Cannabis improved mood and reduced anxiety but did not change emotion regulation performance in young adults
In a remote within-subjects study, young adults reported better mood and less anxiety while high but showed no changes in implicit or explicit emotion regulation tasks.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
Participants reported more positive mood and decreased anxiety while intoxicated, but no evidence that acute high-potency cannabis affected implicit (Emotional Go/No-Go) or explicit (cognitive reappraisal) emotion regulation performance.
Key Numbers
12 participants; ages 21-30; all used cannabis at least 1 day/week; tested sober and intoxicated in counterbalanced order.
How They Did This
Remote within-subjects design; 12 young adults (ages 21-30, using cannabis 1+ day/week) completed emotion regulation measures while sober and acutely intoxicated in counterbalanced order; participants smoked cannabis flower at home via videoconferencing observation.
Why This Research Matters
Many people report using cannabis to manage emotions, but this study suggests the subjective mood improvement may not reflect actual changes in emotion regulation ability.
The Bigger Picture
The disconnect between subjective mood improvement and unchanged cognitive emotion regulation raises questions about whether cannabis truly helps people manage emotions or just makes them feel better temporarily.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Very small sample (n=12); only frequent cannabis users included, who may have tolerance; limited to two emotion regulation tasks; no dose standardization; single-session design.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would infrequent users show different results?
- ?Does chronic cannabis use gradually impair emotion regulation even if acute effects are neutral?
- ?Could larger samples detect subtle effects?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Zero measurable change in emotion regulation despite reported mood improvement
- Evidence Grade:
- Novel remote methodology but very small sample and limited to regular users, making it difficult to draw firm conclusions.
- Study Age:
- Published 2025
- Original Title:
- A Naturalistic Examination of the Acute Effects of High-Potency Cannabis on Emotion Regulation Among Young Adults: A Pilot Study.
- Published In:
- Human psychopharmacology, 40(1), e2915 (2025)
- Authors:
- Cavalli, Jessica M(2), Cuttler, Carrie(13), Cservenka, Anita(2)
- Database ID:
- RTHC-06174
Evidence Hierarchy
A small preliminary study to test whether a larger study is feasible.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Did cannabis help with emotion regulation?
Participants felt better (more positive mood, less anxiety) but performed no differently on tasks measuring actual emotion regulation ability.
What was the study design?
A remote within-subjects design where 12 regular cannabis users completed tasks sober and intoxicated, observed via video call while smoking at home.
Read More on RethinkTHC
Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-06174APA
Cavalli, Jessica M; Cuttler, Carrie; Cservenka, Anita. (2025). A Naturalistic Examination of the Acute Effects of High-Potency Cannabis on Emotion Regulation Among Young Adults: A Pilot Study.. Human psychopharmacology, 40(1), e2915. https://doi.org/10.1002/hup.2915
MLA
Cavalli, Jessica M, et al. "A Naturalistic Examination of the Acute Effects of High-Potency Cannabis on Emotion Regulation Among Young Adults: A Pilot Study.." Human psychopharmacology, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1002/hup.2915
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "A Naturalistic Examination of the Acute Effects of High-Pote..." RTHC-06174. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/cavalli-2025-a-naturalistic-examination-of
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.