In Praise of Psychedelics: Rick Doblin and the MAPS Project

"The rave movement is sort of an antidote to the fact that for many people, the religious rituals that they have just don't work, and so we've had to create our own," said Rick Doblin, the founder of the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS).

During the 1960s and 1970s, a number of therapists conducted experiments using psychedelic drugs. The research was promising, but widespread recreational use of psychedelics among young people ultimately led to the prohibition of psychedelic drugs. As a result, research on the potential therapeutic benefits of psychedelics decreased siginificantly.

In 1985, despite its widespread reputation as an effective therapeutic tool, the DEA classified MDMA (ecstasy) as a Schedule I drug. The following year, Rick Doblin founded the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS) with the goal of developing psychedelics into legal prescription drugs. Today, MDMA is in Phase 2 FDA trials for use as a therapeutic aid for people suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.

MAPS researchers are also finding that psilocybin, the active ingredient in magic mushrooms, can be an effective therapeutic tool for helping addicts and people suffering from terminal diseases. Reason TV talked to Doblin and other psychedelic researchers at the 2013 Psychedelic Science Conference in Oaklland, California, to learn more.

Approximately 6:30 minutes.

Produced by Paul Feine and Alex Manning.

Go to http://reason.com/reasontv for downloadable versions and subscribe to ReasonTV's YouTube Channel to receive notifications when new material goes live.