Abstract: The Role of Psychological Flexibility As a Mediator of Psychedelic Therapy Outcomes Among Trauma-Exposed Special Operations Forces Veterans (Society for Social Work and Research 27th Annual Conference - Social Work Science and Complex Problems: Battling Inequities + Building Solutions)

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The Role of Psychological Flexibility As a Mediator of Psychedelic Therapy Outcomes Among Trauma-Exposed Special Operations Forces Veterans

Schedule:
Friday, January 13, 2023
Desert Sky, 3rd Level (Sheraton Phoenix Downtown)
* noted as presenting author
Stacey Armstrong, PhD, Postdoctoral Scholar, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH
Psychological flexibility was examined as a mediator in the relationship between acute psychedelic effects (e.g., insight and spiritual significance) on trauma, anxiety, and depression symptoms. Data were taken from the prospective program evaluation study described in presentation three. Six bootstrapped (5000 resamples) mediation analyses were conducted using the PROCESS v3.5 macro for SPSS. There was a significant indirect effect of acute spiritual significance on trauma symptoms (indirect effect = -2.20, 95% CI = [-3.74, -1.04]), depression (indirect effect = -.23, 95% CI = [-.42, -.10]), and anxiety (indirect effect = -.20, 95% CI = [-.35, -.10]) via increased psychological flexibility. Further, there was a significant indirect effect of insight on trauma symptoms (indirect effect = -2.64, 95% CI = [-4.53, -1.23]), depression (indirect effect = -.27, 95% CI = [-.50, -.13]), and anxiety (indirect effect = -.23, 95% CI = [-.42, -.11]) via increased psychological flexibility. These data suggest that psychological flexibility is an important factor influencing positive mental health outcomes in psychedelic therapies. Future research exploring this topic in rigorous controlled trials is warranted.