From Isolation to Social (and Psychedelic) Integration: A Sociology of Collective Effervescence and Therapeutic Community in Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy.
Sociology of Health & Illness 2025 DOI: 10.1111/1467-9566.13872 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Participants of a group-based weeklong psychedelic-assisted therapy retreat |
| Duration | Weeklong retreat |
| Topics | Psychedelic-assisted therapy |
| Keywords | Psychedelic therapy: psychedelic Psychedelic healing Social connection: social Human connection Social bonds Interpersonal connection Belonging Social integration Mental health Psychological health Emotional well-being Therapeutic community: community Social support Group therapy Shared experience Isolation |
| Citations | 7 |
| Key findings | Argues that Durkheim's concept of "collective effervescence" helps explain how social connectedness arises in group-based psychedelic-assisted therapy and contributes to therapeutic outcomes. The authors contend that group-based psychedelic events carry transformative therapeutic potential that current individualised, clinical research overlooks, and that sociological theory can bridge psychedelic science, psychedelic studies, and the social sciences. |
Abstract
There is a disparity between contemporary scientific investigations into psychedelic phenomena and their 20th-century counterparts, notably the lack of examination of psychedelic experiences within group settings. Whereas early research studies from the 1950s to the 1970s explored communal settings in psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT), today's resurgence of scholarship in the field primarily considers individualised, often clinical, settings. Consequently, there is an absence of empirical research and theoretical innovation on collective psychedelic contexts, for example, how social connectedness occurs relationally and what its impacts are. This paper addresses this gap by revisiting and applying Emile Durkheim's theory of "collective effervescence." By analysing interview data from participants of a group-based weeklong PAT retreat and supplementing it with ethnographic data, this study highlights the usefulness of incorporating sociological theory to examine and explain the social dynamics and therapeutic outcomes of collective psychedelic experiences. In doing so, this research study contributes to bridging the divide between psychedelic science, psychedelic studies and the social sciences by offering sociological insight into the transformative yet hitherto neglected potential of group-based psychedelic events for therapeutic benefits.
Comparable studies
Other qualitative studies on psychedelic-assisted therapy, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Patients’ Accounts of Increased “Connectedness” and “Acceptance” After Psilocybin for Treatment-Resistant Depression Patients with treatment-resistant depression enrolled in an open-label trial of psilocybin | 2017 | Qualitative study | n = 20 |
| LSD-assisted psychotherapy for anxiety associated with a life-threatening disease: A qualitative study of acute and sustained subjective effects Patients with anxiety associated with life-threatening diseases | 2014 | Prospective follow-up with qualitative content analysis | n = 10 |
| Patient Experiences of Psilocybin-Assisted Psychotherapy: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Adults aged 22 to 69 with clinically elevated anxiety associated with a cancer diagnosis | 2017 | Qualitative study | n = 13 |
| Psychedelic therapy for smoking cessation: Qualitative analysis of participant accounts Participants who completed a psilocybin-facilitated smoking cessation pilot study | 2018 | Qualitative follow-up study using semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis | n = 12 |
| The hidden therapist: evidence for a central role of music in psychedelic therapy Patients undergoing psychedelic therapy with psilocybin for treatment-resistant depression | 2018 | Qualitative study | n = 19 |
Citations in the library
Cited by 7
- Becoming a Psychedelic User: Reflections on Howard Becker and the (Future) Sociology of Psychedelics Sociology Compass August 1, 2025
- Speech markers of psychological change following a psychedelic 5-MeO-DMT retreat. Journal of Psychopharmacology May 23, 2026
- Understanding experiences of psychedelic treatments for eating disorders: a meta-synthesis of qualitative studies. BMC Medicine May 19, 2026
- Supporting desistance from crime: The promise of psychedelic-assisted therapy in correctional and reentry contexts. International Journal of Drug Policy December 1, 2025
- Advancing the Anthropology of Psychedelics: Integrating Clinical Evidence, Sociocultural Insights, and Ethical Frameworks Anthropology of Consciousness June 12, 2025
and 2 more in the library
Cites 27
- Patients’ Accounts of Increased “Connectedness” and “Acceptance” After Psilocybin for Treatment-Resistant Depression Journal of Humanistic Psychology June 19, 2017
- Psilocybin-assisted group therapy for demoralized older long-term AIDS survivor men: An open-label safety and feasibility pilot study EClinicalMedicine September 24, 2020
- Psychedelics and connectedness Psychopharmacology August 9, 2017
- Psychedelic Communitas: Intersubjective Experience During Psychedelic Group Sessions Predicts Enduring Changes in Psychological Wellbeing and Social Connectedness. Frontiers in Pharmacology March 25, 2021
- Ayahuasca Shamanism in the Amazon and Beyond Oxford University Press eBooks June 18, 2014
and 22 more in the library