A new Pew Research Center survey of 25 countries found Americans are among the least likely in the world to say using marijuana is morally wrong, underscoring how far public attitudes in the U.S. have shifted as legalization spreads across the country.
According to the survey, 23% of U.S. adults said marijuana use is morally unacceptable, while 76% said it is either morally acceptable or not a moral issue. Among the 25 countries included in the poll, only Canada had a lower share of adults saying marijuana use is morally wrong, at 19%. The 25-country median was 52%, putting the U.S. far below the global midpoint on moral opposition to marijuana.
The results place the U.S. alongside a small group of countries where moral objections to marijuana use are relatively uncommon. By comparison, 24% in Australia and 25% in Germany said marijuana use is morally unacceptable, while the figure climbed to 50% in Italy, 56% in Mexico, 59% in Sweden, 80% in South Korea, 82% in Turkey, 83% in Nigeria and 93% in Indonesia.
Pew said older adults were more likely than younger adults to say marijuana use is morally wrong in 19 of the 25 countries surveyed. The report also found that adults with less education were more likely to view marijuana use as morally unacceptable, including in places such as the U.S., Canada and Germany where overall opposition was relatively low. Women, meanwhile, tended to be more likely than men to say marijuana use is morally unacceptable.
The broader survey found Americans were also among the most accepting of gambling, with just 29% saying it is morally wrong. But on marijuana, the findings are especially notable given that the U.S. was once far more punitive in both law and public opinion. The new numbers suggest that for most Americans, marijuana use is no longer seen primarily as a moral issue.
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