Investigating Safety Concerns and Harm Reduction in Entheogenic Churches: The Case for Community-Based Participatory...

Area of Science:

• Public Health
• Sociology
• Psychopharmacology

Background:

• Secular harm reduction models differ from those in entheogenic communities.
• Entheogenic communities possess distinct frameworks for safety, risk, and harm.
• Understanding these community-specific perspectives is vital for public health research.

Purpose of the Study:

• To explore lived realities of substance use, safety practices, and potential harms in entheogenic communities.
• To demonstrate the utility of community-based participatory research (CBPR) in psychedelic research.
• To encourage biomedical researchers to adopt CBPR approaches for studies involving psychedelic communities.

Main Methods:

• Community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach.
• Formation of a community advisory board (CAB).
• Pilot data collection through collaborative study design.

Main Results:

• Preliminary findings from a CBPR study with entheogenic communities.
• Identified key lessons learned in forming a CAB and gathering pilot data.
• Highlighted the importance of community engagement, compensation, confidentiality, recruitment strategies, and historical context.

Conclusions:

• CBPR is an effective method for centering communities in psychedelic research.
• Lessons learned can inform best practices for future psychedelic research and policy.
• Findings support improved harm reduction strategies and community-based psychedelic use education.