Since 1999, Dr. Kenneth Tupper has researched psychedelics as tools for learning and healing from many angles.
For nearly two decades, Dr. Tupper has looked at psychedelic plants and substances through the lenses of public health, politics, education and economics, among others. He also does research on public, professional and school-based drug education, as well as drug checking as a public health intervention. Below is a selection of his contributions to academic journals. For his press and op-ed column, click here.
Select academic publications
Tupper, K. W., McCrae, K., Garber, I., Lysyshyn, M., & Wood, E. (2018). Initial results of a drug checking pilot program to detect fentanyl adulteration in a Canadian setting. Drug and Alcohol Dependence, 190, 242-245. doi:10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2018.06.020
Laing, M. K., Tupper, K. W., & Fairbairn, N. (2018). Drug checking as a potential strategic overdose response in the fentanyl era. International Journal of Drug Policy, 62, 59-66. doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2018.10.001
Argento, E., Strathdee, S. A., Tupper, K. W., Braschel, M., Wood, E., & Shannon, K. (2017). Does psychedelic drug use reduce risk of suicidality? Evidence from a longitudinal community-based cohort of marginalised women in a Canadian setting. BMJ Open, 7, e016025. doi:10.1136/bmjopen-2017-016025
Lafrance, A., Loizaga-Velder, A., Fletcher, J., Renelli, M., Files, N., & Tupper, K. W. (2017). Nourishing the spirit: Exploratory research on ayahuasca experiences along the continuum of recovery from eating disorders. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs. doi:10.1080/02791072.2017.1361559
Tupper, K.W. (2017). The economics of ayahuasca: Money, markets, and the value of the vine. In B.C. Labate, C. Cavnar & A. Gearin (Eds.), The world ayahuasca diaspora: Reinventions and controversies (pp. 183-200). London: Routledge.
Haden, M., Emerson, B., & Tupper, K. W. (2016). A public-health-based vision for the management and regulation of psychedelics. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 48(4), 243-252. doi: 10.1080/02791072.2016.1202459
Tupper, K.W., Wood, E., Yensen, R. & Johnson, M.W. (2015). Psychedelic medicine: A re-emerging therapeutic paradigm. Canadian Medical Association Journal, 187(14), 1054-1059.
Tupper, K.W. (2014). Entheogenic education: Psychedelics as tools of wonder and awe. MAPS Bulletin, 24 (1), 14-19.
Tupper, K.W. & Labate, B.C. (2014). Ayahuasca, psychedelic studies and health sciences: The politics of knowledge and inquiry into an Amazonian plant brew. Current Drug Abuse Reviews, 7(2), 71-80.
Tupper, K.W. (2014). Sex, drugs, and the honour roll: The perennial challenges of addressing moral purity issues in schools. Critical Public Health, 24(2), 115-131.
Thomas, G., Lucas, P., Capler, N.R., Tupper, K.W. & Martin, G. (2013). Ayahuasca-assisted therapy for addiction: Results from a preliminary observational study in Canada. Current Drug Abuse Reviews, 6(1), 30-42.
Tupper, K.W. (2012). Psychoactive substances and the English language: “Drugs,” discourses, and public policy. Contemporary Drug Problems, 39(3), 461-492.
Tupper, K.W. & Labate, B.C. (2012). Plants, psychoactive substances and the International Narcotics Control Board: The control of nature and the nature of control. Human Rights & Drugs, 2(1), 17-28.
Anderson, B.T., Labate, B.C., Meyer, M., Tupper, K.W., Barbosa, P.C.R., Grob, C.S., Dawson, A. & McKenna, D. (2012). Statement on ayahuasca. International Journal of Drug Policy, 23(3), 173-175.
Tupper, K.W. (2011). Ayahuasca, entheogenic education & public policy. Unpublished Ph.D. dissertation, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, B.C.
Tupper, K.W. (2011). Ayahuasca in Canada: Cultural phenomenon and policy issue. In B.C. Labate & H. Jungaberle (Eds.), The internationalization of ayahuasca (pp. 319-325). Zurich: Lit Verlag.
Tupper, K.W. (2009). Entheogenic healing: The spiritual effects and therapeutic potential of ceremonial ayahuasca use. In J.H. Ellens (Ed.), The healing power of spirituality: How religion helps humans thrive (Vol. 3, pp. 269-282). Westport, CT: Praeger.
Tupper, K.W. (2009). Ayahuasca healing beyond the Amazon: The globalization of a traditional indigenous entheogenic practice. Global Networks: A Journal of Transnational Affairs, 9(1), 117-136.
Tupper, K.W. (2008). The globalization of ayahuasca: Harm reduction or benefit maximization? International Journal of Drug Policy, 19(4), 297-303.
Tupper, K.W. (2008). Drugs, discourses and education: A critical discourse analysis of a high school drug education text. Discourse: Studies in the Cultural Politics of Education, 29(2), 223-238.
Tupper, K.W. (2008). Teaching teachers to just say “know”: Reflections on drug education. Teaching and Teacher Education, 24(2), 356-367.
Callaway, J.C., Grob, C.S., McKenna, D.J., Nichols, D.E., Shulgin, A. & Tupper, K.W. (2006). A demand for clarity regarding a case report on the ingestion of 5-methoxy-N,N-dimethyltryptamine (5-MeO-DMT) in an ayahuasca preparation. Journal of Analytical Toxicology, 30(6), 406-407 [Letter to the editor].
Tupper, K.W. (2003). Entheogens & education: Exploring the potential of psychoactives as educational tools. Journal of Drug Education and Awareness, 1(2), 145-161.
Tupper, K.W. (2002). Entheogens and existential intelligence: The use of plant teachers as cognitive tools. Canadian Journal of Education. 27(4), 499-516.
