The DOI matches its Crossref record; 31 of the 31 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Powerful substances in tiny amounts: An interview study of psychedelic microdosing
Open accessAbstract
AIMS: This article presents a qualitative interview study of people who microdose with psychedelic drugs, which means that the user takes about one tenth of an ordinary recreational dose. DESIGN: = 21) were recruited at several Internet fora for individual interviews via private messaging. Every participant was male, and the median respondent was in his 30s with a stable job and relationship and extensive entheogen experience. RESULTS: Respondents tended to experiment with microdosing in phases, reporting mostly positive consequences from this form of drug use. Reported effects included improved mood, cognition, and creativity, which often served to counteract symptoms especially from conditions of anxiety and depression. There were also reports of various challenges with psychedelic microdosing, and some did not find the practice worth continuing. CONCLUSION: The study obtained evidence of a group of users taking small doses of psychedelics not for the purpose of intoxication but to enhance everyday functioning. While the study's findings are not generalisable, they may inform subsequent investigations with research questions and hypotheses.
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“Agreeableness and openness to experience did not change at all after MD compared to baseline in the current study, contrasting results from earlier MD studies (12, 28).”
From Trait mindfulness and personality characteristics in a microdosing ADHD sample: a naturalistic prospective survey study (2023) · cites this paper as [28]
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“the data on human psychedelic microdosing are equivocal”
From Psychedelics and Other Psychoplastogens for Treating Mental Illness. (2021) · cites this paper as [246]
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“therapeutic benefit of low doses of psychedelics remains to be demonstrated in a well-controlled clinical study”
From Psychedelics and Other Psychoplastogens for Treating Mental Illness. (2021) · cites this paper as [246]
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“Also, a qualitative interview study reported that participants experienced increases in openness and extraversion following MD, although no explicit mention of other personality traits was made (28).”
From Trait mindfulness and personality characteristics in a microdosing ADHD sample: a naturalistic prospective survey study (2023) · cites this paper as [28]
In the citing paper
“Other qualitative research indicates that regular use of psychedelics in low doses for prolonged periods (i.e., “microdosing”) may have an impact on productivity and other leadership-related outcomes (Webb et al., 2019; see also Johnstad, 2018; Fadiman and Korb, 2019; Hutten et al., 2019).”
From Altered states of leadership: mindfulness meditation, psychedelic use, and leadership development (2023) · cites this paper as Johnstad, 2018
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Cites
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“…for conditions such as substance dependence, OCD, and PTSD also have parallels in research on therapeutic effects from psychedelics in full doses (Abramson, 1967; Bogenschutz et al., 2015; Johnson et al., 2014; Krebs & Johansen, 2012; Nichols, 2004; Schenberg et al., 2014; Thomas et al., 2013).”
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Items 101–155 of 155
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Pierre, M. S., Argento, E., Cates, J., Kryskow, P., Harvey, K., Stamets, P. E., Santos-Brault, E., Paschall, S. A., Kuypers, K. P. C., Rootman, J. M., et al. (2025) · Psychopharmacology · doi:10.1007/s00213-025-06913-9 · Cited by 1
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“Psychedelic microdosing refers to the regular, repeated use of very low doses of classic psychedelics—most commonly LSD and psilocybin—typically around 1/10 to 1/20 of a standard dose (Johnstad, 2018; Polito and Stevenson, 2019).”
Petranker, R., Syed, O. A., Sobolenko, V., Giacobbe, P., Kruger, D. J., Aday, J. S., Lake, S., & Lucas, P. (2026) · International Journal of Drug Policy · doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2026.105459 · Cited by 1
Hardon, A. P. (2020) · Critical studies in risk and uncertainty · doi:10.1007/978-3-030-57081-1_8 · Cited by 1
“Johnstad (2018), from the University of Bergen, engaged online users in a qualitative microdosing study.”
BackgroundGolia, K. (2022) · Consciousness Spirituality & Transpersonal Psychology · doi:10.53074/cstp.2022.37 · Cited by 1
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Earp, D. (2023) · Berkeley Undergraduate Journal · doi:10.5070/b336161162 · Cited by 1
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Lutyens, D. (2023) · Open Access Victoria University of Wellington | Te Herenga Waka (Figshare) · doi:10.26686/wgtn.21904854 · Cited by 2
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Conrad, E. C., & Chatterjee, A. K. (2019) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781108554350.017
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Bowden‐Jones, O., & Abdulrahim, D. (2020) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781911623106.004
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Bowden‐Jones, O., & Abdulrahim, D. (2020) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781911623106.020
Kiilerich, K. F., Speth, N., Lorenz, J., Casado-Sainz, A., Shalgunov, V., Lange, D., Xiong, M., Herth, M. M., Overgaard, A., Hansen, H. D., et al. (2019) · European Neuropsychopharmacology · doi:10.1016/j.euroneuro.2019.09.271
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Pires-Gifford, L., Hoffmann, S., Arroyo, E., Jones, N., Waite, B., & Wright, R. R. (2022) · Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research · doi:10.24839/2325-7342.jn27.3.185
Wright, R. R., Treadwell, K. R. H., & Hughes, J. L. (2022) · Psi Chi Journal of Psychological Research · doi:10.24839/2325-7342.jn27.3.223 · Cited by 1
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“Esto, teniendo en cuenta que la microdosificación suele buscarse como dosis suficientemente pequeña como para no producir una alteración significativa de la conciencia (Johnstad, 2018).”
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Duque, L. (2023) · Cultura y Droga · doi:10.17151/culdr.2023.28.35.3
“…transversales han identificado asociaciones entre la microdosificación y las mejoras percibidas en el estado de ánimo (Anderson et al. , 2019; Johnstad, 2018; Lea et al. , 2020; Szigeti et al. , 2021; Webb et al. , 2019) y el funcionamiento cognitivo (Lea et al., 2020; Rosenbaum et al. ,…”
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“Overall, across many studies and reviews, increased positive mood and decreased negative mood were a common outcome of microdosing (Lea et al., 2020 ; Ona & Bouso, 2020 ; Lo et al., 2024 ; Polito & Liknaitzky, 2022 ; Johnstad, 2018 ).”
Banzato, M., Colognesi, M., Lucatello, L., Comai, S., Pasut, G., Capolongo, F., Orian, L., Biasutto, L., Signor, A., Gabbia, D., et al. (2026) · Journal of Medicinal Chemistry · doi:10.1021/acs.jmedchem.5c01797
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Metadata
- Authors
- Johnstad, P. G.
- Affiliations
- University of Bergen (NO)
- Corresponding author
- Johnstad, Petter Grahl
- Venue
- Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2018-02
- Volume
- 35
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 39-51
- ISSN
- 1455-0725 (ISSN-L)
- 1458-6126
- PMC
- PMC7434115
- OpenAlex
- W2789213216
- Cited by
- 155
- References
- 31
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 17 · 2023: 16 · 2022: 18 · 2021: 21 · 2020: 38 · 2019: 22 · 2018: 4
- FWCI
- 24.97
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- diamond
- doi.org
- Locations
- Nordic Studies on Alcohol and Drugs (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by-nc)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Psychedelics and Drug Studies
- Social Sciences › Arts and Humanities › Philosophy › Neuroethics, Human Enhancement, Biomedical Innovations
- Life Sciences › Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutics › Toxicology › Forensic Toxicology and Drug Analysis
- Keywords
- psychedelic microdosing, psychedelics, entheogens, recreational drug use, mood improvement, cognitive enhancement, creativity, anxiety, depression, user experience
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