Skip to content

Altered subjective reward valuation among female heavy marijuana users.

Kathryn R. Hefner, Mark. J. Starr

Experimental and Clinical Psychopharmacology February 2017 DOI: 10.1037/pha0000101 (opens in new tab)

Read Full Text
Relevant Not relevant

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Observational case-control study Peer reviewed
Sample size 104
Population Heavy marijuana users and controls (52 users: 26 male, 26 female; 52 controls: 26 male, 26 female)
Topics Cannabis
Key findings Men were more sensitive than women to changes in the objective value of uncertain rewards, but this sex effect differed by marijuana group. Female heavy marijuana users were more sensitive to changes in uncertain reward value than female controls, particularly at high stakes, reaching levels comparable to male users and controls; male users and male controls did not differ. The authors suggest sex differences in sensitivity to high-risk rewards may be one pathway contributing to severer consequences of heavy marijuana use among women.

Abstract

Maladaptive decision-making is a cardinal feature of drug use, contributing to ongoing use, and reflecting alterations in how drug users assess uncertain reward value. Accumulating evidence indicates the consequences of heavy marijuana use are worse for female versus male animals and humans, but research assessing sex differences in reward-related decision-making among marijuana users remains scarce. We examined sex differences in the subjective valuation of certain and uncertain rewards among heavy marijuana users (52; 26 male and 26 female) and controls (52; 26 male and 26 female). We offered male and female heavy marijuana users and controls monetary rewards of certain and uncertain (probabilistic) values. We measured how preferences for uncertain rewards varied by the objective value of those rewards, moderators of reward uncertainty, Marijuana Group and Sex. Men were more sensitive to changes in the objective value of uncertain rewards than women. However, this effect of Sex differed by Marijuana Group. Female heavy marijuana users were more sensitive to changes in uncertain reward value, particularly when the "stakes" were high (i.e., greater difference between potential uncertain rewards), than female controls. Female heavy marijuana users' sensitivity to changes in the value of high stakes uncertain rewards was comparable to male marijuana users and controls. In contrast, male marijuana users' sensitivity to changes in the value of high stakes uncertain rewards did not differ from male controls. These results suggest sex differences in sensitivity to high risk rewards may be one pathway contributing to severer consequences of heavy marijuana use among women. (PsycINFO Database Record

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

Citations in the library

Cites 5

Related reading

Explore topics

Cannabis Addiction