Research Interests

My early research in cognitive archaeology investigated the shamanistic use of psychoactive substances and iron-ore mirrors by the ancient Maya culture of Mesoamerica.

Shifting to living populations, my Ph.D. research in cultural anthropology focused on European members of Santo Daime, a new religious movement from Brazil in which the mind-altering beverage "ayahuasca" is ingested as a ritual sacrament.

As a SSHRC Post-Doctoral Fellow at the University of Toronto, I collected interviews and World Health Organization "quality of life" questionnaires concerning Santo Daime members in North America. This ongoing ethnographic study focuses on various spiritual devotees who claim that mind-altering plants improve their psychophysical well-being. Fieldwork for this project has been carried out in Ontario, Quebec, British Columbia, and Oregon.

I recently completed a book manuscript about Santo Daime congregations in Europe (SUNY Press, 2021). Next, I plan to advance research in applied anthropology at clinical settings to explore the therapeutic potentials of psychedelic psychotherapy and spiritual care.