Review of 16 studies on how ayahuasca affects thinking skills and social cognition

The question

What happens to memory, attention, mental flexibility and social skills such as empathy after people take ayahuasca?

What they did

Researchers searched five research databases for human studies published up to 25 March 2025 that measured thinking skills (neuropsychological performance) or social cognition after ayahuasca use. Two reviewers screened studies independently, with a third resolving disagreements. Sixteen articles met the criteria: 11 observational studies and 5 experimental studies.

What they found

In the short term, some studies reported improvements in working memory (holding information in mind) and cognitive flexibility (switching between mental tasks). For social cognition, observational studies reported more empathy and better emotion recognition, while the experimental studies found only faster reaction times. Long-term studies generally did not find thinking deficits in people who had used ayahuasca, and some reported better memory and executive function.

The fine print

The review itself flags small sample sizes, very different dosing and ceremony protocols across studies, and the fact that many studies were observational with no control group. Repeat testing can make people better at cognitive tasks simply through practice, which may explain some gains. People who choose to take ayahuasca may differ from those who do not. No pooled statistics or total participant numbers are reported, and this summary is based on the abstract only.

What it means

Current human evidence does not show lasting cognitive harm from ayahuasca and hints at some short-term gains in memory, flexibility and social skills, but the studies are too small and too varied to draw firm conclusions.

Evidence grade: Low. A systematic review that pools mostly observational studies and a few small experiments, with no combined statistical analysis.

This summary is based on the study’s published abstract.