Evidence map›Paper›PMID 35309094›Full record

ArticleNordisk alkohol- & narkotikatidskrift : NAT2021

Who is the typical psychedelics user? Methodological challenges for research in psychedelics use and its consequences.

Petter Grahl Johnstad

Open access · diamondAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nordisk alkohol- & narkotikatidskrift : NAT, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
15citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
1.2field-weighted citation impact, top 13% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 43 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. Attitudes of U.S. Muslims Toward Psychedelics.Psychedelic medicine (New Rochelle, N.Y.) · 2026
    Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Psychotomimetic compensation versus sensitization.Pharmacology research & perspectives · 2024
    Review
  11. Article
  12. Article
  13. Article
  14. Article
  15. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.

Petter Grahl JohnstadUniversity of Bergen, Norway.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2528-3356
University of Bergen · NO

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Aims: This article argues that despite a resurgence in research on psychedelics over the last two decades, we still have little insight into the psychedelics user population. Furthermore, there is currently little agreement between researchers as to the long-term mental health consequences of psychedelics use. Design: In a methodological review of a range of studies in psychedelics use, it is demonstrated that these studies tend to focus on specific segments of the user population while excluding others. These population segments are probably connected to different patterns of use, which in turn are likely to result in different long-term consequences. Results: The divergent findings on the consequences of psychedelics use may be explained, at least in part, by the fact that different research strategies explore different segments of the user population. Studies focusing on user segments with problematic usage patterns tend to find that psychedelics use is negative for mental health, while studies on infrequent users tend to find that psychedelics use is positive for mental health. Conclusion: Because the field of psychedelics studies lacks a reliable model of the user population, it is difficult for researchers to contextualise and assess the broader validity of their findings. To remedy this situation, the article presents three theoretical models of the user population that afford us with tentative means of contextualising findings and thereby may clarify present disagreements.

Indexed as

mental health consequencesmethodologypsychedelicsusage patternuser population

Identifiers

PMID35309094
PMCPMC8899058
OpenAlexW3094556688

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.