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Cannabis use and violent behavior

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 September 2022

M. Roque Gonçalves ,
A. Elias De Sousa ,
A.S. Machado ,
A. Silva  and
M. Vieira-Coelho
M. Roque Gonçalves*
Affiliation:
Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, Serviço De Psiquiatria, Porto, Portugal
A. Elias De Sousa
Affiliation:
Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, Serviço De Psiquiatria, Porto, Portugal
A.S. Machado
Affiliation:
Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, Serviço De Psiquiatria, Porto, Portugal FMUP, Departamento De Neurociências Clínicas E Saúde Mental, Porto, Portugal
A. Silva
Affiliation:
Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, Serviço De Psiquiatria, Porto, Portugal FMUP, Departamento De Neurociências Clínicas E Saúde Mental, Porto, Portugal
M. Vieira-Coelho
Affiliation:
Centro Hospitalar Universitário de São João, Serviço De Psiquiatria, Porto, Portugal FMUP, Biomedicina, Porto, Portugal
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

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Introduction

Cannabis is the most commonly used psychoactive drug, particularly among adolescents and young adults. Accordingly, to the European Drug Report 2021, the prevalence of cannabis use is about five times that of other substances, so that last year cannabis use among EU inhabitants aged 15 to 24y is estimated at 19.2 %. Even though most human research has concluded that Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), tends to dampen rather than provoke aggression in acute doses, recent evidence suggests a relationship between cannabis usage and violent behavior, especially when associated with neurodevelopment stages.

Objectives

To review the existing evidence on the association between cannabis and violence in young adults and provide an overview of possible mechanisms explaining this relation.

Methods

Literature review was based on PubMed/ MEDLINE, using key words inclusive for violence, cannabis and adolescence. Studies included focused the young-adults population and considered the relation between cannabis use and behaviors reported as acts of physical violence. Studies were excluded if they included self-harm behaviors.

Results

Recent studies, including case-reports, showed a global moderate association between cannabis use and violence. Preliminary data has even highlighted a potential larger effect in more frequent users. Also, the cannabis role in the central nervous system (CNS), with most expression in the limbic cortices, and especially as it participates in a variety of brain function modulations - including executive functions, inhibition/impulsivity, and emotional control, has been pointed as one of the main arguments for this relation.

Conclusions

Further studies may shed light on the effects of cannabis use on behavior.

Disclosure

No significant relationships.

Keywords

CannabisTHCyoung-adultsviolence
Type
Abstract
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 65 , Special Issue S1: Abstracts of the 30th European Congress of Psychiatry , June 2022 , pp. S834
Creative Commons
Creative Common License - CCCreative Common License - BY
This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution licence (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright
© The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the European Psychiatric Association
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