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Cannabis Use And Its Effects On Health, Education And Labor Market Success

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  • Jan C. Ours
  • Jenny Williams

Abstract

Cannabis is the most popular illegal drug. Its legal status is typically justified on the grounds that cannabis use has harmful consequences. Empirically investigating this issue has been a fertile topic for research in recent times. We provide an overview of this literature, focusing on studies which seek to establish the causal effect of cannabis use on health, education, and labor market success. We conclude that there do not appear to be serious harmful health effects of moderate cannabis use. Nevertheless, there is evidence of reduced mental well-being for heavy users who are susceptible to mental health problems. While there is robust evidence that early cannabis use reduces educational attainment, there remains substantial uncertainty as to whether using cannabis has adverse labor market effects.

Suggested Citation

  • Jan C. Ours & Jenny Williams, 2015. "Cannabis Use And Its Effects On Health, Education And Labor Market Success," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 29(5), pages 993-1010, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jecsur:v:29:y:2015:i:5:p:993-1010
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    Cited by:

    1. Williams, Jenny & van Ours, Jan C., 2017. "Early Cannabis Use and School to Work Transition of Young Men," IZA Discussion Papers 10488, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Palali, A. & van Ours, J.C., 2014. "Cannabis Use and Support for Cannabis Legalization," Other publications TiSEM cad6f763-47b8-402e-99fc-9, Tilburg University, School of Economics and Management.
    3. Ali Palali & Jan C. Ours, 2017. "Cannabis use and support for cannabis legalization," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 53(4), pages 1747-1770, December.
    4. Mezza, Alvaro & Buchinsky, Moshe, 2021. "Illegal drugs, education, and labor market outcomes," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 223(2), pages 454-484.
    5. Moschion, Julie & van Ours, Jan C., 2019. "Do childhood experiences of parental separation lead to homelessness?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 211-236.
    6. Williams, Jenny & Bretteville-Jensen, Anne Line, 2022. "What's Another Day? The Effects of Wait Time for Substance Abuse Treatment on Health-Care Utilization, Employment and Crime," IZA Discussion Papers 15083, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Jenny Williams & Jan C. van Ours, 2020. "Hazardous or not? Cannabis use and early labor market experiences of young men," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 29(10), pages 1148-1160, October.
    8. Sabia, Joseph J. & Nguyen, Thanh Tam, 2016. "The Effect of Medical Marijuana Laws on Labor Market Outcomes," IZA Discussion Papers 9831, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    9. Cervený, J. & van Ours, J.C. & Chomynova, Pavla & Mravcik, Viktor, 2015. "Cannabis Decriminalization and the Age of Onset of Cannabis Use," Discussion Paper 2015-007, Tilburg University, Center for Economic Research.
    10. Bruijn, L. Michelle & Ribas, Rafael P., 2022. "“No drugs in my back yard:” The ambivalent reception of cannabis retailers," Journal of Economic Behavior & Organization, Elsevier, vol. 199(C), pages 103-121.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I20 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - General
    • J10 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - General

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