Qualitative Analysis of Views of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy in Low-Income, Urban, Black Americans.

Black Americans are underrepresented in psychedelic trials despite high mental health needs. In four focus groups with low-income, urban Black participants, three themes emerged: informed hesitation mixed with openness; trust, autonomy, and choice; and practical solutions to improve access. Participants voiced concerns about racism in healthcare, research, drug policy, and criminalization. They emphasized building trust through community investment, autonomy, and addressing barriers like childcare and transportation. The findings support centering Black Americans' needs in psychedelic-assisted therapy to improve access and care quality.

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Abstract

Black Americans are significantly underrepresented in psychedelic trials despite significant mental health disparities. Growing research suggests that psychedelic-assisted therapy (PAT) is an effective treatment for post-traumatic stress disorder and depression. It is important to understand perceptions of PAT among populations with unmet mental health needs. We conducted four focus groups to understand perceptions of psychedelic therapy within a low-income, Black, urban population. Three main themes were identified using an inductive thematic analysis approach: (1) informed hesitation mixed with increasing openness; (2) trust, autonomy, and choice; and (3) practical solutions to increase accessibility. Participants described many concerns related to legacies of racism in healthcare, research, drug prescription, and criminalization. Healthcare systems must invest in trust building with Black Americans to adequately meet healthcare needs. Participants emphasized ways of building trust through supporting autonomy and choice, investing in community building and agency, and suggestions to address barriers (e.g., providing childcare, providing transportation). These findings support calls to center the needs of Black American people given the lack of culturally salient therapeutic paradigms specifically for Black Americans utilized within PAT, improve access and address barriers to healthcare for Black Americans, and increase the quality of care available.