Strong Bipartisan Support for Controlled Psilocybin Use as Treatment or Enhancement in a Representative Sample of US Americans: Need for Caution in Public Policy Persists

Summary & key facts

Researchers asked a nationally representative group of about 800 U.S. adults what they thought about using psilocybin in a licensed, supervised setting. They asked about two situations: using it to treat a psychiatric condition and using it to enhance a healthy person’s well‑being. People from across the main political parties generally said these choices were morally acceptable. The authors say this broad public support could help inform rules for supervised psilocybin use, but the study did not ask about unlicensed or social use outside a regulated setting.

Key facts:

• The study surveyed about 800 U.S. adults chosen to reflect the national population.
• Participants were asked to judge the morality of using psilocybin in a licensed setting for either treating a psychiatric condition or improving a healthy person’s well‑being.
• People from both major political parties tended to rate these uses as morally positive, showing strong bipartisan support.
• The authors note these public attitudes could be useful information when making policies about supervised, licensed psilocybin programs.
• The study did not explore attitudes toward using psilocybin outside licensed or supervised settings, so it does not tell us what people think about casual or unregulated use.

Abstract

The psychedelic psilocybin has shown promise both as treatment for psychiatric conditions and as a means of improving well-being in healthy individuals. In some jurisdictions (e.g., Oregon, USA), psilocybin use for both purposes is or will soon be allowed and yet, public attitudes toward this shift are understudied. We asked a nationally representative sample of 795 US Americans to evaluate the moral status of psilocybin use in an appropriately licensed setting for either treatment of a psychiatric condition or well-being enhancement. Showing strong bipartisan support, participants rated the individual's decision as morally positive in both contexts. These results can inform effective policy-making decisions around supervised psilocybin use, given robust public attitudes as elicited in the context of an innovative regulatory model. We did not explore attitudes to psilocybin use in unsupervised or non-licensed community or social settings.

Topics

Cannabis and Cannabinoid Research Chemical synthesis and alkaloids Psychedelics and Drug Studies

Categories

Clinical Psychology Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Biology Chemistry Chromatography Context (archaeology) Hallucinogen Paleontology Psilocybin Psychiatry Psychology Sample (material)

Substances

Psilocybin