. Reaching those with less psychedelic experience will likely be imperative to investigations of clinical implications.