Take LSD, stay out of prison? Huge study links psychedelic use to reduced recidivism

Psilocybe mushroomsPsyPost – by Eric W. Dolan

A study of more than 25,000 people under community corrections supervision suggests the use of psychedelic drugs like LSD can keep people out of prison.

The research is the first in 40 years to examine whether drugs like LSD and “magic” mushrooms can help reform criminals.

“Our results provide a notable exception to the robust positive link between substance use and criminal behavior,” the researchers from the University of Alabama at Birmingham and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine wrote in their study, which was published in the January issue of the Journal of Psychopharmacology.  

“They add to both the older and emerging body of data indicating beneficial effects of hallucinogen interventions, and run counter to the legal classification as well as popular perception of hallucinogens as categorically harmful substances with no therapeutic potential.”

Psychedelic substances piqued the interest of researchers beginning in the 1950s. Studies indicated that the drugs could be combined with psychotherapy to treat a number of conditions, including alcoholism and drug addiction.

But scientific investigations into the therapeutic potential of LSD, psilocybin, mescaline, and other psychedelic drugs ground to a halt in the 1970s, when they were outlawed by the federal Controlled Substances Act.

“Offenders may be especially likely to benefit from hallucinogen treatment because involvement in the criminal justice system often results from drug-seeking behavior and impulsive conduct exacerbated by compulsive substance use,” the researchers explained in the study.

From 2002 to 2007, the researchers collected data on 25,622 individuals under community corrections supervision in Treatment Accountability for Safer Communities (TASC), a program for individuals with a history of drug abuse.

Only about 1 percent of those in the program were diagnosed with a hallucinogen use disorder. Cannabis use disorders, cocaine use disorders, and alcohol use disorders were the most common diagnoses in the group.

The researchers found those diagnosed with a hallucinogen use disorder were less likely to fail the TASC program compared to those without a hallucinogen use disorder. That means those with a hallucinogen use disorder were less likely to violate TASC rules or other legal requirements, less likely to fail to appear in court, and less likely to be incarcerated.

The study controlled for a large number of potentially confounding factors, including race, employment, marital status, age, criminal history, drug abuse history, gender, educational attainment, and more.

“The current findings should not at all be interpreted as advocating for recreational hallucinogen use. Nevertheless, they demonstrate that, in a real-world, substance-related intervention setting, hallucinogen use is associated with a lower probability of poor outcome,” the researchers wrote.

“We believe this calls for the continued scientific investigation of this unique class of substances.”

The study was authored by Peter S. Hendricks, C. Brendan Clark, Matthew W. Johnson, Kevin R. Fontaine, and Karen L. Cropsey.

http://www.psypost.org/2014/01/take-lsd-stay-out-of-prison-huge-study-links-psychedelic-use-to-reduced-recidivism-22063

4 thoughts on “Take LSD, stay out of prison? Huge study links psychedelic use to reduced recidivism

  1. Yes, and LSD is also on of the best treatments for alcoholism. Treatment centers and substance abuse councelors hate that though because it counterdicts every thing they say about it. Just do a search for “LSD and treatments for alcoholism”. I have personally seen old men that were hard core alcoholics for well over 30+ years and after just one good dose they had no desire for a drink for well over a week with no DT`s or even any cravings for any kind of alcohol what so ever. It just took the cravings away completly. Hell, they even had a big sh*t eatin` grin for about 12 hr.s as ya`ll could well imagine 😆 😎

  2. That is because hallucinageons make you a genius, see through walls and read minds so that you can avoid being incarcerated! They also let you open the door to fairy world so the leprechans and goblins can help you by running circles around the cops in benny-hill fashion while you escape, wearing your hamburger hat and flying with pegasus wing shoes.

  3. I am prove of hallucinogenic drugs keep you out of prison. I ‘trip’ at least once a year. It resets the head and puts life back in prospective.

    That is unless the cops find you giggling at wallpaper with some boomers in your pocket. Then even the best hallucination will end in incarceration.

    gotta go! A unicorn just took a dump on the magic carpet.

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