| Summary: | The purpose of this study was to examine the effects of decriminalising Cannabis through the 1992 Amendment to the Drugs of Dependence Act 1989 on the residents of the ACT community; in particular any effects on cannabis usage and on knowledge about and attitudes to Cannabis and Cannabis related law. The four central objectives of the research were: to determine the target groups' responses to the amendment; to determine the level of knowledge and understanding held about cannabis and decriminalisation by the target groups, to examine the human rights issue of drug control and law enforcement relating to personal use of cannabis; and to examine options for further changes to legislation. The target group for the research was cannabis users and ex-users, young people, detoxification and drug workers, college students, the police, health professionals, parents and teachers, and politicians and legal workers. The main variables include: frequency of use of various legal and illegal drugs, factors affecting usage level of cannabis, history of cannabis use, effect of legislation on cannabis usage; knowledge of ACT cannabis laws, attitudes to laws, and education or training in drugs and alcohol area. Background variables include: age, gender and employment status.
|
|---|
