Perspectives in biology and medicine
March 1, 1976
130 citations
Consciousness, the essence of human experience, remains largely excluded from mainstream life sciences due to the dominant physicalist-reductionist paradigm, which limits researchers to studying only physical or behavioral variables. Despite philosophical and practical challenges, growing public interest has spurred research into altered states of consciousness (ASCs). This survey focuses on physiological studies of meditation, aiming to draw conclusions from existing research on meditating subjects, relate findings to mystical experience, and explore the connection between physical phenomena and subjective conscious activity.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
September 1, 1998
Bruce Greyson
43 citations
Near-death experiences (NDEs) are profound psychological events with transcendental elements that occur to individuals close to death or in intense danger. Once considered meaningless hallucinations, NDEs are now studied seriously by medical researchers. They affect about a third of people who come close to death, or roughly 5 percent of the American population. Accounts of similar events appear across many cultures and historical periods. NDEs matter to physicians because they can occur in patients, lead to lasting aftereffects influencing health and treatment response, and may illuminate mind-body interaction, especially near death. Predisposing factors are not well understood; experiencers are psychologically healthy and similar to controls in age, gender, race, religion, and mental health, though they may be better hypnotic subjects, remember dreams more often, and report childhood trauma.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
June 1, 1991
Robert F. Ulrich, Bernard M. Patten
27 citations
The history of LSD began in 1943 with Albert Hofmann's accidental discovery of its powerful psychological effects. Early researchers embraced self-experimentation, using LSD to study schizophrenia, facilitate psychoanalysis, and treat alcoholism. The CIA and psychiatrists explored it as a chemical weapon. As LSD spread beyond scientific circles, it became a means for instant spiritual transcendence, echoing earlier religious uses of psychedelics like soma in ancient India and peyote among the Aztecs. LSD was banned in 1965 amid a counterculture built around its ritual use and fears of chromosomal damage and psychosis. The article traces this trajectory from pre-LSD psychedelics to the drug's societal impact.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
January 1, 2024
Brent M Kious, Andrew Peterson, Amy L McGuire
21 citations
Psychedelic substances hold promise for treating many conditions, but some argue that informed consent for their use may be impossible because psychedelic experiences can be transformative in the sense defined by L. A. Paul—involving knowledge that cannot be obtained otherwise or changes in the self. This article argues that there is limited evidence that psychedelic experiences are transformative in Paul's sense, and they may not differ in transformative features from other common medical experiences where informed consent is clearly possible. Even if psychedelic experiences can be transformative, informed consent remains possible. The article closes with recommendations for how informed consent processes should reflect the distinct features of psychedelic experiences.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
December 1, 1969
Roland Fischer
17 citations
The essay argues that readaptation to perceptual distortions—such as those from prism spectacles—is a general phenomenon also underlying phantom limb pain. Psychodysleptic drugs like psilocybin, LSD, and mescaline interfere with this readaptation, as shown by a measured loss of about 2 prism diopters in correcting distorted visual space in college-age volunteers 100–110 minutes after oral psilocybin. Phantom sensations are described as kinesthetic hallucinations, and body image is considered a cognitive schema. The work explores connections among body image stability, drug-induced distortions, and the golden section.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
January 1, 2016
Jonathan D Moreno
15 citations
Henry Knowles Beecher, a key figure in human research ethics, and Timothy Leary, a counterculture icon, are linked by the drug LSD. Though both were at Harvard during a period of social upheaval and never met, Beecher's indirect conflict with Leary over the control of LSD shaped Beecher's views on responsible scientific investigation. This struggle also foreshadowed the growing formal oversight of human experimentation that was emerging at the time.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
January 1, 2023
Gail A. Edelsohn, Dominic Sisti
8 citations
Recent clinical trials of psychedelic drugs such as MDMA and psilocybin, administered with psychotherapy, have shown promise for treating PTSD and treatment-resistant depression in adults, leading to FDA breakthrough therapy designations. This raises the question of whether such treatments should be tested in minors, who suffer from many of the same conditions. Examining historical psychedelic research on children from 1959 to 1974 reveals significant methodological and ethical flaws. The essay argues that the ineffable nature of the psychedelic experience makes informed proxy consent especially challenging for parents and guardians.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
January 1, 2024
Logan Neitzke-Spruill, Neşe Devenot, Dominic Sisti et al.
7 citations
Psychedelics are again being studied for their traditional uses, medical applications, and social implications. As evidence for their clinical potential grows, researchers seek mechanisms explaining psychedelic effects and therapeutic efficacy. This paper reviews three frameworks—neurobiological, psychological, and spiritual—for understanding these effects and explores their implications for ethics and professional competencies in psychedelic medicine. The authors suggest interdisciplinary education to improve communication, develop multi-level models, and foster collaboration. They caution against overemphasizing neuro-mechanisms, risks from inducing vulnerable states, and challenges integrating spiritual frameworks. Developing new models that reflect emerging knowledge is a central goal for psychedelic science.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
January 1, 2024
Katherine Cheung, Brian D Earp, David B Yaden
5 citations
A psychedelic experience might be valuable in itself, not just for its lasting therapeutic benefits. Using the concept of psychological richness and ideas from aesthetics and enhancement philosophy, this essay argues that the acute subjective experience can be a source of value independent of any persisting positive effects.
Perspectives in biology and medicine
January 1, 2024
Dominic Sisti
1 citation
A special section introduction describes the resurgence of interest in psychedelics as psychotherapeutic agents after half a century of prohibition following the 1971 War on Drugs. The authors note that from roughly 1940 to 1970, psychedelics like psilocybin and LSD were studied for treating alcoholism, depression, and childhood autism. In June 2023, an interdisciplinary group met at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory to develop a bioethical framework for responsible clinical use. The section presents three papers on ethical issues, including explanatory models of therapeutic mechanisms, neuroreductionism versus subjective experience, and the possibility of informed consent for transformative psychedelic experiences. The authors argue that consent remains possible despite the unique nature of these treatments.