The Persistence of the Subjective in Neuropsychopharmacology: Observations of Contemporary Hallucinogen Research (2010)
Langlitz, Nicolas David (Author)
History of the Human Sciences
Volume: 23, no. 1
Issue: 1
Pages: 37-57
Edition Details: Part of a special issue on “Neuroscience, Power and Culture”.
Language: English
The elimination of subjectivity through brain research and the replacement of so-called `folk psychology' by a neuroscientifically enlightened worldview and self-conception has been both hoped for and feared. But this cultural revolution is still pending. Based on nine months of fieldwork on the revival of hallucinogen research since the `Decade of the Brain,' this paper examines how subjective experience appears as epistemic object and practical problem in a psychopharmacological laboratory. In the quest for neural correlates of (drug-induced altered states of) consciousness, introspective accounts of test subjects play a crucial role in neuroimaging studies. Firsthand knowledge of the drugs' flamboyant effects provides researchers with a personal knowledge not communicated in scientific publications, but key to the conduct of their experiments. In many cases, the `psychedelic experience' draws scientists into the field and continues to inspire their self-image and way of life. By exploring these domains the paper points to a persistence of the subjective in contemporary neuropsychopharmacology.
...MoreArticle Vrecko, Scott (2010) Neuroscience, Power and Culture: An Introduction. History of the Human Sciences (pp. 1-10).
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