Social Effects of Marijuana
In the twenty-first century, marijuana remains to be a controversial drug. Marijuana is a psychoactive drug obtained from a cannabis plant, and it is used for medical and recreational purposes. Marijuana is an illicit drug that is commonly used around the globe. According to health experts, marijuana has been named among the drugs that change an individual’s mood and affects several organs in the body. The social effects of marijuana can either be positive or negative. Positive effects of marijuana are hard to see and can go unnoticed in a group of people. Negatives effects of marijuana are easy to notice and its effects can motivate a person to seek help.
Negative Effects of Marijuana
One of the known social effects of marijuana is an increase in criminal activity (Kepple and Freisthler 2012). Most young people who use marijuana participates in a robbery. Researchers believe that crime will go down by people reducing the taking of marijuana. There is a direct connection between marijuana use and crime. Marijuana users are believed to be violent towards other people their families and are associated with property crime around the globe. Analysis suggests that users of marijuana are higher likely to commit a crime than non-marijuana users. Marijuana has also economic impact. Employees who use marijuana can have a negative impact on businesses (Stringham et al. 2017). Employees who use marijuana can sometimes steal cash or supplies. They can also steal equipment used in business and sell them to get money to buy marijuana.
Positive Effects of Marijuana
Marijuana has positive effects. One of the positive effect is connecting people (Vara 2016).In the process of sellers marketing their products, it makes them connect with the buyers. The participants view marijuana as a key element of their social life. They see marijuana as a bonding element that brings them together. Drugs trafficking and using is seen as their agent of excitement and connects them socially. Also when the users of marijuana participate in crime together it solidifies their social life. Moreover, consumption of marijuana tends to impact the working rate of an individual since it is a stimulant drug thus increasing the productivity of an organization (Tzilos et al. 2014). This affects society by increased product supply.
To conclude, as discussed above, marijuana affects society both negatively and positively. However, the negative effects are much more than the positive effects. The reason why marijuana is considered an illicit drug in many countries is that it has more negative effects on individual users and society. The abolition of marijuana consumption in the society will help decreases the mentioned negative effects and thus creating a healthy society.
References
Kepple, N. J., & Freisthler, B. (2012). Exploring the ecological association between crime and medical marijuana dispensaries. Journal of studies on alcohol and drugs, 73(4), 523-530.
Stringham, C., Allard, I., Knapp, S., & Minor, M. (2017). Medical marijuana in the work place: keeping small business informed. Small Business Institute Journal, 13(1), 16-29.
Tzilos, G. K., Reddy, M. K., Caviness, C. M., Anderson, B. J., & Stein, M. D. (2014). Getting higher: co-occurring drug use among marijuana-using emerging adults. Journal of addictive diseases, 33(3), 202-209.
Vara, V. (2016). The Art of Marketing Marijuana. The Atlantic.