New Research Looks at the Growing Acceptance of Cannabis

New research offers how cannabis can replace the “bad” associations to draw more attention to policymakers and consumers. This research is from Ashlee Humphreys,  associate professor of marketing at Kellogg School of Management, and her colleagues in the Journal of Consumer Research.

A brief overview from Professor Humphreys is below and interviews available upon request. Thank you. 

Journal of Consumer Research.
We all know that when a market becomes “legal” it opens up opportunities for sale and purchase.  But the process toward “acceptance” of a market is usually much longer and winding.  In this paper, we find that how products look, feel, and smell play an important role in how “acceptable” people—both consumers and non-consumers—find the market to be.

AIn our study of the  cannabis market in four US states from 2014 to 2019, which involved interviewing consumers, conducting surveys, and analyzing media, we find that products in the market began to evolve to be more congruent with products from other markets that consumers know and with which they are comfortable.  No more smoking joints – edibles, lotions and patches were the hot spots for market growth. When we talk to consumers, they describe how these new kinds of products seem more familiar, changed their previously “bad” associations with the cannabis market, and helped them integrate them into their everyday practices.  These new products also helped consumers explain their choices to friends and family.