Tripping on nothing: placebo psychedelics and contextual factors
Psychopharmacology March 7, 2020 Jay A. Olson, Léah Suissa-Rocheleau, Michael Lifshitz et al. 148 citations
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Amir Raz
6226Chapman University, USA.
5 papers in the library · 211 citations · publishing 2013-2022
Papers
Hypnosis as neurophenomenology.
Frontiers in human neuroscience January 1, 2013 Michael Lifshitz, Emma P Cusumano, Amir Raz 28 citations
Hypnosis can rapidly and dramatically alter subjective experience with just a few words of suggestion, unlike contemplative practices requiring lengthy training. Individuals highly responsive to hypnosis can quickly manifest atypical conscious experiences and override deeply entrenched processes, offering new ways to suspend habitual attention and achieve refined meta-awareness. Hypnosis research also illuminates how suggestion, expectation, and interpersonal factors shape experience beyond hypnotic procedures. Incorporating hypnosis into neurophenomenology could help bridge subjective experience with third-person scientific approaches to the mind.
Macrodosing to microdosing with psychedelics: Clinical, social, and cultural perspectives
Transcultural Psychiatry August 29, 2022 Ayse Ceren Kaypak, Amir Raz 17 citations
Microdosing—repeated, intermittent ingestion of sub-perceptual amounts of psychedelics such as LSD, psilocybin, and DMT—has emerged as a social trend and potential therapeutic intervention, yet its effects remain largely unexplored in formal research. Unlike macrodosing, which produces full-blown psychedelic experiences, microdosing aims to maintain or improve cognitive and mental function without disrupting daily routines. Informal accounts suggest benefits for mental disorders, creativity, cognition, and personal growth, but controlled studies are scarce. This article synthesizes clinical, social, and cultural dimensions of microdosing, examining why the practice is gaining popularity, weighing potential benefits and risks, and discussing sociocultural implications. It also compares macro- and microdose effects on behavior and psychopathology in relation to dosage and context.
Microdosing with classical psychedelics: Research trajectories and practical considerations
Transcultural Psychiatry October 1, 2022 Alice Wong, Amir Raz 10 citations
Microdosing—taking tiny, non-hallucinogenic amounts of psychedelics like LSD and psilocybin repeatedly—has become common but remains understudied. Users report improved creativity, productivity, and mood. This critical integrative synthesis examines the psychobiological science of dose amounts to help distinguish genuine drug effects from expectations. It outlines regulatory obstacles for Schedule I drugs in the United States and proposes future research directions in cognitive neuroscience, consciousness studies, and mental health.
Harnessing psychoanalytical methods for a phenomenological neuroscience.
Frontiers in psychology January 1, 2014 Emma P Cusumano, Amir Raz 8 citations
Psychoanalysis offers phenomenological tools that can advance the study of consciousness, addressing a gap in cognitive sciences where techniques for elucidating subjective life are lacking. Experiential reporting methods must match complex theories of brain function and sophisticated neuroimaging. Psychoanalysts use systematic observation and unstructured narrative to help patients articulate experience and bring unconscious contents to awareness. Individuals who have undergone analysis become experts in discerning subjective experience, making them ideal for neurophenomenology. Analytic techniques can guide untrained participants toward greater awareness of selfhood, temporality, and inter-subjectivity. Mining psychoanalysis for methodological innovations offers a fresh direction for neuropsychoanalysis and cognitive science.