How to Change Your Mind: What the New Science of Psychedelics Teaches Us About Consciousness, Dying, Addiction, Depression, and Transcendence (2018)

The worlds of science and psychedelics have drastically different ways of approaching their work, to the point where many scientists who became interested in psychedelics lost passion for their scientific work and found understanding the psychedelic state more engaging. The main issue between the two groups is the fact that science relies on quantitative data to prove that a phenomenon exists or that a treatment works. Scientists need proof that is statistically significant, or else the work is deemed not rigorous and not viable. The realm of psychedelics is focused around spiritual matters and impacts on consciousness, which cannot be held to traditional scientific standards.

Drug trials typically require a placebo and stipulate that the placebo be blinded to the recipient and the researcher. This is nearly impossible to accomplish with psychedelics because it becomes apparent very quickly which one a volunteer has taken, both to the volunteer and the guide. It is also difficult to determine what is an effect of the drug and what is an effect of set and setting. It’s not clear whether these variables can be isolated, which makes it more difficult to understand the cause-and-effect relationship between the drug, neurochemistry, the setting, and the volunteer’s mindset.