Among 1,161 licensed high school students in Ontario, 10.3% reported driving within an hour of cannabis use, with cannabis dependence, low perceived risk, and pro-legalization attitudes as the strongest predictors.
Parents of teen drivers, driving safety educators, policymakers, youth substance use researchers
10.3% of licensed high school students drove within an hour of cannabis use
What the researchers found
Past-year cannabis-impaired driving prevalence was 10.3%. The strongest predictors were probable cannabis dependence (OR=12.7), low perceived risk of cannabis (OR=5.3), pro-legalization attitudes (OR=4.3), and being male (OR=2.6). Cannabis-impaired driving was also correlated with texting while driving and driving after alcohol.
Why it matters
With cannabis now legal in Canada, understanding what drives teen cannabis-impaired driving is essential for designing effective prevention programs, especially since many correlates are attitudinal and potentially modifiable.
The numbers in context
1,161 licensed students; mean age 16.8; 10.3% drove within 1 hour of cannabis use; OR 12.7 for cannabis dependence; OR 5.3 for low perceived risk; OR 4.3 for pro-legalization; OR 2.6 for male
How the study worked
Cross-sectional analysis of 1,161 licensed high school students from the 2017 Ontario Student Health and Drug Use Survey, using multivariable logistic regression.
What this study cannot tell us
Self-reported driving behaviors, cross-sectional design, Ontario-specific findings, 2017 data precedes legalization, licensed students may not represent all teen drivers.
How to read the evidence
Large provincial student health survey with multivariable analysis
When this study was published
Published in 2021 using 2017 data, before cannabis legalization in Canada. Prevalence may have changed since.
The bigger picture
The clustering of cannabis-impaired driving with other risky driving behaviors suggests that prevention programs need to address a broader pattern of risk-taking rather than focusing on cannabis alone.
Questions still open
- Has legalization changed the prevalence of cannabis-impaired driving among teens? Would changing perceptions of cannabis risk through education reduce impaired driving? Are different intervention approaches needed for dependent vs casual users?
Common questions
How common is cannabis-impaired driving among teens?
What predicts teen cannabis-impaired driving?
Read the original research
Correlates of driving after cannabis use in high school students.
Preventive medicine, 150, 106667
Citation
Cantor, Nathan; Kingsbury, Mila; Hamilton, Hayley A; Wild, T Cameron; Owusu-Bempah, Akwasi; Colman, Ian. (2021). Correlates of driving after cannabis use in high school students.. Preventive medicine, 150, 106667. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ypmed.2021.106667