Effects of Psychedelic Drug Use on Neurocognitive Function and Psychological and Social Quality of Life Domains: An International Online Study
medRxiv August 28, 2025 Franziska Stadler, Johan Saelens, Ioline D. Henter et al. preprint
An international online study of 759 people examined how psychedelic drug use affects cognitive performance and mental health in the short and long term. Participants completed tasks measuring working memory, selective attention, and visual/spatial perception, plus questionnaires on mental health and quality of life. Recent users showed significantly lower accuracy on all cognitive tasks and reported more depressive and dissociative symptoms. Lifetime users had the highest task accuracy without slower reaction times, and their use was not linked to long-term cognitive decline. However, lifetime users scored lower on psychological and social quality of life domains, suggesting possible long-term psychosocial effects.