Matthew Johnson, PhD

Dr. Johnson has been at the forefront of psychedelic science for over 20 years. He is an experimental psychologist who conducts clinical research with psychedelics at Sheppard Pratt. From 2004 to 2024 he conducted seminal psychedelic research at Johns Hopkins, playing a role in the modern-day revival of psychedelic research. He has published research on psychedelics in relation to mystical experience, personality change, tobacco smoking cessation, cancer distress treatment, depression treatment, and psychedelic risks and safety guidelines. In 2021 he received as Principal Investigator the first grant in about 50 years from the US government to administer a classic psychedelic as a treatment, specifically psilocybin for tobacco addiction. Dr. Johnson is also known for his expertise in behavioral economics, addiction, sexual risk behavior, and research with a wide variety of drugs (e.g., cocaine, methamphetamine, nicotine, alcohol, opioids, benzodiazepines, caffeine, and cannabis). Dr. Johnson has been continually funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse as Principal Investigator for over 15 years and is a former standing member of the Addiction Risks and Mechanisms Study Section for NIH. He is a former President of the Society for Psychopharmacology and Substance Use Division of the American Psychological Association, and a former President of the International Society for Research on Psychedelics. He has been Interviewed by the Lex Fridman Podcast, the Huberman Lab Podcast, Big Think, Michael Pollan, 60 Minutes, New York Times, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal, CNN, NPR, Fox News, and BBC.