The USA has more citizens under criminal supervision than any other country, an average of 2.8% of all adults. The reoffending rate is also alarmingly high, with over three-quarters of those released from prison reoffending within five years. For years, it has been a high priority to try to reduce the number of offenders in the criminal justice system, either first-time offenders or reducing the reoffending rate and, subsequently, the costs associated with such high offending rates.

There has been somewhat of a psilocybin boom in recent years, with a multitude of studies finding that psilocybin can do wonders for our mental health. Not only can psilocybins help with improved mood1, but they can also help with alcohol2, nicotine3, and opioid4 addictions. Seeing as this kind of addiction and mental health struggles are connected with both offending and reoffending, scientists have recently conducted a study as to whether treatment with psilocybins can help reduce rates of offending.

A new study from Harvard University has investigated how using psilocybins reduces crime arrests. This study is, in fact, a follow-up study from a previous study by the University of Alabama, confirming and expanding on the findings. This is very common in scientific research and just leads to more accurate research.

The results of the study showed that those with a lifetime history of psilocybin use reported significantly lower odds of seven types of crimes – these are theft, burglary, robbery, simple assault/battery, serious violence, DUI, and miscellaneous crimes. The use of psychedelics, in general, decreased the odds of criminal activity by 12%-17%, but the use of psilocybin, in particular, by 27-70%. No other substances shared this close link with a reduction in criminal activity, and many others were linked with an increase in said activity.

Data was collected from the National Survey on Drug Use and Health, focusing on the last five years’ worth of data. The annual survey covers those over twelve years old in all fifty states and the District of Columbia and is conducted voluntarily by people in their homes. This obviously can cause some issues, as the survey may not collate a representative sample (only people willing to participate in the study, and those who are comfortable with completing it in their own homes are surveyed), as well as not including the unhoused population, those on active duty, and those who are incarcerated. This last point is a significant issue for the current study and one that the paper’s authors hope to remedy in the future.

They also call for more direct research on the link between psilocybins and arrest rates, including taking into account other factors, such as personality and political leanings. The more studies like this, and the one by the University of Alabama in 2017, the more likely there will be trials to test these findings clinically.

References

  1. Robin L Carhart-Harris et al., “Psilocybin with Psychological Support for Treatment-Resistant Depression: An Open-Label Feasibility Study,” The Lancet Psychiatry 3, no. 7 (July 2016): 619–27, https://doi.org/10.1016/s2215-0366(16)30065-7. ↩︎
  2. Michael P Bogenschutz et al., “Psilocybin-Assisted Treatment for Alcohol Dependence: A Proof-of-Concept Study,” Journal of Psychopharmacology (Oxford, England) 29, no. 3 (2015): 289–99, https://doi.org/10.1177/0269881114565144. ↩︎
  3. Matthew W. Johnson, Albert Garcia-Romeu, and Roland R. Griffiths, “Long-Term Follow-up of Psilocybin-Facilitated Smoking Cessation,” The American Journal of Drug and Alcohol Abuse 43, no. 1 (July 21, 2016): 55–60, https://doi.org/10.3109/00952990.2016.1170135. ↩︎
  4. Vincent D Pisano et al., “The Association of Psychedelic Use and Opioid Use Disorders among Illicit Users in the United States,” Journal of Psychopharmacology 31, no. 5 (February 14, 2017): 606–13, https://doi.org/10.1177/0269881117691453. ↩︎