Illicit Drug Use , Peer Attitudes , and Perceptions of Harmful Effects among Convicted Cannabis Offenders Written by Patricia Erickson Thursday

A sample of criminalized cannabis users provided information about their use of other illicit drugs and friends' attitudes toward various substances. The majority of those surveyed were regular, heavy users of cannabis, had friends who were similarly involved, and were more experienced with a variety of other illicit drugs than youthful groups from the larger population. In its perception of harmful effects of various substances, the offender sample held fairly conventional, high-risk views on opiates and amphetamines. Opinion was more divided over the psychedelics and cocaine. Cannabis was considered least harmful of all the other illicit drugs and alcohol. Those convicted of the offense of cannabis possession displayed the knowledgeable insider's perspective of a hierarchy of dangerousness for drugs that is at variance with their largely undifferentiated legal status. Criminal law statutes may recognize few distinctions between categories of prohibited drugs, and pharmacologists may stress the fine nuance of effects related to strength and dose. From the consumer perspective, drug users themselves may differentiate among various substances according to personal and shared experiences with the drugs. Such perceptions by users have implications both for legal change and drug use prevention programs that rely on educative measures.