Contrary to negative stereotypes that depict the image of the “lazy stoner”, a new study has found that using cannabis outside of work actually has no negative impact on your workplace performance.
The Study
Altered States or Much to Do About Nothing? A Study of When Cannabis Is Used in Relation to the Impact It Has on Performance has recently been published in the Group & Organization Management journal. Conducted by researchers at San Diego State University (California) and Auburn University (Alabama), the study looks into the effects of cannabis use on workplace performance. In short, the study has found that the general use of cannabis after working hours does not have an adverse impact on the quality of work you produce, your workplace efficiency, or any other indicators of workplace performance.
So what encouraged the researchers to go ahead with this study? Well, one noted that while implementation of workplace drug screenings is on the rise, “there is virtually no empirical research exploring cannabis use in relation to the modern workplace.” This indicates employer inflicted punishment of cannabis use is relatively illogical and the result of social prejudices, as opposed to logical and empirical evidence.
To come to this result, the study examined the effect of cannabis use on employees before, during and after their working hours on their overall job performance. Their performance was assessed by their actual direct supervisors, ensuring that the employees weren’t being overly harshly judged or lightly judged in comparison to how they would be perceived, praised, or criticized in their genuine day to day roles.
280 employees were assessed, with researchers considering their task performance, willingness to help colleagues or the organization, and counterproductive work behavior. While it was clear that cannabis use before or during work hours did lead to counterproductive work behaviors, after-work cannabis use was not related to any changes in employee performance across any of the examined categories of behavior.
What Does This Mean?
So, what can we draw from this study? The biggest takeaway it provides is that society may need to reevaluate some of its assumptions and values. All in all, this study casts some pretty dazzling light on the unfair nature of common stereotypes that are often societally attached to people who use cannabis.
Can Cannabis Improve Work Performance?
Seeing as we have found that after-work use of cannabis doesn’t have any negative impact on workplace performance, we may want to start considering whether the opposite of common assumption and negative stereotypes could have some weight behind it. Could cannabis actually serve to improve workplace performance? Here are just a few ways that cannabis may help your workplace performance!
Cannabis Could Reduce Anxiety
Of course, anxiety can have a profoundly negative impact on your workplace performance. If you’re feeling overwhelmed, negative, or overly stressed, you’re not likely to do your best possible work. Instead, you’ll be focusing on your symptoms (such as elevated heart rate), withdrawing from intimidating or overwhelming situations, or seeing your working day revolve largely around anxiety rather than focusing on the work that needs to get done and embracing the can-do attitude that may be necessary to hit your deadlines and targets. Many people report using cannabis to combat symptoms of anxiety. This is a particularly popular approach for various people with a social anxiety disorder. The study, Effects of Marijuana on Mental Health was carried out by the University of Washington in 2016 notes that THC appears to reduce anxiety at lower doses and that CBD tends to decrease anxiety in all doses tested.
Cannabis Could Work as a Sleep Aid
If you’ve ever gone to work on a few hours’ sleep, chances are you had a pretty unproductive day. There’s a good reason that we’re told we need eight hours’ worth of sleep a night. This is the right amount to help your body recuperate from the day before’s efforts and get sufficient rest for the day ahead. However, getting eight hours of sleep a night is easier said than done for many people. If you struggle to get to sleep, you may find yourself tossing and turning and struggling throughout the next workday. Unfortunately, this is pretty common. Up to 70 million U.S. adults experience symptoms of a sleep disorder, with roughly 30 to 40 percent of the population experiencing insomnia at some point or another. An astounding 10 to 15 percent of adults will deal with chronic insomnia. Many people claim that cannabis helps them as a sleep aid. A 2008 study published in the Sleep Med Review suggests that using cannabis with high levels of THC can reduce the amount of REM sleep you get. This, in turn, could see you spend more time in a “deep sleep” state, which is commonly considered the most restorative, restful part of your sleep cycle.
As you can see, at the very least, cannabis use during recreational, after-work hours doesn’t seem to have any negative impact on your workplace performance. So, don’t hesitate to take a look at some of the products that we provide at our cannabis entertainment complex – the largest dispensary in Las Vegas and the best vegas dispensary. Our products are available for delivery, pick up, or purchase in-store at our Las Vegas Strip dispensary, so that we can provide you with what you want in the most convenient way for you! We pride ourselves on being the largest cannabis dispensary near the Las Vegas strip, so whatever your needs or preferences, we can help you find something to check off all of your boxes!
