Driving Performance
Driving requires attention, focus, awareness, and many other skills. Marijuana is known to negatively affect cognitive processes and physical abilities needed for driving. Taking your eyes away from the road for only two seconds can increase the chances of an accident by over 20x. Driving with impaired abilities puts the user in danger, other drivers on the road, and even pedestrians. The cognitive effects of marijuana include reduced attention span, impaired essential motor coordination, and inability to make decisions or solve problems. The CDC reports that those who use marijuana are more likely to get into a car crash than those who don't. While some marijuana-related cognitive deficits can improve after terminating marijuana use, others may persist or worsen. Marijuana affects not only your cognitive abilities but physical abilities as well. Possible adverse effects of the use of marijuana can include an increased heart rate or dizziness.
Supporting Articles - Driving Performance
Cannabis legalization and driving under the influence of cannabis in a national U.S. Sample
Dutra, L.M. & Bradfield, B. (2022). Cannabis legalization and driving under the influence of cannabis in a national U.S. Sample. Preventative Medicine Reports, 27. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.pmedr.2022.101799
Mechanisms of Cannabis Impairment: Implications for Modeling Driving Performance
Burt, T., Brown, T., Milavetz, G., and McGehee, D. V. (2021). Mechanisms of Cannabis Impairment: Implications for Modeling Driving Performance. Forensic Science International, 328. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.forsciint.2021.110902
Effects of Chronic Marijuana Use on Driving Performance
Doroudgar, S., Mae Chuang, H., Bohnet, K., Canedo, J., Burrowes, S., and Perry, P. J. (2018). Effects of Chronic Marijuana Use on Driving Performance. Traffic Injury Prevention, 19(7), 680-686. https://doi.org/10.1080/15389588.2018.1501800