Attitudes About and Correlates of Cannabis Legalization Policy Among U.S. Young Adults

Overview

Journal J Am Coll Health

Publisher Routledge

Specialty Health Services

Date 2020 Jan 30

PMID 31995455

Citations 7

Authors

Alyssa K Rudy

Andrew J Barnes

Caroline O Cobb

Nicole E Nicksic

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Objective: Cannabis policies are rapidly evolving in the US. This study's purpose was to examine relationships between cannabis harm perceptions, substance use, and demographic characteristics on attitudes toward cannabis policies.

Participants: Participants were 619 undergraduate students in a Mid-Atlantic state where cannabis use was illegal.

Methods: In 2016, participants completed a cross-sectional survey. Multinomial logistic regressions tested associations between attitudes toward cannabis policies (recreational cannabis use, use in private, or public) while controlling for harm perceptions, substance use, and demographics.

Results: The majority (64%) of participants supported recreational cannabis legalization, while 78% supported private and 29% supported public use. Perceiving cannabis as less harmful and current cannabis use were positively associated with supporting all three cannabis policies.

Conclusions: Results highlight diversity of young adults' opinions regarding specific cannabis policies and underscore relationships between cannabis use behaviors, harm perceptions, and support for legalization that may inform policy making and prevention efforts.

Citing Articles

Impact of Legalization on Cannabis Use, Attitudes, and Purchasing Preferences: A Repeated Cross-Sectional Survey of Canadian Young Adults.

Bradley A, Salmon M, Wohl M, Howard A Cannabis. 2024; 7(2):65-76.

PMID: 38975596 PMC: 11225976. DOI: 10.26828/cannabis/2024/000203.

Trends in public attitudes to permitting cannabis for recreational use: analysis of Irish survey data since 2002.

Mongan D, Millar S, ODwyer C, Galvin B, Smyth B Eur J Public Health. 2023; 33(4):627-632.

PMID: 37029920 PMC: 10393474. DOI: 10.1093/eurpub/ckad054.

Impacts of recreational cannabis legalization on use and harms: A narrative review of sex/gender differences.

Matheson J, Le Foll B Front Psychiatry. 2023; 14:1127660.

PMID: 36970279 PMC: 10036775. DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1127660.

Validation of a new instrument for assessing attitudes on psychedelics in the general population.

Zuljevic M, Buljan I, Leskur M, Kaliterna M, Hren D, Duplancic D Sci Rep. 2022; 12(1):18225.

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Acceptance towards decriminalization of medical marijuana among adults in Selangor, Malaysia.

Dapari R, Mahfot M, Nashriq Mohd Nazan A, Hassan M, Dom N, Syed Abdul Rahim S PLoS One. 2022; 17(2):e0262819.

PMID: 35143493 PMC: 8830660. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0262819.

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