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Psychedelic Microdosing, Mindfulness, and Anxiety: A Cross-Sectional Mediation Study.
Vincent Hartong1, Arnold van Emmerik1
1Department of Psychology, Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
Journal of Psychoactive Drugs
|June 13, 2022
Summary
Psychedelic microdosing may be associated with lower trait anxiety, potentially mediated by mindfulness. However, this effect disappeared when excluding individuals with prior macrodose experience, suggesting further research is needed.
Area of Science:
- Psychopharmacology
- Mental Health Research
Background:
- Anecdotal evidence suggests psychedelic microdosing benefits mood and anxiety.
- Empirical evidence for these claims remains limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between psychedelic microdosing and trait anxiety.
- To examine if trait mindfulness mediates this association.
Main Methods:
- Cross-sectional study with anonymous online questionnaires.
- Participants categorized into current microdosers, former microdosers, and controls.
- Measured trait anxiety (STAI-T) and trait mindfulness (FFMQ-15).
Main Results:
- Current and former microdosers reported lower trait anxiety than controls.
- Trait mindfulness partially mediated the association between microdosing and trait anxiety.
- Associations became non-significant when excluding participants with prior macrodose experience.
Conclusions:
- Findings suggest a potential link between microdosing, anxiety, and mindfulness.
- Randomized controlled trials are necessary to establish causality.
- Controlling for previous macrodose experience is crucial in future research.
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