Home > JOURNALSANDNEWSLETTERS > INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF TRANSPERSONAL STUDIES > Vol. 31 (2012) > Iss. 2
DOI
10.24972/ijts.2012.31.2.23
Abstract
Anthropologists have studied the use of hallucinogens as a spiritual tool by indigenous
populations since the turn of the 20th century. However, literature is sparse in describing
use by non-indigenous populations. Using a study population of students from a university
in the Southwest United States, the current study investigated the spiritual development and
meaning that college students place on their use of hallucinogenic substances. The spiritual
framework developed by Love and Talbot (1999) and a transpersonal anthropological
approach were used to guide the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with
each participant. Results indicated that participants used hallucinogens for both spiritual
and recreational purposes with hallucinogen use playing an important role in their continued
exploration of spirituality, which was an integral part of their lives. This pilot study could
serve as a primer for future research on the role of hallucinogen use in the spiritual experiences
of contemporary U.S. college students, and other non-indigenous Western populations.
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Recommended Citation
Stasko, A., Rao, S. P., & Pilley, A. (2012). Stasko, A., Rao, S. P., & Pilley, A. (2012). Spirituality and hallucinogen use: Results from a pilot study among college students. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 31(2), 23–32.. International Journal of Transpersonal Studies, 31 (2). https://doi.org/10.24972/ijts.2012.31.2.23