Personality explains the relationship between psychedelic use and depression; a comparison study with non psychedelic users
Research Square December 13, 2023 David K. Sjöström, Emma Claesdotter‐knutsson, Petri Kajonius
In a national Swedish sample, people who have used psychedelics at least once report lower depression scores (effect size d = -0.29) but substantially more drug use (d = 1.27) compared to matched non-users. The largest personality difference is openness to experience (d = 1.72), and the lower depression in users is partly explained by lower neuroticism. The findings suggest that personality traits, especially neuroticism and openness, help account for both the mental health differences and the higher drug use seen in psychedelic users.