The Drug Science Podcast 147. Rewarding the Human Mind with Dr Harriet De Wit
Apr 1, 2026
Harriet DeWitt, professor of psychiatry and neuropharmacology at the University of Chicago, blends animal and human psychopharmacology. She contrasts MDMA and amphetamine’s social effects. She describes translating animal models to people. She details blinded microdosing trials and studying social interaction with computational tools.
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From Rodent Self Administration To Human Studies
- Harriet DeWitt transitioned from rodent self-administration studies to human psychopharmacology after her PhD, bringing animal-model insights into human experiments.
- She described that animal self-administration models mirror human recreational drug use and motivated her move to the University of Chicago to work with people.
Same Dose Can Be Rewarding And Aversive
- A single drug injection can produce both rewarding and aversive outcomes depending on the measured behavior, showing drug effects are multidimensional.
- Roy Wise's experiments produced conditioned taste aversion and positive reinforcement from the same drug administration, highlighting ambivalent drug experiences.
Human Conditioned Place Preference Validates Animal Models
- DeWitt adapted the animal conditioned place preference paradigm for humans and found human place preference correlates with reported drug liking.
- This validated animal models by showing people who liked a drug also preferred the room where they received it.