A Crowdsourcing Survey Study on the Subjective Effects of Delta-8-Tetrahydrocannabinol Relative to Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol and Cannabidiol

Cecilia L. Bergeria, Justin C. Strickland, Tory R. Spindle, Maja Kalaba, Prem Umang Satyavolu, Matthew Feldner, Ryan Vandrey, Marcel Bonn-Miller, Erica N. Peters, Elise Weerts

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ8-THC) has emerged as a new retail cannabinoid product in the U.S. This study queried Δ8-THC users about product use characteristics and self-reported drug effects. Participants were recruited via a large online crowdsourcing platform (AmazonMechanical Turk). Adults (N = 252) with past year Δ8-THC use (35% with at least weekly use) completed surveys and open-ended questions related to their reasons for using and past experiences with Δ8-THC-containing retail products. Participants with past year use of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (Δ9-THC) and/or cannabidiol (CBD; 81% and 63%) compared the effects of Δ8-THC to those of Δ9-THC and/or CBD by rating drug effects on a visual analog scale from −50 to +50 where negative scores indicated Δ8-THC effects are weaker, positive scores indicated Δ8-THC effects are stronger, and a score of 0 indicated equal effects to Δ9-THC or CBD. Compared to Δ9-THC, self-reported ratings for “Drug effect,” “Bad effect,” “Sick,” “Anxiety,” “Paranoia,” “Irritability,” “Restlessness,” “Memory Problems,” and “Trouble Performing Routine Tasks” were lower for Δ8-THC (d = −0.21 to −0.44). Compared to CBD, ratings for Δ8-THC effects were higher for “Drug effect,” “Good effect,” “High,” “Relaxed,” “Sleepy,” “Hunger/Have the Munchies,” “Memory Problems,” “Trouble Performing Routine Tasks,” and “Paranoia” (d = 0.27–1.02). Qualitative responses indicated that participants used Δ8-THC because it is perceived as (a) legal, (b) a substitute or similar to Δ9-THC, and/or (c) less intense than Δ9-THC. Δ8-THC is an understudied psychoactive component of cannabis that shares more characteristics with Δ9-THC than CBD and should be characterized further with human laboratory studies.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)312-317
Number of pages6
JournalExperimental and clinical psychopharmacology
Volume31
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Apr 25 2022

Keywords

  • delta-8-THC
  • delta-8-tetrahydrocannabinol
  • subjective effects
  • survey study

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Psychiatry and Mental health
  • Pharmacology (medical)
  • Pharmacology

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