Acute Effects of High-Potency Cannabis on Everyday Life Cognition

Emily Marie LaFrance

Previous research indicates that tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the primary constituent in cannabis, impairs memory and may affect decision making. Furthermore, cannabidiol (CBD), which is also found in cannabis, may offset these cognitive impairments. However, past research has primarily utilized low THC (< 10%) cannabis and has focused on limited domains of cognition. Therefore, the overall goal of this project was to investigate the acute effects of high-potency cannabis flower (THC > 20%) and cannabis concentrates (THC > 60%) on previously overlooked domains of memory and decision making. The objectives of this study were to 1) compare the effects of high-potency cannabis flower with CBD (> 0.70%) and without CBD (0%), and 2) compare the effects of cannabis concentrates (THC > 60%, CBD > 0.70%) and cannabis flower (THC > 20%, CBD > 0.70%). To achieve these aims, a between-subjects field experiment using Zoom videoconferencing software was employed. Participants purchased a specific type of cannabis and then engaged in videoconferencing testing session from their home. During testing, participants were observed while inhaling cannabis or remaining sober, and then completed tests of their memory (prospective, source, temporal order, and false memory) and decision making (risky choice framing, consistency in risk perception, resistance to sunk cost, and over/under confidence). Results indicate that high potency cannabis impairs verbal free recall, increases false memories, and has detrimental effects on source memory. In contrast, there was no evidence that cannabis intoxication significantly impacts prospective memory, temporal order memory, or decision-making. Moreover, there was also no evidence that CBD offset any of the detected impairments, or that cannabis concentrates differentially impacted cognition, relative to cannabis flower. In summary, results suggest that the memory impairments produced by cannabis intoxication are limited to free recall, false memory, and source memory, but may not extend to other important aspects of everyday life memory or decision making. These results have implications for cannabis users who may wish to avoid or reduce cannabis induced memory impairments, as well as legal officials, researchers and health practitioners working with cannabis-using populations.

Acute Effects of High-Potency Cannabis on Everyday Life Cognition

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