Stoners aren't lazy Fifth Ave Green House

Here's proof that stoners aren't lazy.

New research says: “Cannabis users are no more likely than non-users to be unmotivated or lazy.”

The stereotype of the “lazy stoner” goes back almost a century and its spread was thanks to none other than Harry Anslinger himself. The first administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), then known as the Federal Drug Administration's FBN, who gave us racist propaganda like “Reefer Madness,” is also responsible for the myth of the lazy stoner.

While we've moved past the idea that smoking marijuana can send someone on a mindless killing spree, the idea of ​​lazy, unmotivated drug users has persisted for decades.

But in this relatively new era of marijuana legalization, the old myths and stereotypes are being eroded as research into the plant increases.

The results of such a study, published in the summer of 2022, could finally debunk the “lazy stoner” stereotype.

The study, “Anhedonia, apathy, pleasure, and effort-based decision making in adult and adolescent cannabis users and controls,” was published in the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology. It was led by researchers from the University of Cambridge, King's College London and University College London.

A few facts from the “Lazy Stoner” study

• Data comes from the CannTeen study of chronic cannabis use and cognitive function.
• Number of participants: 274
• Age of participants: 16-29
• 139 of the participants were teenagers.
• 135 participants were adults.
• Frequency of cannabis use: 1-7 days per week for three months.
• Adult participants were excluded if they had regularly used cannabis before the age of 18.

The study specifically examined the claim that “cannabis use may be associated with anhedonia and apathy.” It examined “the relationships between non-acute cannabis use and apathy, anhedonia, pleasure, and performance-based reward decisions and whether these relationships are moderated by age group.”

For those wondering, anhedonia is described as the inability to experience pleasure. Think of it as a general weariness that doesn't come from an illness like depression. Apathy is a lack of interest in activities, people and things, as well as a general lack of enthusiasm.

“Our results suggest that cannabis use at a frequency of three to four days per week was not associated with apathy, performance-based reward decision making, reward desire, or reward preference in adults or adolescents,” the researchers write.

The study began with the hypothesis that cannabis users would show higher levels of anhedonia and apathy compared to controls. The researchers also hypothesized that cannabis users would make less effort to obtain, or even subjectively want, a reward compared to controls.

However, the researchers reported that their results contradicted the original hypothesis.

The researchers found that cannabis users had lower levels of anhedonia than controls, although the effect was small. These results contradict the hypothesis that non-acute cannabis use is associated with motivation.

The study speculates that cannabis may increase reward behavior or that “people who are more likely to seek pleasure are also more likely to use cannabis.”

The influence of cannabis stereotypes

The study also suggests that years of stereotyping may cause cannabis users to become highly aware of how lazy they are perceived, which could motivate participants to engage in psychological studies, potentially biasing the present results.

But Martine Skumlien, a researcher at the University of Cambridge, later said of the study: “We've become so used to seeing 'lazy stoners' on our screens that we can't stop asking whether they're an accurate representation of cannabis .” User.

Our work suggests that this is itself a laziness stereotype and that people who use cannabis are no more likely to be unmotivated or lazy than people who do not use cannabis.”

Fighting stigma with science

It's refreshing to see scientific research confirming what many stoners have been saying for a long time.

The study ends on a positive note: “Cannabis use has historically been associated with amotivation, as reflected in the pervasive, derogatory 'lazy stoner' stereotype. This study counters the stereotype with data showing a relatively large group of users.” Adult and adolescent cannabis users and controls did not differ on several measures of reward and motivation.

“Our findings add to the growing body of evidence that non-acute cannabis use is not associated with amotivation, which may help reduce stigmatization of people who use cannabis.”

And we have some concrete evidence of this

Dispel the myths, fabrications and general scapegoating of stoners for all of society's ills that has persisted for so long.

The scars of the past are overcome and banished into history where they belong.

We are finally entering a new era of cannabis where people are well informed about the positive effects it can bring. That people who smoke cannabis can lead healthy and productive lives.