Frontiers in Psychology
May 26, 2023
Edward Jacobs
61 citations
In psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP), the acute mystical experiences and lasting shifts in values, outlooks, and priorities that patients commonly report make the treatment's effects epistemically inaccessible at the time of deciding to undergo it. Drawing on L. A. Paul's concept of "Transformative Experience," the argument holds that prospective patients cannot meet the understanding requirement that is a core component of informed consent. While enhanced consent procedures may satisfy the function of avoiding unauthorized trespass against patients, the function of supporting values-aligned decision-making remains unattainable. The paper considers the ethical implications for preparing patients.
American Journal of Bioethics
May 2, 2024
Edward Jacobs, B. Earp, Paul S. Appelbaum et al.
29 citations
A workshop on psychedelic ethics, the first Hopkins-Oxford Psychedelic Ethics (HOPE) meeting, was held in August 2023 at the University of Oxford to address ethical issues surrounding psychedelics. The organizers (BDE, DBY, EJ) aimed to foster interdisciplinary discussion on topics such as informed consent, therapeutic use, and societal implications. The report outlines the workshop's structure, key themes, and proposed guidelines for ethical research and practice in the field.
Neuroethics
November 6, 2023
Edward Jacobs, Ashleigh Murphy-Beiner, Ian Rouiller et al.
23 citations
In psychedelic clinical trials, the case for providing patients with continued access to the investigational drug after the trial ends is especially strong due to the drugs' broader legal status, the unique therapist-participant relationship, and the extended therapeutic process. Because the therapy's effectiveness relies heavily on non-drug factors and the cultural setting, the authors argue for expanding post-trial care beyond just drug access. They outline potential provisions and contend that viewing post-trial care as an integral part of research—and a proper use of funding—will help build the infrastructure needed for a future psychedelic medicine system after legalization.
Psychiatr Res Clin Pract
February 11, 2025
Jules Evans, Marc Aixalà, Brian T. Anderson et al.
18 citations
Thirty psychedelic researchers identified critical gaps in knowledge about harms from psychedelic use, including how to define those harms, predict them, and treat them effectively. They recommend better online information, peer support groups, affordable therapy, and psychiatric consultation for people experiencing post-psychedelic difficulties. The researchers also call for improved funding for a psychedelic safety net, suggesting that psychedelic philanthropists, investors, and companies commit 1% of their investment to support safety measures such as research and support services. The article outlines practical steps to make the field of psychedelic medicine safer.
Journal of Psychedelic Studies
June 1, 2020
Edward Jacobs
12 citations
Psilocybin may be useful for treating obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), not just mood disorders and addiction. This review outlines how psilocybin acts on brain function in ways that could reduce OCD symptoms. Current evidence is limited, but multiple signals point in directions consistent with treatment potential. The psychological and physiological safety of clinically administered psilocybin supports expanded research, including animal models and randomized controlled trials, to properly investigate this potential.
International Review of Psychiatry
June 5, 2024
Katherine Cheung, Caleigh Propes, Edward Jacobs et al.
11 citations
Psychedelic integration groups, offered in person or online, may attract individuals who feel disconnected or lonely after a psychedelic experience. These groups can provide community and shared coping strategies, but also carry risks. This essay explores both benefits and risks, offering preliminary guidelines for physicians, researchers, and individuals to assess and evaluate such groups.
BMJ Open
March 1, 2024
Charlie Song-Smith, Edward Jacobs, James Rucker et al.
9 citations
Most UK medical students (83%) are aware of psychedelic research and only 3% are not interested in learning more, yet only 17% feel well-educated on the topic. Students' harm assessments of psychedelics closely match experts', but teaching on psychedelics is rare in their curriculum. Time in medical school does not correlate with more knowledge about psychedelics. On average, students strongly support changing the legal status of psychedelics to enable further clinical research. Greater knowledge, lower perceived harm, more years in medical school, and lower perceived effectiveness of non-pharmacological mental health treatments are associated with stronger support for legal change.
The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health
September 2, 2025
Khaleel Rajwani, Edward Jacobs, Lori Bruce et al.
6 citations
A scoping review of medical literature from 2000 to 2025 found no completed or published clinical trials testing psychedelic-assisted therapy in adolescents under 18, despite three trial registrations and one trial plan. The proposed studies would have investigated MDMA-assisted or psilocybin-assisted psychotherapy for adolescents with post-traumatic stress disorder, autism with social anxiety, or self-harm. Ethical approval and recruitment details were inconsistently reported. This absence of data represents a major evidence gap that could hinder informed care. The authors argue for cautious, ethically grounded research starting with older adolescents who have the highest foreseeable benefit-risk ratio due to special circumstances.
BMJ
February 23, 2026
Edward Jacobs, Zarmeen Zahid, Jared Hinkle et al.
5 citations
Psychedelic treatments, particularly psilocybin and MDMA, show promise for psychiatric conditions, with psilocybin having strongest evidence for treatment-resistant depression and MDMA for post-traumatic stress disorder. These treatments combine limited drug sessions with psychotherapy, working through neural and psychological pathways that are not fully understood. While well-tolerated under controlled conditions, methodological issues like unblinding and homogeneous trial populations complicate evidence interpretation. Scalability is challenging due to required extensive support, though group administration may help. Future priorities include standardizing adverse event assessment and showing durable benefits in diverse populations.
Philosophical Psychology
September 8, 2025
Mina Caraccio, Katherine Cheung, Sebastian Porsdam Mann et al.
3 citations
As interest in psychedelics like psilocybin, ketamine, and MDMA revives and their legal status changes in many places, ethical guidelines are urgently needed for both medical and non-medical use. This paper argues that focusing only on medical applications neglects potentially valuable uses in other contexts and raises ethical issues including hype, exceptionalism, informed consent, therapeutic touch, data collection, and balancing access with safety. The authors call for renewed attention to the treatment-versus-enhancement distinction from bioethics and stress that guidelines should be flexible and context-sensitive. They recommend incorporating diverse stakeholder perspectives and cross-sector collaboration in future research and policy for psychedelic bioethics.
The American Journal of Bioethics
January 2, 2025
Bryony Insua‐summerhays, Edward Jacobs
3 citations
Touch in psychotherapy remains controversial, but its role is gaining new attention with the return of psychedelic-assisted therapy, where altered states of consciousness may make touch particularly relevant. The text discusses the historical debate and current considerations around therapeutic touch, suggesting that its integration into psychedelic-assisted therapy warrants careful examination given the unique vulnerabilities and therapeutic opportunities presented by altered states.
Wellcome Open Research
July 8, 2025
Khaleel Rajwani, Melanie Almonte, F. Feroz et al.
2 citations
A protocol describes a planned scoping review to determine whether any controlled clinical research involving psychedelic drug administration to adolescents under 18 has been conducted since 2000. The review will follow established methodological guidelines, searching multiple databases and trial registers for interventional studies from 2000 to the present. Two independent raters will assess articles, with a third resolving disagreements. The protocol notes that while historical studies from 1959 to 1974 exist, they do not meet modern standards, and no recent controlled clinical research with adolescents is known.
JME Practical Bioethics
July 1, 2026
Edward Jacobs, Edward Palmer, Celia Morgan
Some investigational drugs, such as ketamine, psychedelics, and cannabis, exist simultaneously in regulated clinical trials and unregulated street or online markets, where they are accessible without clinician oversight. The authors propose the term "parallel-access compounds" for this category and argue that research ethics should formally recognize these substances. Non-psychoactive examples also exist, like retatrutide, an investigational weight-loss drug that has been illicitly manufactured and sold despite being intended only for trial participants.
Accountability in research
May 1, 2026
Katherine Cheung, Rebecca Ehrenkranz, Brian D Earp et al.
Several proposals across fields suggest including independent actors in research to manage bias, such as independent auditors for adverse events in psychedelic science or independent researchers in trial teams. However, the concept of independence is often undefined. While introducing independent actors seems beneficial for reducing bias and improving rigor, it may also have significant drawbacks. The authors argue that the implicit sense of independence is freedom from influences that could reduce the trustworthiness or accuracy of findings. They explore whether such actors can be identified without trade-offs with other scientific goals, like expertise. Two models from law and science are offered to guide incorporation of independent actors.
Acta Psychedelica
April 16, 2026
B. Insua-Summerhays, Edward Jacobs
Adolescent depression requires a distinct approach to psychedelic-assisted therapy due to age-related differences in psychology, biology, and social dependence. Unlike adults, adolescents have less autonomy and are more influenced by their family and social environment, which creates a unique risk-benefit profile when using pro-plasticity psychedelics. The authors advocate for a systems-psychological treatment model that includes expanded screening, psychosocial formulation, family psychoeducation, and tailored integration and post-trial support. This interdisciplinary framework addresses the socio-ecological context in which adolescent psychopathology emerges, aiming to make psychedelic-assisted therapy safe, effective, and ethically sound for this population.
Zenodo (CERN European Organization for Nuclear Research)
March 3, 2026
Edward Jacobs, Ian Roullier, Rosalind Watts et al.
As psychedelic treatments become more widely available with less clinical oversight, the psychological support once provided by formal integration sessions may shift to patients' friends and family. This article argues that these social environments likely influence treatment outcomes but have not been studied. It proposes three solutions: educating support networks about psychedelic experiences, creating peer support groups for specific clinical populations, and regularly measuring social-environmental factors in research.