There may be no more solidified representation of a pothead than that of a lazy, long haired, couch-centric being.
However, a new study was just released that shows a lack of evidence supporting this.
According to the authors, past studies would show, at best, mixed results between weed and laziness, and were all targeted towards adults, who already had a stronger sense of self and routine. So they decided to study teenagers (ages 14-17) over time who were actively smoking marijuana. This makes way more sense, considering this is the period where a brain is still forming, and when marijuana could have the most impact in that formation.
“Our results do not support a prospective link between cannabis use and reduced motivation among adolescents,” says the conclusion of the study.
However, the study does emphasize that just because reduced motivation doesn’t seem to be a factor with marijuana use, a lower value put towards schooling does seem to be correlated with greater cannabis-use. At first glance this looks like it links itself to laziness pretty clearly, but there are many forms that that “lower value” can take, including alternative forms of education.
So all in all, this study can help break down those old assumptions towards marijuana smokers.
Check out the study here.
