PSYC 3650 EXAM 4 QUESTIONS AND VERIFIED
ANSWERS
Outline the history of hallucinogens. - Answers - 1000 BC: Central American cultures
build temples to mushroom gods; peyote used ceremonially by indigenous cultures in
TX and Mexico
1938: Albert Hofmann synthesizes LSD for the first time
1943: Albert Hofmann accidentally experiences small amount of LSD for the first time
1951: CIA becomes aware of and begins experimenting with LSD
1962: Good Friday experiment
1967: Summer of Love; LSD banned in U.S.
What notable hallucinogens target serotonin? - Answers - LSD, psilocybin, DMT
What notable hallucinogens target norepinephrine? - Answers - mescaline, MDMA
What notable hallucinogen falls under the "miscellaneous" category? - Answers -
ketamine
What are the use trends for LSD? - Answers - highest peak in HS student usage
between 1995-2000, with rates generally decreasing
What is the timeline of LSD use like? - Answers - - onset: 20-60 minutes
- coming up: 15-30 minutes
- plateau: 2-6 hours
- coming down: 3-5 hours
- aftereffects: 2-5 hours
How is LSD ingested? - Answers - through mucus membranes with tabs
How long does LSD last? - Answers - 12 hours, with maximal effects at 2-6 hours
What does tolerance and withdrawal look like for LSD? - Answers - users do not
develop tolerance and therefore do not experience withdrawal
What are the positive effects of LSD? - Answers - increase in energy, increase in
associative and creative thinking ("looser" cognition), elevated mood, increased
awareness and appreciation of music, closed and open eye visuals, profound life-
changing spiritual experiences
What are the neutral effects of LSD? - Answers - pupil dilation, difficulty focusing,
increased saliva and mucus production, body sensations (facial flushing, chills,
,goosebumps), change in perception of time, quickly changing emotions, slight increase
in body temperature and heart rate, ego dissolution
What are the negative effects of LSD? - Answers - anxiety/terror, tension, nausea,
dizziness/confusion, megalomania (fantasies of omnipotence), over-awareness and
over-sensitization to music and noise, paranoia/fear/panic, unwanted and overwhelming
feelings, unwanted life-changing spiritual experiences, flashbacks
What is hallucinogen persistent perception disorder? - Answers - the re-experiencing,
following cessation of use of a hallucinogen, of one or more of the perceptual symptoms
that were experienced while intoxicated with the hallucination
if reality testing remains intact, considered flashbacks
if person believes perceptions are real, considered a psychotic disorder
What can go wrong with LSD use? - Answers - - can precipitate strong, temporary
changes in an individual's experience of life and reality
- physically/psychologically unsettling events in days before LSD trip can blossom into
more serious distress and trauma while tripping
What are the contraindications for LSD use? - Answers - - do not operate heavy
machinery or drive
- individuals currently in midst of emotional/psychological upheaval in everyday lives
should use caution
- people on SSRIs should avoid (serotonin syndrome)
- individuals with family history of schizophrenia or early-onset mental illness should be
careful (can trigger latent problems)
- better avoided by women who are pregnant (can cause uterine contractions)
What is the exception to the general rule that hallucinogens don't produce tolerance or
have high overdose risk? - Answers - PCP
What are the use trends for psilocybin? - Answers - use peaked in HS students in 1996
and again in 2000, with steady decline since then
What are the effects of psilocybin? - Answers - serotonin targeting, so has similar
subjective effects as LSD
What is the onset timeline for psilocybin? - Answers - generally takes 30-60 minutes
(sometimes up to 2 hours) to take effect
What is the duration timeline for psilocybin? - Answers - - primary effects last 4-6 hours
when taken orally
- for many people, additional period (2-6 hours) where it's difficult to sleep and there is
noticeable difference from everyday reality (not strong enough to be considered
"tripping")
, What are the primary effects of psilocybin? - Answers - pupil dilation, open and closed
eye visuals, mental stimulation, new perspectives, feelings of insight, quickly changing
emotions, possible paranoia and confusion, ego dissolution (at higher doses)
Describe the methods of the Good Friday experiment - Answers - - 20 Protestant
divinity students given capsules of psilocybin
- 10 pairs, with each pair being similar on a battery of psychological tasks
- experimental group (10 people) given 30 mg psilocybin; control group (10 people)
given active placebo (niacin)
- independent variable: group they were assigned to/which drug they were administered
What is a strength of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - they administered an
active placebo
What was the primary hypothesis of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers -
psychedelic drugs could facilitate a "mystical" experience in religiously inclined
volunteers who took the drug in a religious setting
What were the dependent variables in the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - sense
of unity, transcendence of time and space, sense of sacredness, sense of objective
reality, deeply felt positive mood, ineffability, paradoxicality, transiency
What were the immediate results of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - - for
every mystical experience scale, experimental group scored significantly higher than
control group
- 4 of 10 experimental subjects had mystical experience; no one in control group did
- these drugs don't produce mystical experiences in everyone, but around half is a large
prevalence
What were the long-term results of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - - 5/8
experimental subjects work as ministers
- 5/10 controls work as ministers
- most experimental subjects reported subsequent mystical experiences (in dream,
prayer, nature, with other psychedelics)
- most experimental subjects felt experience had affected their life in positive ways
Describe the methods of the 2020 study on psilocybin and mystical-type experiences -
Answers - - participants were hallucinogen naive adults reporting regular participation in
religious/spiritual activities
- 2 or 3 sessions conducted at 2 month intervals
- 30 volunteers received orally administered psilocybin (30 mg) and Ritalin (40 mg) in
counterbalanced order
- did not inform participants of potential religious experience
ANSWERS
Outline the history of hallucinogens. - Answers - 1000 BC: Central American cultures
build temples to mushroom gods; peyote used ceremonially by indigenous cultures in
TX and Mexico
1938: Albert Hofmann synthesizes LSD for the first time
1943: Albert Hofmann accidentally experiences small amount of LSD for the first time
1951: CIA becomes aware of and begins experimenting with LSD
1962: Good Friday experiment
1967: Summer of Love; LSD banned in U.S.
What notable hallucinogens target serotonin? - Answers - LSD, psilocybin, DMT
What notable hallucinogens target norepinephrine? - Answers - mescaline, MDMA
What notable hallucinogen falls under the "miscellaneous" category? - Answers -
ketamine
What are the use trends for LSD? - Answers - highest peak in HS student usage
between 1995-2000, with rates generally decreasing
What is the timeline of LSD use like? - Answers - - onset: 20-60 minutes
- coming up: 15-30 minutes
- plateau: 2-6 hours
- coming down: 3-5 hours
- aftereffects: 2-5 hours
How is LSD ingested? - Answers - through mucus membranes with tabs
How long does LSD last? - Answers - 12 hours, with maximal effects at 2-6 hours
What does tolerance and withdrawal look like for LSD? - Answers - users do not
develop tolerance and therefore do not experience withdrawal
What are the positive effects of LSD? - Answers - increase in energy, increase in
associative and creative thinking ("looser" cognition), elevated mood, increased
awareness and appreciation of music, closed and open eye visuals, profound life-
changing spiritual experiences
What are the neutral effects of LSD? - Answers - pupil dilation, difficulty focusing,
increased saliva and mucus production, body sensations (facial flushing, chills,
,goosebumps), change in perception of time, quickly changing emotions, slight increase
in body temperature and heart rate, ego dissolution
What are the negative effects of LSD? - Answers - anxiety/terror, tension, nausea,
dizziness/confusion, megalomania (fantasies of omnipotence), over-awareness and
over-sensitization to music and noise, paranoia/fear/panic, unwanted and overwhelming
feelings, unwanted life-changing spiritual experiences, flashbacks
What is hallucinogen persistent perception disorder? - Answers - the re-experiencing,
following cessation of use of a hallucinogen, of one or more of the perceptual symptoms
that were experienced while intoxicated with the hallucination
if reality testing remains intact, considered flashbacks
if person believes perceptions are real, considered a psychotic disorder
What can go wrong with LSD use? - Answers - - can precipitate strong, temporary
changes in an individual's experience of life and reality
- physically/psychologically unsettling events in days before LSD trip can blossom into
more serious distress and trauma while tripping
What are the contraindications for LSD use? - Answers - - do not operate heavy
machinery or drive
- individuals currently in midst of emotional/psychological upheaval in everyday lives
should use caution
- people on SSRIs should avoid (serotonin syndrome)
- individuals with family history of schizophrenia or early-onset mental illness should be
careful (can trigger latent problems)
- better avoided by women who are pregnant (can cause uterine contractions)
What is the exception to the general rule that hallucinogens don't produce tolerance or
have high overdose risk? - Answers - PCP
What are the use trends for psilocybin? - Answers - use peaked in HS students in 1996
and again in 2000, with steady decline since then
What are the effects of psilocybin? - Answers - serotonin targeting, so has similar
subjective effects as LSD
What is the onset timeline for psilocybin? - Answers - generally takes 30-60 minutes
(sometimes up to 2 hours) to take effect
What is the duration timeline for psilocybin? - Answers - - primary effects last 4-6 hours
when taken orally
- for many people, additional period (2-6 hours) where it's difficult to sleep and there is
noticeable difference from everyday reality (not strong enough to be considered
"tripping")
, What are the primary effects of psilocybin? - Answers - pupil dilation, open and closed
eye visuals, mental stimulation, new perspectives, feelings of insight, quickly changing
emotions, possible paranoia and confusion, ego dissolution (at higher doses)
Describe the methods of the Good Friday experiment - Answers - - 20 Protestant
divinity students given capsules of psilocybin
- 10 pairs, with each pair being similar on a battery of psychological tasks
- experimental group (10 people) given 30 mg psilocybin; control group (10 people)
given active placebo (niacin)
- independent variable: group they were assigned to/which drug they were administered
What is a strength of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - they administered an
active placebo
What was the primary hypothesis of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers -
psychedelic drugs could facilitate a "mystical" experience in religiously inclined
volunteers who took the drug in a religious setting
What were the dependent variables in the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - sense
of unity, transcendence of time and space, sense of sacredness, sense of objective
reality, deeply felt positive mood, ineffability, paradoxicality, transiency
What were the immediate results of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - - for
every mystical experience scale, experimental group scored significantly higher than
control group
- 4 of 10 experimental subjects had mystical experience; no one in control group did
- these drugs don't produce mystical experiences in everyone, but around half is a large
prevalence
What were the long-term results of the Good Friday experiment? - Answers - - 5/8
experimental subjects work as ministers
- 5/10 controls work as ministers
- most experimental subjects reported subsequent mystical experiences (in dream,
prayer, nature, with other psychedelics)
- most experimental subjects felt experience had affected their life in positive ways
Describe the methods of the 2020 study on psilocybin and mystical-type experiences -
Answers - - participants were hallucinogen naive adults reporting regular participation in
religious/spiritual activities
- 2 or 3 sessions conducted at 2 month intervals
- 30 volunteers received orally administered psilocybin (30 mg) and Ritalin (40 mg) in
counterbalanced order
- did not inform participants of potential religious experience
