Exploring the discourses around microdosing psychedelics within the r/microdosing online community
Ioana Pop, Erwin Gielens, Hannah Kottmann, Peter Achterberg
Social Science & Medicine February 22, 2024 DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2024.116702 via OpenAlex
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractOnline discussions about microdosing psychedelics on the r/microdosing subreddit center on practical "how to" topics, serving as essential information hubs for the general population. Analysis of public submissions using structural topic modeling identified 16 distinct topics that fall into clinical, human enhancement, and self-medication narratives. The Covid-19 pandemic influenced the prevalence of discussion topics, suggesting that individuals may turn to microdosing as a means of self-medication during heightened stress and uncertainty. These findings highlight the role of online communities in facilitating self-medicalization and self-medication practices.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Qualitative study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Online community r/microdosing subreddit |
| Keywords | Sociocultural evolution Narrative Population Medicalization Online discussion |
| Citations | 4 |
| Key finding | The majority of discussions in the r/microdosing subreddit revolved around "how to" topics, supporting the argument that such online communities serve as essential information hubs for disseminating practical knowledge about microdosing practices. |
Abstract
In the present contribution, we examine the practice of microdosing psychedelics (microdosing) through textual analysis of the content produced by a dedicated online community, the r/microdosing subreddit. We collected a comprehensive dataset of publicly available submissions from this community and used structural topic modelling to identify and analyse the prevalent topics within the discussions. Through our analysis, we identified 16 distinct topics that mapped into clinical, human enhancement, as well as self-medication narratives. Notably, we found that the majority of discussions revolved around "how to" topics, supporting our argument that such online communities serve as essential information hubs, facilitating the dissemination of practical knowledge related to microdosing practices among the general population. The identified impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on the prevalence of discussion topics suggests that individuals within the online community may perceive microdosing primarily as a means of self-medication during times of heightened stress and uncertainty. Our findings contribute to the field of health sociology and psychedelic research by shedding light on the sociocultural factors influencing healthcare practices, including the role of online communities in facilitating processes of self-medicalization and self-medication.