More Frequent Cannabis Use Linked to More Gambling Behavior | Research

The takeaway

A study found that people who use cannabis more frequently also tend to gamble more, suggesting overlapping risk patterns.

Addiction researchers, behavioral health clinicians, harm reduction advocates

Higher cannabis use frequency associated with more gambling behavior

What the researchers found

Higher frequency of cannabis use was associated with greater gambling involvement, pointing to shared behavioral or neurobiological risk factors between the two behaviors.

Why it matters

Understanding the overlap between cannabis use and gambling may help identify individuals at risk for multiple addictive behaviors and inform targeted interventions.

The numbers in context

Specific sample size and effect sizes available in full text.

How the study worked

Cross-sectional analysis examining the relationship between cannabis use frequency and gambling behavior in a study population.

What this study cannot tell us

Cross-sectional design cannot establish whether cannabis use drives gambling or vice versa. Confounding factors like impulsivity or socioeconomic status may explain the association.

How to read the evidence

Cross-sectional design limits ability to determine causation between cannabis use and gambling.

When this study was published

2025 study with current relevance to dual addiction research.

The bigger picture

Both cannabis use and gambling activate reward pathways in the brain. Research increasingly recognizes that substance use and behavioral addictions may share common vulnerability factors.

Questions still open

Does cannabis use directly increase gambling risk, or do shared personality traits drive both? Would reducing cannabis use also reduce gambling behavior?

Common questions

Does cannabis make people gamble more?

This study found an association between more frequent cannabis use and more gambling, but the cross-sectional design means it cannot determine if one causes the other.

Why might cannabis use and gambling be related?

Both behaviors involve the brain's reward system. Shared traits like impulsivity and sensation-seeking may make some people more prone to both.

Read the original research

Relation of Cannabis Use Frequency and Gambling Behavior in Individuals Who Gamble Under the Influence of Cannabis.

Journal of gambling studies, 41(2), 877-889

View on PubMed ↗Publisher’s paper ↗

Citation

McPhail, Abby; Whelan, James P; Ginley, Meredith K; Pfund, Rory A. (2025). Relation of Cannabis Use Frequency and Gambling Behavior in Individuals Who Gamble Under the Influence of Cannabis.. Journal of gambling studies, 41(2), 877-889. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10899-025-10381-3