Trial reportPloS one2024
The therapeutic alliance between study participants and intervention facilitators is associated with acute effects and clinical outcomes in a psilocybin-assisted therapy trial for major depressive disorder.
Trial report in PloS one, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT03181529 (Effects of Psilocybin in Major Depressive Disorder), which is not on this map. Cited by 30 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled 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.
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.
Effects of Psilocybin in Major Depressive Disorder
Who cites it
30 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 55 citations in OpenAlex.
- Clinical Evidence on Psilocybin and Its Representation in Media Reporting: A Systematic Review.JAMA network open · 2026Pooled it
- The Use of Psychedelics in the Treatment of Adult ADHD: A Systematic and Mechanistic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Pooled it
- Anxiety and Affective Symptoms Related to the Use of Classic Psychedelics: A Systematic Review.Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · 2026Pooled it
- Placebo effects in alternative medical treatments for anxiety: false hope or healing potential?CNS spectrums · 2025Trial
- Psilocybin increases emotional empathy in patients with major depression.Molecular psychiatry · 2025Trial
- Naturalistic psychedelic therapy: The role of relaxation and subjective drug effects in antidepressant response.Journal of psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) · 2024Trial
- Safety, feasibility, and preliminary clinical outcomes of psilocybin-assisted therapy for veterans with severe, treatment-resistant PTSD: an open-label pilot clinical trial.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- The mystic trip: how psychedelic research fell for mysticism.Psychopharmacology · 2026Review
- Provider perspectives on challenges in treatment during psychedelic therapy.Psychopharmacology · 2026Article
- Trials, trips, and tribulations: pathways for implementing psychedelic therapy in Ireland.The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Review
- A Missing Voice? Peer Support Workers' Perceptions of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy in Australia: A Cross-Sectional Survey.Brain and behavior · 2026Article
- Psychedelic Therapies for Comorbid Major Depressive Disorder and Chronic Pain: A Review of Putative Mechanisms of Action.Pharmacology research & perspectives · 2026Review
- Psilocybin Treatment as an Adjunct to Cognitive Behavioral Therapy for Eating Disorders: Therapeutic Rationale & Considerations for Protocol Development.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- A Blueprint for Implementing Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy in Palliative Care: Design, Process, and Treatment Patterns of a Real-World Clinical Program.Journal of palliative medicine · 2026Article
- Predictors of the Effectiveness of Psychedelics in Treating Depression-A Scoping Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Article
- Current perspectives on psychedelic treatments in Europe.The Lancet regional health. Europe · 2026Review
- Conceptual analysis of mechanisms and methods in psychedelic clinical trial design: a narrative review.Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology · 2026Review
- Exploring the benefits of altered states of consciousness and reduced experiential avoidance for mental well-being: insights from a global study on high ventilation breathwork.Frontiers in psychology · 2026Article
- The Psychological Support Model in Psilocybin Research: Psychotherapy in Disguise?Psychiatric research and clinical practice · 2026Article
- A scoping review of mystical-type experiences and mood symptom outcomes in psychedelic therapy clinical trials: comparing life-threatening disease and depressive populations.Therapeutic advances in psychopharmacology · 2026Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
We examined if the therapeutic alliance between study participants and intervention facilitators in a psilocybin-assisted therapy (PAT) trial changed over time and whether there were relationships between alliance, acute psilocybin experiences, and depression outcomes. In a randomized, waiting list-controlled clinical trial for major depressive disorder in adults (N = 24), participants were randomized to an immediate (N = 13) or delayed (N = 11) condition with two oral doses of psilocybin (20mg/70kg and 30mg/70kg). Ratings of therapeutic alliance significantly increased from the final preparation session to one-week post-intervention (p = .03, d = .43). A stronger total alliance at the final preparation session predicted depression scores at 4 weeks (r = -.65, p = .002), 6 months (r = -.47, p = .036), and 12 months (r = -.54, p = .014) post-intervention. A stronger total alliance in the final preparation session was correlated with higher peak ratings of mystical experiences (r = .49, p = .027) and psychological insight (r = .52, p = .040), and peak ratings of mystical experience and psychological insight were correlated with depression scores at 4 weeks (r = -.45, p = .030 for mystical; r = -.75, p < .001 for insight). Stronger total alliance one week after the final psilocybin session predicted depression scores at 4 weeks (r = -.85, p < .001), 3 months (r = -.52, p = .010), 6 months (r = -.77, p < .001), and 12 months (r = -.61, p = .001) post-intervention. These findings highlight the importance of the therapeutic relationship in PAT. Future research should explore therapist and participant characteristics which maximize the therapeutic alliance and evaluate its relationship to treatment outcomes. Trial registration: Registration: Clinicaltrials.gov NCT03181529. https://classic.clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03181529.
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Registered trials
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.