Analysis of recreational psychedelic substance use experiences classified by substance
Psychopharmacology – January 15, 2022
Source: OpenAlex
Summary
MDMA experiences uniquely feature an emotionally intense profile alongside many cognitive process words, according to an analysis of 2947 online reports. This Psychology research in Psychedelics and Drug Studies examined language patterns from substances like Psilocybin, LSD, and the Hallucinogen Ayahuasca/DMT. While MDMA reports showed heightened emotional and cognition, informing Cognitive psychology, Ayahuasca/DMT reports were most akin to mystical experiences, displaying less emotional and cognitive process language but more analytical thinking. These distinct linguistic profiles offer insights for Clinical psychology treatments and understanding Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior.
Abstract
Abstract Rationale and objectives Differences among psychedelic substances regarding their subjective experiences are clinically and scientifically interesting. Quantitative linguistic analysis is a powerful tool to examine such differences. This study compared five psychedelic substance report groups and a non-psychedelic report group on quantitative linguistic markers of psychological states and processes derived from recreational use-based online experience reports. Methods Using 2947 publicly available online reports, we compared Ayahuasca and N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT, analyzed together), ketamine, lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD), 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), psilocybin (mushroom), and antidepressant drug use experiences. We examined word frequencies related to various psychological states and processes and semantic proximity to psychedelic and mystical experience scales. Results Linguistic markers of psychological function indicated distinct effect profiles. For example, MDMA experience reports featured an emotionally intensifying profile accompanied by many cognitive process words and dynamic-personal language. In contrast, Ayahuasca and DMT experience reports involved relatively little emotional language, few cognitive process words, increased analytical thinking-associated language, and the most semantic similarity with psychedelic and mystical experience descriptions. LSD, psilocybin mushroom, and ketamine reports showed only small differences on the emotion-, analytical thinking-, psychedelic, and mystical experience-related language outcomes. Antidepressant reports featured more negative emotional and cognitive process-related words, fewer positive emotional and analytical thinking-related words, and were generally not similar to mystical and psychedelic language. Conclusion This article addresses an existing research gap regarding the comparison of different psychedelic drugs on linguistic profiles of psychological states, processes, and experiences. The large sample of experience reports involving multiple psychedelic drugs provides valuable information that would otherwise be difficult to obtain. The results could inform experimental research into psychedelic drug effects in healthy populations and clinical trials for psychedelic treatments of psychiatric problems.