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Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has had a devastating impact on the health and wellbeing of the global population. This paper presents the results of a longitudinal transcultural study that was begun at the peak of the pandemic (in April, 2020). An online survey was used to collect data from English-, Spanish-, and Portuguese-speaking participants. The survey collected information about sociodemographics, lifestyle activities, COVID-19-related circumstances, and drug use (with an emphasis on hallucinogenic drugs), as well as involving psychometric questionnaires. Users of hallucinogenic drugs had higher psychological well-being and lower scores on psychopathology scales, both at baseline and during follow-ups. This difference was larger when users were distinguished by frequency of use, as regular users scored higher on psychological well-being and lower on psychopathology scales. Subjects with more psychological distress had lower scores for all scales of post-traumatic growth, but if they were regular hallucinogens users, they had higher scores for post-traumatic growth. When comparing the results between cultural contexts, heterogeneous results were obtained. There were more English-speaking regular users of hallucinogenic drugs. Further research should analyse the potential role of hallucinogens in large-scale catastrophes, with a special focus on post-traumatic growth.

Psychopathy is characterised by emotional disturbances that affect interpersonal behaviour and decision-making. The objective of this paper is to review the most recent contributions to the field of neuroscience of psychopathy and the implications that this disorder has on the criminal legal field. In regards to this last aspect, we evaluate the issue of psychopaths’ accountability and the incidence of psychopathy in many other penal institutions. In terms of the contributions of neuroscience, we will focus on the orbitofrontal (ofPFC) and ventromedial (vmPFC) regions of the frontal lobes and on the amygdala. Data spanning from the nineteenth century to the present indicate that damage to the ofPFC and vmPFC is the basis of behaviours that have been referred to as pseudopsychopathic. The earlier during brain development the damage occurs, the more likely these behaviours will resemble those of psychopaths. The damage to the amygdala is rather related to impairments in the ability to distinguish facial expressions of fear and the capacity to feel emotions. Damage to ofPFC, vmPFC, and amygdala are highly relevant to the expression of pseudopsychopathic behaviours.

Se han estudiado las propiedades psicométricas de la escala de personalidad EPQ-A (Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, forma A) en una muestra de adolescentes de El Salvador, México y España, formada por 1.035 participantes con una edad media de 17 años (en la muestra del EPQ-A). La consistencia interna del EPQ-A se ha calculado mediante el coeficiente de fiabilidad alfa de Cronbach, cuyo valor ha sido de .810 en la dimensión de neuroticismo (N), .678 en la dimensión de extraversión (E) y .702 en la de psicoticismo (P). Con respecto a la validez, la estructura factorial hallada explica un porcentaje elevado de varianza (34.26%). También se estudió la validez convergente, correlacionando el EPQ-A con información sociodemográfica, criminológica y otras escalas de personalidad. Se presentan los baremos elaborados por primera vez en una muestra de adolescentes hispanohablantes correspondientes a tres países. De esta manera, los resultados obtenidos sugieren que el inventario de personalidad EPQ-A es un instrumento válido y fiable en población adolescente hispanohablante.

La neurobiología de la agresión y la violencia es de interés para la psicología jurídica porque buena parte de la conducta delictiva tiene componentes violentos. En esta revisión se definen en primer lugar ambos conceptos, para diferenciar a continuación los tipos de agresión (impulsiva vs. instrumental) que aparecen en la literatura científica y finalmente analizar las estructuras nerviosas que según los estudios sobre lesiones cerebrales o de neuroimagen están asociadas con la agresión. Esta revisión destaca: a) las estructuras subcorticales como el hipotálamo/tronco del encéfalo, donde se genera la conducta agresiva y la amígdala, implicada en procesar estímulos emocionalmente destacados; b) las estructuras corticales como la corteza prefrontal (que comprende la corteza orbitofrontal, la corteza prefrontal ventromedial y la corteza cingulada anterior), que parecen ser hipofuncionales en los sujetos violentos. Por último, se revisan estudios sobre el papel del neurotransmisor serotonina en la manifestación del comportamiento agresivo.

Ayahuasca is an Amazonian psychoactive plant beverage containing the serotonergic 5-HT(2A) agonist N,N-dimethyltryptamine (DMT) and monoamine oxidase-inhibiting alkaloids (harmine, harmaline and tetrahydroharmine) that render it orally active. Ayahuasca ingestion is a central feature in several Brazilian syncretic churches that have expanded their activities to urban Brazil, Europe and North America. Members of these groups typically ingest ayahuasca at least twice per month. Prior research has shown that acute ayahuasca increases blood flow in prefrontal and temporal brain regions and that it elicits intense modifications in thought processes, perception and emotion. However, regular ayahuasca use does not seem to induce the pattern of addiction-related problems that characterize drugs of abuse. To study the impact of repeated ayahuasca use on general psychological well-being, mental health and cognition, here we assessed personality, psychopathology, life attitudes and neuropsychological performance in regular ayahuasca users (n = 127) and controls (n = 115) at baseline and 1 year later. Controls were actively participating in non-ayahuasca religions. Users showed higher Reward Dependence and Self-Transcendence and lower Harm Avoidance and Self-Directedness. They scored significantly lower on all psychopathology measures, showed better performance on the Stroop test, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test and the Letter-Number Sequencing task from the WAIS-III, and better scores on the Frontal Systems Behavior Scale. Analysis of life attitudes showed higher scores on the Spiritual Orientation Inventory, the Purpose in Life Test and the Psychosocial Well-Being test. Despite the lower number of participants available at follow-up, overall differences with controls were maintained one year later. In conclusion, we found no evidence of psychological maladjustment, mental health deterioration or cognitive impairment in the ayahuasca-using group.