Marijuana users are usually portrayed as lazy. Could this stereotype be false?
The study showed that marijuana users are no less most likely to be encouraged or able to take pleasure in lifes pleasure..
According to a brand-new research study, marijuana users of any ages disappear likely than non-users to lack inspiration or be unable to appreciate lifes enjoyments, showing that the stereotype often depicted in the media has no clinical basis.
Furthermore, compared to non-users, marijuana users show no distinctions in reward-seeking inspiration, satisfaction from rewards, or the brains action to benefits.
After alcohol and nicotine, marijuana is the 3rd frequently utilized controlled substance globally. According to 2018 research from the NHS Digital Lifestyles Team, 19% of 15-year-olds in England reported using marijuana in the previous year. This number was higher in the United States, with the National Institute on Drug Abuse reporting that 28% of 15 to 16-year-olds used marijuana in the previous 12 months in 2020.
Dr. Will Lawn, from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience at Kings College London, said: “Theres been a lot of concern that marijuana use in adolescence may lead to even worse outcomes than cannabis use throughout the adult years. Our study, one of the first to directly compare teenagers and adults who use cannabis, recommends that teenagers are no more susceptible than grownups to the harmful results of cannabis on motivation, the experience of enjoyment, or the brains response to reward. Skumlien added: “Were so used to seeing lazy stoners on our screens that we dont stop to ask whether theyre an accurate representation of marijuana users. Professor Barbara Sahakian, from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, stated: “Our proof indicates that marijuana use does not appear to have a result on inspiration for recreational users. Until we have future research studies that follow teen users, starting from beginning through to young the adult years, and which combine measures of motivation and brain imaging, we can not figure out for specific that regular cannabis usage will not adversely impact motivation and the establishing brain.”.
The “stoner” is a widespread stereotype of cannabis smokers; believe Jesse Pinkman in Breaking Bad, The Dude in The Big Lebowski, or, more just recently, Argyle in Stranger Things. These are people who are typically portrayed as lazy and uncaring.
At the very same time, there has actually been a good deal of worry about the possible effects of marijuana use on the growing brain and the possibility that consuming cannabis throughout teenage years may have negative effects at an essential time in a persons life.
A research study was performed to determine whether cannabis users exhibit greater levels of apathy (loss of motivation) and anhedonia (loss of interest in or satisfaction from rewards) when compared to controls and whether they were less going to exert physical effort to get a benefit. The research study was led by a group of scientists from University College London, the University of Cambridge, and the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & & Neuroscience at Kings College London. The research study was part of the CannTEEN research study.
The findings were recently released in the International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology.
The team recruited 274 adult and adolescent cannabis users who had actually used cannabis a minimum of weekly over the past 3 months, with an average of 4 days each week, and matched them with non-users of the same age and gender.
Individuals completed surveys to measure anhedonia, inquiring to rate declarations such as “I would enjoy being with family or buddies”. They likewise completed questionnaires to measure their levels of apathy, which asked to rate characteristics such as how interested they were in discovering brand-new things or how most likely they were to see a job through to the end.
Marijuana users scored slightly lower than non-users on anhedonia– simply put, they appeared much better able to enjoy themselves– however there was no considerable distinction when it came to lethargy. The researchers also discovered no link between the frequency of marijuana usage and either apathy or anhedonia in individuals who utilized cannabis.
Martine Skumlien, a Ph.D. candidate in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, stated: “We were amazed to see that there was really very little distinction in between marijuana users and non-users when it pertained to lack of motivation or lack of enjoyment, even amongst those who utilized marijuana every day. This is contrary to the stereotyped portrayal we see on TV and in films.”.
In basic, adolescents tended to score higher than adults on anhedonia and apathy in both user and non-user groups, but cannabis usage did not augment this distinction.
Dr. Will Lawn, from the Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience at Kings College London, said: “Theres been a lot of concern that cannabis usage in adolescence may lead to worse results than marijuana usage during adulthood. Our research study, one of the very first to directly compare grownups and adolescents who use marijuana, suggests that adolescents are no more susceptible than grownups to the harmful results of marijuana on motivation, the experience of pleasure, or the brains response to reward.
There were 3 trouble levels and 3 reward levels; more tough trials required quicker button pressing. On each trial the individual could choose to turn down the offer or accept; points were just accrued if the trial was accepted and finished.
In a second task, determining how much enjoyment they received from rewards, participants were first informed to estimate just how much they wanted to receive each of three benefits (30 seconds of among their favorite songs, one piece of chocolate or a sweet, and a ₤ 1 coin) on a scale from “do not want at all” to “extremely desire”. They then received each benefit in turn and were asked to rate how satisfying they found them on a scale from “do not like at all” to “intensely like”.
The scientists found no distinction between non-users and users or between age groups on either the physical effort job or the real reward satisfaction job, confirming evidence from other research studies that discovered no, or very little, difference.
Skumlien included: “Were so used to seeing lazy stoners on our screens that we do not stop to ask whether theyre a precise representation of marijuana users. Our work indicates that this is in itself a lazy stereotype and that people who use cannabis are no more likely to lack motivation or be lazier than people who dont.
Earlier this year, the team released a study that used practical magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) to take a look at brain activity in the very same individuals as they took part in a brain imaging task determining benefit processing. The job involved participants seeing orange or blue squares while in the scanner. The orange squares would result in a monetary benefit, after a delay, if the participant made a reaction.
The scientists used this setup to examine how the brain responds to rewards, focusing in particular on the forward striatum, a key area in the brains benefit system. They found no relationship between activity in this area and cannabis usage, recommending that marijuana users had similar reward systems as non-users.
Professor Barbara Sahakian, from the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Cambridge, stated: “Our evidence shows that marijuana usage does not appear to have an effect on inspiration for leisure users. Until we have future research study studies that follow adolescent users, starting from beginning through to young their adult years, and which combine steps of inspiration and brain imaging, we can not determine for specific that regular marijuana usage will not negatively effect motivation and the establishing brain.”.
References:.
” Anhedonia, lethargy, satisfaction, and effort-based decision-making in adult and teen cannabis users and controls” by Martine Skumlien, MRes, Claire Mokrysz, Ph.D., Tom P Freeman, Ph.D., Vincent Valton, Ph.D., Matthew B Wall, Ph.D., Michael Bloomfield, Ph.D., Rachel Lees, MSc, Anna Borissova, MBBS, Kat Petrilli, MRes, Manuela Giugliano, MSc, Denisa Clisu, MSci, Christelle Langley, Ph.D., Barbara J Sahakian, Ph.D. DSc, H Valerie Curran, Ph.D. and Will Lawn, Ph.D., 24 August 2022, International Journal of Neuropsychopharmacology.DOI: 10.1093/ ijnp/pyac056.
” Neural responses to reward anticipation and feedback in adult and teen cannabis users and controls” by Martine Skumlien, Claire Mokrysz, Tom P. Freeman, Matthew B. Wall, Michael Bloomfield, Rachel Lees, Anna Borissova, Kat Petrilli, James Carson, Tiernan Coughlan, Shelan Ofori, Christelle Langley, Barbara J. Sahakian, H. Valerie Curran and Will Lawn, 6 April 2022, Neuropsychopharmacology.DOI: 10.1038/ s41386-022-01316-2.
The research study was funded by the Medical Research Council with additional support from the Aker Foundation, National Institute for Health Research, and Wellcome.
