Development and Psychometric Validation of the ‘Psychedelic Flourishing Scale’
Abstract
<p>Positive psychological changes following psychedelic experiences are widely studied, yet no validated instrument has been developed specifically to assess the breadth of enduring change that individuals attribute to those experiences. We therefore conducted a two-part programme of research to evaluate an existing measure and to develop and validate a more comprehensive scale. In Part 1, a preliminary psychometric analysis of the 11-item Mindset Questionnaire (MQ) was conducted using data from two psilocybin studies (N = 97). Its items were strongly intercorrelated (mean inter-item r = .63) and predominantly reflected a single, relatively narrow dimension of change. Part 2 followed established scale-development procedures to define the broader construct of psychedelic flourishing and develop the Psychedelic Flourishing Scale (PFS). A three-round Delphi study involving 17 experts established the construct definition and generated a 41-item pool. The PFS was then evaluated in a pre-registered cross-sectional survey of 1,296 adults who reported previous serotonergic (“classic”) psychedelic use. The sample was randomly divided for exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses, with the structure extracted in the exploratory half rather than specified in advance. In the confirmatory subsample, a model comprising five correlated facets showed good fit (RMSEA = .053, CFI = .965) and fitted better than a unidimensional model, although a four-factor model performed similarly. A full-sample bifactor model indicated that 87.8% of the common variance was attributable to a general factor, with high general-factor reliability (ωh = .960), supporting use of a single total score. Scores showed high test-retest reliability over a median interval of approximately three weeks (ICC = .890) and were more strongly associated with theoretically related constructs, including presence of meaning (r = .45) and well-being (r = .42), than with extraversion (r = .22) or socially desirable responding (r = .17). The MQ appears to assess a narrow dimension of perceived change, whereas the PFS provides a psychometrically robust measure of broader positive psychological change attributed to psychedelic experiences.</p>
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