The route of administration also affects motivation. As discussed earlier, edible forms of cannabis typically tend to be much stronger and last much longer than smokable forms . Many edible users experience extreme body and mental highs that leads to extreme lethargy. High-C, after I asked him why she smoked so much instead of just eating an edible that would last much longer told me that edibles were too strong and that he would be completely out of commission if he consumed cannabis too often. On the exact opposite spectrum, other users experience a jolt of energy when smoking cannabis. These users frequently use cannabis sativa. In a study conducted by Carlini and Kramer, rats performed better on maze trials after being injected with cannabis sativa. Depending on the type of strain and strength of the strain, sativa can be either mildly or extremely stimulating. Dorian took me on hikes with him. I never would have thought about using cannabis and exercising before his suggestion. It always seemed antithetical to the goal and practicality of exercise. After seeing Dorian smoke, I noticed an upbeat mentality and a somewhat jittery disposition. I am used to seeing users smoke, taking 30 or 40 minutes to smoke, and then getting so tired after smoking that they do not want to do anything. Dorian on the other hand, commercial racks suggested that this strain of cannabis made him want to get outside and gave him an extreme amount of energy. He told me about a website/podcast called the StonedHiker.com. This website discusses different forms of cannabis strains that are mentally stimulating and are useful for exercise.
Sativa and hiking is particularly effective, according to Dorian, because it stimulates the mind and body while allowing for an upbeat, unique and pleasurable outlook on the surrounding landscape. Dorian was not the only user that uses cannabis sativa for stimulation. Natty told me about a patient in his early 40s who used cannabis as a way to deal with back pain while working. He previously used cannabis at home after work, but he needed pain relief while at work but I couldn’t deal with the draining effects of opiates or most cannabis. Sativa was a godsend when he found it. It kept his mood and energy elevated the entire day. Unfortunately, there is no way to completely predict the effect of a particular cannabis strain, and many users find that sativa and indica are not mutually exclusive and the effects are not as simplistic as one would hope. Cannabis growth is still an unregulated industry in the U.S. and the quality and potency of cannabis is inconsistent at best. Moreover, the prohibition of cannabis has produced a system where scientific study of cannabis is still underdeveloped. One user, a 25-year-old female patient Dorian told me about had to take Xanax mixed with indica at night sometimes because the indica was too stimulating for her and she would stay up until 4am some nights after smoking stimulating indica. Likewise, many sativa users claim they need to be careful and test their sativa because of the risk that it may put them to sleep, or make them drowsy when they have something to do during the day. Nico Escondido , a High Times journalist suggests that our common understandings of the distinction between Sativas and Indicas are wrong. He suggest that terpenoids, which are organic chemical compounds produced by plants, may be responsible for the variations in effects from onestrain to another. Terpenes such as Myrcene are found in strains of cannabis that produce the stoned “couch lock” effect. Myrcene is also present in hops and is often credited with the sedated feeling that comes from drinking hoppy beers.
Other factors such as setting can affect motivation and user experience in general. Some people use cannabis during parties to calm social anxiety, others use cannabis to provide a jolt of energy when partying, while others like to sit and watch TV and go to sleep while under the influence. The effect of cannabis is not always what the user expects or hopes for sometimes, but experienced users know how to alter their consumption to fit their individual needs. Thus, cannabis is used in a variety of settings for a variety of reasons, and the expectations and settings are many times just as relevant as the cannabis itself. Back to the original question, is the anti-motivation syndrome real? The answer is not a simple yes or no. It is certainly the case that cannabis has the ability to affect a user’s motivation to succeed at work, take care of themselves and thrive. However, the negative perception of such an act is more indicative of a workaholic, consumerist, conformist and irrationally rational bureaucratic society than an indication about anything negative about the cannabis plant itself. Yes, cannabis can lead to less motivation to work and make money, but since when did work and money become the ultimate goal? This is perhaps most indicative in my opinion of the anti-cannabis camp. The uncritical acceptance of social conformity to the logics of capitalism, consumerism, materialism and work blinds individuals to the reality of cannabis as a unique plant that has the ability to change one’s perspective on the world in contradiction to the logic of a workaholic capitalist model. Thus, cannabis opponents typically point to the dangers of cannabis to society, such as demotivation without critically examining the direction society is going. This is characteristic of the conservative ethnocentric views of the world that the way things are is the way things should be. Cannabis has the ability to change minds and this in my opinion is the real threat that conservatives, politicians, and capitalist fear that people will not blindly follow the logic of the system set up to exploit and oppress them. Furthermore, it must also be noted that cannabis can have the exact opposite effect of anti-motivation.
Many users have told me that cannabis, and particular cannabis sativa, has a stimulating effect on par with coffee and tea. Likewise, many users state that cannabis increases their motivation to succeed at work, and leads to a type of near paranoia about one’s life and ones direction in life. Cannabis may occasionally lead to lack of work, but it also leads to less crime and less violence. Researchers found that for couples, marijuana use is inversely related to intimate partner violence . Similarly, researchers studying the effect of medical marijuana laws found that crime was not exacerbated by reforming medical marijuana and pointed to the fact that medical marijuana laws may be correlated with a reduction in homicide and assault rates . Goldstein found that, early studies that sought to attribute violent behavior to the use of opiates and marijuana have been largely discredited. Indeed, cannabis has been historically recognized as a peaceful substance as Indian’s refer to it as “Sattvik Nasha” translated as “the peaceful intoxicant” . Furthermore, Goldstein suggest some drug may have reverse psychopharmacological effect and may ameliorate violent tendencies . In my own study, I cannot think of a single instance in which I saw any act of violence out of the group or their associates and customers. In fact, my interviews with TBC and Natty suggest that cannabis was used to control violent impulses. TBC explained, “I’m kinda an asshole without weed. I would have fought these guys already if it wasn’t for weed.” In a similar vein, Natty confided that he did not like to drink with High-C because he was a violent drunk. Smoking helped them to maintain group interaction without conflict. However, in TBC’s case, it was never truly clear if cannabis mellowed him out, or if the addiction he developed from cannabis made him agitated and restless when not smoking. Although they participate in a semi-illegal activity, greenhouse rolling benches violence is relatively nonexistent, but always possible in their lives. What is particularly striking is the relative banality of the Kings’ behaviors and lives. When interviewing the Kings I was expecting to hear a bottom to top Scarface type story. What I got was a story of stoner hippies that seem eccentric yet ordinary in practically every way. In fact, other than the fact that cannabis and other drugs are illegal, and the occasional driving under the influence, I cannot think of a single criminal act these individuals participated in while the study was ongoing. The main proponents of “problem-prone behavior theory,” Jessor and Jessor , indicate that drug users, in comparison with those that do not partake in drug use, tend to be rebellious, hold unconventional attitudes, and are much more willing to take risks. Although these personality characteristics can frequently manifest themselves as artistic and creative in nature, Jessor and Jessor contend that these characteristics, more often than not, manifest themselves in ways that become problematic for both the individual and society. Examples of this could be deviant sexual behavior, underachievement in school and the likelihood of delinquent and criminal behavior. Jessor and Jessor explain the drug user’s personality as, “concerned with personal autonomy, a lack of interest in the goals of conventional society, and a more tolerant view of transgression” . As Jessor and Jessor explain marijuana use, “the differences between users and non-users might be termed conventionality unconventionality” .
Consistent with this theory, the group I seek to studied fit the mold of a counterculture in that they reject the norms of mainstream society and believe they are actively undermining “the system” through the sale and use of pot. Yet Jessor and Jessor consider behavior such as deviant sexual practices and underachievement in school or at the job injurious to society. This view is emblematic of the extremely conservative and conformist nature of most criminological theories. In contrast, I argue that what are termed by Jessor and Jessor as problematic behaviors such as deviant sexual practices and underachievement in school or jobs are themselves, a form of social expression. Deviant sexual practices are more of a cultural prescription that any inherent moral right or wrong. Likewise, schooling, in particular K-12 is in my opinion, more of a mechanism designed to promote conformity, obedience and docility to the capitalist system than it is a mechanism to enlighten minds and engender creative expression. Moreover, the Eurocentric curriculum does as much to reproduce race class and gender inequality than it does to change the structure.Another theory relevant to my dissertation is Robert Merton’s anomie theory. Without drawing out the various dimensions of Merton’s anomie theory, the two elements that have been considered particularly useful for an understanding of substance use are, “retreatism” and “innovation.” Cloward and Ohlin utilize retreatism when explaining drug addicts. From Cloward and Ohlin’s standpoint, the drug addict represents the double failure in Merton’s taxonomies. The drug addict failed to achieve the American dream through both legitimate and illegal means, and consequently, has retreated into a life of resignation and addiction. The other aspect of Merton’s theory, innovation, appears to at least partially explain the decision to sell, produce, or transport drugs. The ability to cut different forms of drugs, disguise the transportation of drugs, and sell without getting caught is certainly an innovative process. William Julius Wilson , in When Work Disappears, agrees with this line of reasoning. He argues that high levels of drug selling activity within poor inner-city neighborhood is related to a lack of social organization within those areas. Social disorganization theory posits that as neighborhoods loose resources and the positive social organizations and role models the society becomes disorganized. As neighborhoods become disorganized, the traditional mechanisms of social control, schools, families, police lose their effectiveness in maintaining social order. In addition to the lack of resources to maintain social cohesion in the community, a profound loss of trust in traditional mechanisms of social control arises and a breakdown occurs. This was documented in Anderson’s The Code of the Street, where a violent street culture arose to govern interpersonal communication on the streets of Philadelphia. High rates of joblessness and closed economic opportunities due to racism feed drug trafficking crime and other types of gang violence. Attempts to lock up drug dealers usually fail to stem the violence as the structure that gave rise to the problem remains in tact. Dohan’s study of a Mexican barrio also illustrates how many individuals cut out of the formal economy, view drug dealing as a path towards upward mobility. Particularly in the barrio of Chávez drug dealing, stripping cars and peddling stolen merchandise was common.