NCJ Number
212704
Journal
Drug and Alcohol Review Volume: 24 Issue: 4 Dated: July 2005 Pages: 337-345
Date Published
July 2005
Length
9 pages
Annotation
This study attempted to measure the impact of the changes within Australia’s Cannabis Infringement Notice scheme on the attitudes and drug use of school children.
Abstract
Western Australia became the fourth Australian jurisdiction to adopt a prohibition with civil penalties scheme for minor cannabis offenses when its Cannabis Infringement Notice (CIN) took effect in 2004. This study was part of the pre-post evaluation of the legislative reforms, aimed at measuring the impact of the changes on attitudes and drug use of school children. In addition, the study examined the perceptions of teachers who provided school drug education regarding the influence of the new legislation and regulations for minor cannabis offenses on how drug education was conducted in schools and whether students’ attitudes to cannabis use changed. A self-completion survey was conducted of 2,638 students in years 9 and 12. The results indicated that the students were more aware of the risks and harms associated with cannabis than they were about prevalence of use and cannabis law. Table, figure, references