Mobile app-based study of driving behaviors under the influence of cannabis.
Honglu Li, Bin Han, Cong Shi, Yan Wang, Tammy Chung, Yingying Chen
Smart health June 1, 2025 DOI: 10.1016/j.smhl.2025.100558 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Observational cohort Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 9 |
| Population | Participants who consumed cannabis under controlled conditions |
| Intervention | Cannabis |
| Topics | Cannabis |
| Keywords | Cannabis-influenced driving behavior Mobile computing |
| Key findings | Cannabis use correlates with altered driving behaviors, with significant effects emerging approximately 2–3 hours after consumption. |
Abstract
Cannabis use has become increasingly prevalent due to evolving legal and societal attitudes, raising concerns about its influence on public safety, particularly in driving. Existing studies mostly rely on simulators or specialized equipment, which do not capture the complexities of real-world driving and pose cost and scalability issues. In this paper, we investigate the effects of cannabis on driving behavior using participants' smartphones to gather data in natural settings. Our method focuses on three critical behaviors: weaving & swerving, wide turning, and hard braking. We propose a two-step segmentation algorithm for processing continuous motion sensor data and use threshold-based methods for efficient detection. A custom application autonomously records driving events during actual road scenarios. On-road experiments with 9 participants who consumed cannabis under controlled conditions reveal a correlation between cannabis use and altered driving behaviors, with significant effects emerging approximately 2∼3 h after consumption.
Comparable studies
Other observational and cohort studies on cannabis, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| High-potency cannabis and the risk of psychosis People with first episode of psychosis and healthy controls from the local population | 2009 | Case-control study | n = 454 |
| Ayahuasca-Assisted Therapy for Addiction: Results from a Preliminary Observational Study in Canada Rural aboriginal population | 2013 | Observational study | |
| Impaired cognitive performance in drug free users of recreational ecstasy (MDMA) Otherwise healthy young people | 2000 | Observational | |
| Continued cannabis use and risk of incidence and persistence of psychotic symptoms: 10 year follow-up cohort study Individuals from the general population in Germany aged 14-24 at baseline | 2011 | Observational cohort | n = 1,923 |
| Cannabis-induced psychosis and subsequent schizophrenia-spectrum disorders: follow-up study of 535 incident cases Patients treated for cannabis-induced psychotic symptoms in Denmark between 1994 and... | 2005 | Observational cohort | n = 535 |