Discuss the issues surrounding the "gateway hypothesis" with regard to marijuana. What is the research on the sequencing question, the association question, and the causation question?

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

Answer: A widely publicized theory about marijuana smoking concerns the possibility of a relationship between marijuana use and the subsequent abuse of illicit drugs such as amphetamines, cocaine, or heroin. The contention that marijuana leads to a greater incidence of drug abuse in general is referred to as the gateway hypothesis. Just as in the consideration of the amotivational syndrome, the evidence for this hypothesis must be studied very carefully.

With respect to the gateway hypothesis, we should address three separate issues: (1) whether a fixed sequential relationship exists between the initiation of marijuana
use and other forms of drug-taking behavior, (2) whether marijuana use represents a significant risk factor for future drug-taking behavior, specifically increasing the likelihood of using other illicit drugs, and (3) whether marijuana actually causes the use of other illicit drugs.

One of the best-replicated findings in the long-term study of drug use is a developmental sequence of involvement (stages of progression) in drug-taking behavior. In the United States as well as other Western societies, use of alcohol and cigarettes precedes marijuana use, and marijuana use precedes use of other illicit drugs. As public health researcher Denise Kandel has expressed it: Very few individuals who have tried cocaine and heroin have not already used marijuana; the majority have previously used alcohol or tobacco. An overwhelming proportion of young marijuana smokers do not go on to use other illicit drugs.