Psychedelic Society UK Study Psilocybin and its Influence on Divergent Thinking, Empathy and Subjective Well-Being
Methods: 55 Participants attended a psilocybin retreat in the Netherlands, organized by the Psychedelic Society UK. Qualified participants stayed in large houses hosted by at least two or more experienced psilocybin facilitators, set in nature where music, tools to draw and/or write, as well as food was also provided. They arrived the evening before psilocybin administration, and were able to get acquainted with each other, the facilitators, and schedule of the retreat. The following day, participants received psilocybin in tea form and after ingestion, were instructed to stay on the premises. They were able to do what they wanted, as long as they did not disturb other participants. The next morning, all partakers came together for breakfast and had a closing group meeting. Creativity, empathy, and well-being assessments were taken on three separate occasions: at baseline (the evening before ingesting psilocybin), the morning after journeying with psilocybin, and seven days after the retreat. Participants completed pre- and post-psilocybin assessments at the retreat, with the investigators present while the third assessment was completed online.
Demographics:
Participants: 26 females and 29 males with 80% coming from Europe, the rest were from North America (7.3%), Africa (3.6%), Central America (1.8%), and Asia (1.8%), or undisclosed (5.4%). The highest completed levels of education were graduate school (41.8%), undergraduate school (41.8%), secondary school (7.3%), or undisclosed (9.1%).
Experience: About half (52.7%) of participants had used psilocybin before, and 49.1% had previously used a psychedelic other than psilocybin (LSD, ayahuasca, or DMT). For 69.1% of participants, this was the first time taking a psychedelic in a retreat setting.
Intentions: Motivations for attending the retreat included “to understand myself” (83.6%), “curiosity” (80%), “to resolve problems” (49.1%), and “other” (18.2%).
Results:
Outcome: In total, 55 participants completed the test at baseline, 50 completed the test the morning after their psilocybin exploration, and 22 completed the test seven days after taking psilocybin.
Empathy: Arousal to both positive and negative emotions was higher the morning after also.
Divergent Thinking: Based on a test evaluating creativity, participants scored higher the morning after psilocybin use.
Subjective Well-Being: Satisfaction with life significantly increased both the morning and seven days after. It was also found that those who had previously used psilocybin reported higher life satisfaction at baseline compared to those who were psilocybin naive.
Conclusion: This study adds to the growing body of research, demonstrating that psilocybin promotes creativity, empathy, and subjective well-being. It’s important to highlight the potential benefits of these improved states in therapeutic settings and its possible role in enhancing psychological flexibility. The ability of psilocybin in strengthening creativity could help patients relive events, and reconsider their situation from another perspective. Allowing them to generate new and more effective strategies, facilitating adaptive interpretations and coping mechanisms conducive to healing certain trauma induced mental disorders.
