The purpose of the psychosocial protocol in the psychedelic-assisted therapy: A scoping review

A scoping review categorized psychosocial protocols used in psychedelic research for mental health treatment. Seven categories were defined, reflecting distinct emphases on the substance, participant, research team, and sociocultural context. Although limited reporting and heterogeneity remain methodological challenges, the proposed parameters suggest a shared language to describe, compare, and examine psychosocial protocols across studies, reducing conceptual uncertainty. The review may facilitate research decision-making and support structured, replicable study designs while allowing flexibility for individualized and culturally responsive care. Explicitly defining the intended purpose of psychosocial protocols could improve transparent reporting and evaluation.

Study at a glance

Abstract

With growing research on the use of psychedelics to treat mental health conditions, greater attention to the psychosocial procedures accompanying substance administration is warranted. This scoping review aims to categorize psychosocial protocols used in research involving psychedelics as psychiatric treatment according to their purpose, denomination, format, therapeutic orientation, formalization, and duration. Experimental and observational studies were identified through online search platforms, covering Ayahuasca, Dimethyltryptamine, 5-methoxy- N,N -dimethyltryptamine, Lysergic Acid Diethylamide, Ibogaine, Mescaline, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine, Psilocybin, and 4-hydroxy- N,N -diisopropyltryptamine, yielding 62 eligible studies that were also assessed for methodological quality. Seven categories were defined, reflecting distinct emphases on the substance, participant, research team, and sociocultural context. Although limited reporting and heterogeneity remain methodological challenges, these features reveal divergent research intentions and contextual constraints. The proposed parameters suggest a shared language to describe, compare, and examine psychosocial protocols across studies and reduce conceptual uncertainty in the field. This review may facilitate research decision-making and support the development of structured and replicable study designs, while predicting flexibility to accommodate individualized, culturally responsive, and population-specific care. Ultimately, researchers explicitly defining the intended purpose of psychosocial protocols may improve its transparent reporting, and evaluation. Future research should balance methodological rigor with attention to real-world studies, interdisciplinary perspectives, and demographic diversity for responsible advancing.