Area of Science:

• Psychopharmacology and Clinical Psychology

Background:

• Recent literature underscores the significance of non-pharmacological variables in psychedelic-assisted therapies (PATs).
• The patient's psychological state (set) and the therapeutic environment (setting) are critical modulators of subjective and therapeutic effects.

Purpose of the Study:

• To synthesize key findings on how set and setting influence treatment outcomes in PATs.
• To elucidate the impact of these variables on the overall patient well-being experience.

Main Methods:

• A narrative review of conceptual and empirical articles from the past two decades.
• Inclusion criteria focused on clinical approaches and contextual descriptions of therapeutic psychedelic use.

Main Results:

• Findings organized into three phases: pre-therapy preparation, in-session environment, and post-session integration.