People Who Use Psychedelics Know More About the Climate Crisis, Study Finds
Researchers reported that psychedelic users have a genuine interest in nature, something that could be useful as the climate crisis intensifies.
A study published in the journal Drug Science, Policy and Law on October 2 found that people with a history of using psychedelic drugs like magic mushrooms and LSD are more likely to be in tune with nature and have a better understanding of the climate crisis than people who don’t. Researchers reported that psychedelic users have a genuine interest in nature, something that could be useful as the climate crisis intensifies.
To reach their conclusions, the research team looked at 641 western Europeans and Americans that they gathered via university mailing lists, forums, and social media. The participants then took a survey detailing their demographic data, prior drug experience, "nature relatedness," and knowledge and concern about the climate crisis.
Participants with a history of psilocybin (magic mushrooms) and LSD had the highest "nature relatedness" scores and a broader knowledge of the climate crisis. Researchers also found that psychedelic users did not experience increased concern about the climate crisis, causing the research team to consider that "an additional process may be a generally lower tendency to worry, as indicated by psychedelic users’ scoring higher than the norm on emotional stability and a positive correlation between psychedelic use frequency and emotional stability."
Researchers also noted the difficulty of researching psychedelics due to the fact that they’re illegal in most places.