Psychedelic Communitas: Intersubjective Experience During Psychedelic Group Sessions Predicts Enduring Changes in Psychological Wellbeing and Social Connectedness

Summary & key facts

Researchers studied people who took part in guided psychedelic group sessions to see how a shared feeling of togetherness — called "communitas" — related to lasting changes in mood and social life. They measured how much people felt a deep connection, support, and rapport during the group sessions, and then checked people again weeks later. The study found that people who experienced stronger communitas tended to report bigger and longer-lasting improvements in psychological wellbeing and feeling connected to others. The study shows social and emotional factors during group trips matter, but it cannot prove the shared experience caused the improvements.

Key facts:

• The researchers measured how much people felt a sense of shared connection, support, and rapport during guided group psychedelic sessions.
• People who reported stronger communitas during the session were more likely to report lasting improvements in psychological wellbeing weeks later.
• Stronger communitas was also linked to larger increases in feeling socially connected to other people after the session.
• The study argues that social and emotional support during group psychedelic experiences helps predict who will have longer-term positive changes.
• This was an observational study. That means it found links between communitas and later wellbeing, but it cannot prove that communitas caused the improvements. The results may also be affected by who chose to attend these group sessions and other differences between people and settings.

Abstract

Highlighting the importance of intersubjective experience, rapport, and emotional support for long-term outcomes of psychedelic use, this first quantitative examination of psychosocial factors in guided psychedelic settings is a significant step toward evidence-based benefit-maximization guidelines for collective psychedelic use.

Topics

Chemical synthesis and alkaloids Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior Psychedelics and Drug Studies

Categories

Clinical Psychology Psychology Social Sciences

Tags

Aesthetics Clinical psychology Communitas Liminality Philosophy Psychology Psychosocial Psychotherapist Social connectedness Social psychology

Substances

Ayahuasca Other Psilocybin

Conditions & symptoms

Addiction Depression Feeling disconnected from others Sadness or low mood