Evidence mapPaperPMID 39823947Full record

SynthesisPsychiatry research2025

A systematic review of participant diversity in psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy trials.

Stephanie L Haft, Amanda E Downey, Marissa Raymond-Flesch, Gisele Fernandes-Osterhold, Ellen R Bradley, Aoife O'Donovan, Joshua Woolley

Abstract readSystematic Review
In one paragraph

Synthesis in Psychiatry research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed
field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Trial
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. Article
  6. Article
  7. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Stephanie L HaftUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 675 18th Ave. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA. Electronic address: stephanie.haft@ucsf.edu.
Amanda E DowneyUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 675 18th Ave. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA; University of California San Francisco, Department of Pediatrics, 550 16th St. Box 0110, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA.
Marissa Raymond-FleschUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Pediatrics, 550 16th St. Box 0110, San Francisco, CA 94143, USA; University of California San Francisco, Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies, USA.
Gisele Fernandes-OsterholdUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 675 18th Ave. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA; California Institute of Integral Studies, 1453 Mission St, San Francisco, CA 94103, USA; Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Norte, Lagoa Nova, Natal RN, 59078-970, Brazil.
Ellen R BradleyUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 675 18th Ave. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA; Parkinson's Disease Research, Education, and Clinical Center, San Francisco Veterans Affairs Medical Center, 4150 Clement St, SF, CA 94121, USA.
Aoife O'DonovanUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 675 18th Ave. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA; San Francisco Veteran's Affairs Medical Center, 4150 Clement St. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA.
Joshua WoolleyUniversity of California San Francisco, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, 675 18th Ave. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA; San Francisco Veteran's Affairs Medical Center, 4150 Clement St. San Francisco, CA 94121, USA.

Funding

Institutional Career Development CoreKL2TR001870 · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO · 2025 to 2025
$1.8M
CSRD VA IK2 CX002606CSRD VA IK4 CX002090NCATS NIH HHS KL2 TR001870
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

A lack of diverse and representative participant samples in mental health intervention research perpetuates mental health disparities. This issue has become a salient concern in studies of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAT), which is emerging as a promising mental health intervention. This systematic review evaluates the reporting, representation, and analysis of participant sociodemographic characteristics in randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of PAT. A total of 21 RCTs of psilocybin- and 3,4-methylenedioxy methamphetamine (MDMA)-assisted therapies (N = 1034) are summarized. Participants' gender (100%) and race or ethnicity (76%) were frequently reported, with socioeconomic status (SES) sometimes (57%) reported using heterogeneous metrics. Sexual orientation (9.5%) and immigration status (4.8%) were rarely reported, and no studies reported gender identity. Compared to their representation in the US population and non-psychedelic clinical trials, Black/African-American participants (2.2%) and Hispanic/Latino participants (7.2%) were significantly underrepresented in PAT RCTs. MDMA trials enrolled more diverse participant samples than psilocybin trials. Analyses on treatment effects based on demographic variables were virtually nonexistent. These findings underscore the need for more inclusive recruitment strategies, along with more rigorous reporting, to improve the generalizability of PAT research.

Indexed as

HallucinogensN-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetaminePsilocybinPsychotherapyRandomized Controlled Trials as TopicHumansHallucinogensN-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetaminePsilocybindiversityMDMAPsilocybinPsychedelicsystematic review

Identifiers

PMID39823947
PMCPMC12994433

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceTDM
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.