Ethicist

Specializing in psychedelics & altered states

Working in the rapidly-emerging psychedelic space presents unique ethical challenges, many of which are only beginning to come into view. I’m here to help individuals and organizations identify and navigate the ethical challenges involved in their work.

SERVICES

Consulting & Advising

I offer ethics consulting & advising sessions, primarily for clients whose work involves psychedelics and/or altered states.

Teaching & Presenting

I give presentations and provide educational seminars about the ethics of working with psychedelics and/or altered states.

Protocol & Practice Analysis

Are you designing a psychedelic research protocol, or checking in on your “best practices” standards for your clinic? I can perform ethical analysis and provide you with a detailed report of my findings.

Research & Writing

Need an expert to conduct original research or write articles about a specific ethics topic relating to psychedelics and/or altered states? Click the contact button below to reach out.

“I highly recommend Joseph Holcomb Adams as a consultant for ethical matters. I have worked with Joseph on several projects involving ethics and found him uniquely able to get to the heart of any issue he has considered and articulate the factors involved in relationships or organizations. Joseph has special expertise in ethics related to psychedelic states of consciousness, especially regarding suggestibility of clients and conflicts of interest. I would turn to Joseph for guidance in any situation involving ethical use of psychedelics.”

— Kylea Taylor LMFT, Founder of InnerEthics® and author, The Ethics of Caring

“I have had the privilege of collaborating with Joseph in exploring preventative, harm reduction approaches to the unique ethical challenges facing psychedelic practitioners and the psychedelic community at large, and I have found him to be someone having not only a strong moral compass but a solid grasp on nuanced topics in the application of bioethics in psychedelics. I would highly recommend Joseph as a resource and thought leader who is ahead of his time and a trailblazer in the field on matters of psychedelic ethics.”

— Dr. Diana Quinn, Director of Clinical Education, Naropa University Center for Psychedelic Studies

In recent years, there have been many discussions about consent, incapacitation, and boundary-related ethical issues regarding the use of touch in psychedelic sessions. However, some practitioners use “energy work,” “shamanic extractions,” and other intimate interventions that do not necessarily involve physical contact, and that may lie completely outside of the secular materialist paradigm. I am prepared to provide ethical guidance to practitioners who work within non-secular frameworks, and who use non-secular techniques and interventions in their practices.

Many of the ethical challenges in the psychedelic space have to do with power-vulnerability dynamics, undue influence, suggestibility, and the need to protect psychedelic practice participants from exploitation, manipulation, and violations of their human rights. Unethical conduct often happens unconsciously and unintentionally, even when everyone wants to do the right thing. For example, the leader of an entheogenic church might unconsciously and unintentionally take advantage of participants’ vulnerability during or after psychedelic ceremonies, influencing the participants in ways that lead them to donate more money to the church. This is a type of ethical challenge that arises all throughout the psychedelic space, in any context where fundraising efforts involve soliciting donations from people in close proximity to psychedelic use, or within relationships that have been shaped by altered states, transformative experiences, and power differentials.