Most U.S. registered voters favor parental notification, community service and drug education over jail time when responding to attempted underage marijuana purchases, according to a new study published in the journal Substance Use & Misuse.
The study surveyed 1,502 registered voters recruited through a national online panel. Researchers examined public support for various consequences associated with underage marijuana possession, use, sales and attempts to purchase marijuana using false identification.
For attempted underage purchases, 79% of respondents supported notifying parents, while 64% favored community service and 58% supported drug education. Just 18% favored jail time.
Researchers also found that public attitudes differed depending on the specific marijuana-related behavior involved. Overall, 89% supported imposing some form of penalty for using false identification to obtain marijuana, while 84% supported penalties for selling marijuana to underage consumers.
Support was considerably lower when the behavior involved marijuana possession or use. Fifty-nine percent supported penalties for underage possession, while 57% supported penalties for underage marijuana use.
The researchers said differences in opinions were also observed based on age, sex, race and ethnicity, and whether respondents were parents.
The study was conducted by researchers affiliated with Partnership to End Addiction, West Virginia University, City University of New York School of Medicine and Cornell University.
“As adult nonmedical marijuana use becomes legal in many U.S. states, policymakers have adopted a range of responses to underage marijuana-related behaviors,” researchers noted.
The authors concluded that respondents generally favored supportive and health-focused responses, such as parental notification, education and community service, over more punitive approaches.
They said policies emphasizing those responses, along with stronger accountability for adults and marijuana businesses, may better reflect public attitudes toward protecting young people in states where recreational marijuana is legal.
The study, titled “Rethinking Punitive Responses to Underage Marijuana Use in the Era of Legalization: Insights from an Online Survey,” was based on an opt-in online panel, meaning the sample was not a randomly selected representative sample of all U.S. voters.
