Teen cannabis use and socioeconomic outcomes

A study explores links between cannabis use during adolescence, socioeconomic status in young adulthood, and long-term cognitive and psychological problems. Past studies have suggested a link between teen cannabis use and mental health problems, cognitive impairment, and lower socioeconomic attainment. However, whether cannabis use causes negative outcomes is unclear. Jonathan Schaefer and colleagues analyzed data from 3,762 twins who participated in three long-term studies. The authors focused on 364 pairs of identical twins with different levels of cannabis use during their teenage years to control for any effects of genetic and shared environmental factors on later outcomes. Teen cannabis use was associated with lower educational attainment, occupational status, and income in young adulthood, but not worse cognitive or psychological outcomes. Additional analyses suggested that the effect of teen cannabis use on later educational attainment is at least partly mediated by lower grade point average and reduced academic motivation in secondary school. According to the authors, the findings suggest that public health interventions aimed at decreasing teen cannabis use may improve socioeconomic outcomes but are unlikely to have a large, lasting impact on cognitive functioning or mental health.

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Article #20-13180:


“Associations between adolescent cannabis use and young-adult functioning in three longitudinal twin studies” by Jonathan Schaefer et al.

MEDIA CONTACT:


Jonathan Schaefer,

University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN;

tel: 215-237-6935;

email: <

[email protected]

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