Digital Commons Network^™

A Statewide Study Of Disparities In Local Policies And Tobacco, Vape, And Cannabis Retail Environments, Georgiana Bostean, William R. Ponicki, Alisa A. Padon, William J. Mccarthy, Jennifer B. Unger

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

The current study: (1) assesses sociodemographic disparities in local policies related to tobacco and cannabis retail, and (2) examines the cross-sectional association between policy strength and retailer densities of tobacco, e-cigarette (vape), and cannabis retailers within California cities and county unincorporated areas (N = 539). We combined (a) American Community Survey data (2019 5-year estimates), (b) 2018 tobacco, vape, and cannabis retailer locations from a commercial data provider, (c) 2017 tobacco and vape retail environment policy data from American Lung Association, and (d) 2018 cannabis policy data from California Cannabis Local Laws Database. Conditional autoregressive models examined policy strength associations …

Cannabis, Communities, And Place: (Re)Constructing Humboldt’S Post-Prohibition Present, Josh Meisel, Dominic Corva, Ara Pachmayer

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

Since 1990, many Cal Poly Humboldt faculty and students have made cannabis the focus of scholarship and learning. This work has been shaped by the political, economic, and cultural legacies of cannabis in Humboldt County. Scholarly interest spans multiple dimensions of cannabis cultivation, commerce, consumption, and related social issues. As a multidisciplinary team of scholars, Cal Poly Humboldt faculty affiliated with the Humboldt Institute for Interdisciplinary Marijuana Research (HIIMR) have also shaped the Bachelor of Arts in Cannabis Studies that will launch in Fall 2023. This is the first social science degree program in the United States with this orientation. …

The Socio-Political History Of Cannabis In Costa Rica, Winston C. Grady

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

The socio-political history of cannabis in Costa Rica is one of external global influence; from colonization to independence; from neocolonialism to neoliberalism. Cannabis in Costa Rica has gone from failed agricultural crop to non-indigenous intoxicant import to controversial cultural mainstay. As Mexico influenced cannabis prohibition in the United States, so too has the U.S. approach to cannabis prohibition influenced Costa Rica. Costa Rica now grapples with attempting to reorient its general anti-cannabis status quo to one of regulated marketplace acceptance. My research findings indicate that cannabis originally entered Costa Rica in the late 19^th century by way of imported …

At The End Of The Day We All Want To Get High, Karolina Barrientos

Senior Theses and Projects

The consumption of cannabis is nothing new to college campuses and with the legalization of cannabis in Connecticut, it will for certain continue at Trinity College. However historically research centered on cannabis has focused on its negative impacts and not on its benefits or its impact on positive experiences. In examining my habitus, Trinity College, through a sociological lens, I wanted to examine the interactions once builds on campus in relation to cannabis and uncover is it is racialized in any way. Trinity as inherent white supremacist institution, and the experiences of students of color often differ from their white …

Cannabis For Therapeutic Purposes: Older Adult Perspectives, User Characteristics And Motivations For Use, Lean Fiedeldey

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Use of cannabis among adults 55 years of age and older is increasing. In Q4 of 2018, slightly over half of cannabis users used for therapeutic purposes at least once, where many reported using for both medical and non-medical reasons (mixed use). Research on older adults regarding the use of Cannabis for Therapeutic Purposes (CTP) is fragmented and there are no comprehensive or in-depth studies on their perceptions or self-reported motivations. Understanding in these areas is important to inform policy that takes the protection of public health and safety as central aims. Does policy affect one of, if not both, …

Cannabis And Its Historical Role In America’S Intentional Segregation Of Race, William E. Kelley

Student Publications

One of the more dramatic shifts in attitudes towards a particular trend or culture we have seen during the turn of the century is none other than attitudes towards marijuana. The Cannabis plant, commonly known as marijuana, has been illegal in the United States for a while now. In the past ten years, we have seen an influx of states and countries relaxing their attitudes towards marijuana, and it's potential benefits. While this shift in attitude towards a relatively harmless drug is a step in the right direction, many are unaware of the sinister and racist history behind outlawing the …

Medical Cannabis And Recreational Marijuana: Patient Perceptions, Stigma, And Gender During A Time Of Emerging Legalization, Matt Reid

Dissertations

Marijuana’s status as an illegal drug has been redefined over the previous three decades. Despite Michigan and 32 other states having comprehensive medical cannabis programs, both academics and laypeople commonly present the medicalization of marijuana as an intermediary phase or proxy for fully legalized recreational use. While some evidence exists to support this position, this framework marginalizes the struggles and experiences of patients who have found relief through their therapeutic use of cannabis. As such, the goal of this study is to re-center the voices of cannabis patients in academic conversations of cannabis as medicine.

My study is unique in …

Attitudes Toward Marijuana Legalization: Temporal And Thematic Trends, Daniel James Krystosek

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This dissertation examines historical changes in marijuana legalization attitudes between 1974 – 2018, using a qualitative study of pro-legalization social movements in marijuana culture and quantitative analyses of measures from the General Social Survey (GSS). The main research question asks what themes have been prevalent in pro-legalization social movements (e.g., libertarianism, anti-establishment and anti-drug-war, medical/cancer patient advocacy, market incentives), how these themes have changed over the past several decades, and whether they connect to trends in legalization attitudes in the (GSS).

The first part of this study is qualitative, employing thematic content analysis of the most prominent national pro-marijuana publication. …

A Challenge To Socio-Ecological Resilience: Community Based Resource Management Organizations’ Perceptions And Responses To Cannabis Cultivation In Northern California, Yvonne Everett

Humboldt Journal of Social Relations

Local nonprofit organizations in the Pacific Northwest have stepped up to fill a leadership void in forest management since the Timber Wars of the 1980s and 1990s. Community based resource management groups (CBRM) have focused on stewardship of ecosystem services, and leading efforts to employ local workers to restore forest ecosystems and watershed functions. In Northern California, even as CBRM capacity has grown since the Timber Wars, a new transformative challenge threatens community and landscape adaptive capacity. Cannabis cultivation, which can have significant environmental and social impacts, has become a pervasive economic driver. I used interviews to explore CBRM leaders’ …

Introduction To Special Section On Cannabis, Denise M. Glover

All Faculty Scholarship

Introduction to Special Section on Cannabis.

A Little Dab Will Do Ya: An Exploration Of First Time Dabbers On Youtube, Christopher L. Coker

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

This thesis project is an in-depth examination of a rising subculture within cannabis users. With this research project, my aim was to explore and provide insight into the initial experiences of novice cannabis concentrate use as represented on YouTube while they are initiated into this emerging cannabis subculture. Referred to as “dabbing” or “dabs,” this highly potent and concentrated form of cannabis is being utilized by cannabis users to achieve greater highs and effects than those from the traditional cannabis flower. In this study I explored first-time “dabbers” by drawing from social media content in the form of YouTube videos …

Listening To The Mattole: Lessons In Bioregionalism, Cannabis, And Capitalism From A Northern California Community, Nicola R. Walters

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

In the United States, from the 1960s through the 1970s, nearly a million Americans left urban areas to establish themselves in rural environments; this exodus is now known as the back-to-the-land movement. Nestled in the mountains of Northern California, along a capricious river, and surrounded by natural beauty, the Mattole Valley became home to many of these back-to-the-land immigrants. Seasoned in the social and cultural movements of Berkeley and San Francisco during the 1960s, the “new settlers” transformed the social and environmental landscape of southern Humboldt County as they integrated into rural communities. The Mattole Valley offers a unique look …

Effects Of The Legalization Of Recreational Cannabis In Washington State, John Anthony Poore

Global Honors Theses

The War on Drugs has failed. The criminalization of the use of recreational marijuana has not led to a reduction in use. This paper argues that policy surrounding recreational cannabis should observe existing policies such as legalization with regulations or decriminalization in order to increase public health and reduce government expenditures from the enforcement of criminal penalties for cannabis use. The existing literature suggests that these methods help to reduce harmful drug use, illegal sales and drug related crime. Experts in the areas of public health, criminal justice, cannabis policy and the cannabis industry were interviewed for the purpose of …