CV NEWS FEED // Americans’ views on the effects of marijuana on society and users have become slightly more negative in recent years, a Gallup poll found.
Gallup data show that in 2022, 50% of Americans said that marijuana use negatively impacted society as a whole, while 53% said that marijuana had positive effects on users and 45% said it had negative effects.
The most recent data, collected from July 1 to 21, found that 54% of Americans said marijuana use negatively impacts society and 51% said it has negative impacts on users.
The respondents who said marijuana has a positive effect on users were more likely to be Democrats, non-religious, young adults, or people who had tried marijuana before. Republicans, religious people, adults over 55 years old, and those who never tried marijuana were significantly more likely to say that marijuana has negative effects on users.
However, when broken down into groups by religion, party, age, and those who have tried marijuana, each group saw support for marijuana use go down by at least five percentage points between 2022 and 2024.
Some groups, like adults aged 55 or older, Independents, and those who rarely or never attended religious services, dropped support for marijuana use by 12 or 13 percentage points in the same time frame.
Gallup also asked participants to rank the harmfulness of cigarettes, chewing tobacco, e-cigarettes, cigars, pipes, nicotine patches, alcohol, and marijuana. Respondents rated marijuana as the least harmful substance, with only 26% considering it to be “very harmful.”
“The public’s perceptions of the harmfulness of marijuana have worsened slightly since last year, when 23% viewed it as very and 35% somewhat harmful,” Gallup reported.
Cigarettes were ranked as the most harmful substance, with 79% of respondents calling them “very harmful.”
Gallup additionally found that only 13% of Americans say they smoke marijuana, down from 16 to 17% in 2022 and 2023.
