Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison
Objectives: Worldwide, considerable attention is being given to cannabis use for medical conditions. In the current study, we sought to assess attitudes and beliefs about MC among social work students from the US and Israel. Methods: We sought to assess attitudes and beliefs about MC among a sample...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2021-05-01
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| Series: | Complementary Therapies in Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229921000571 |
| _version_ | 1819104866482520064 |
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| author | Patricia A. Findley Offer E. Edelstein Itay Pruginin Alexander Reznik Nicole Milano Richard Isralowitz |
| author_facet | Patricia A. Findley Offer E. Edelstein Itay Pruginin Alexander Reznik Nicole Milano Richard Isralowitz |
| author_sort | Patricia A. Findley |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Objectives: Worldwide, considerable attention is being given to cannabis use for medical conditions. In the current study, we sought to assess attitudes and beliefs about MC among social work students from the US and Israel. Methods: We sought to assess attitudes and beliefs about MC among a sample of 417 social work students (230 from the US and 187 from Israel) who voluntarily participated in an anonymous online survey. Chi-square tests were used to analyze differences between groups. Results: Most of the US and Israeli participants (84.3 % and 96.7 %, respectively) reported no formal education about MC; and, they would recommend MC for their clients. Participants who reported any cannabis use, compared to non-users, were more likely to believe MC could benefit physical or mental health and less inclined to believe use of the substance poses serious physical or mental health risks. Secular, compared to religious students, believed it has more benefits for physical and/or mental health. Conclusions: Our findings evidence a considerable dearth of formal evidence-based education about cannabis for medical conditions in two university-based cohorts, despite beliefs in MC as useful for physical and mental health conditions. Efforts to develop curricula and training programs for social work students are needed since they will be among key professionals addressing client needs from health care and counseling perspectives. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-22T02:13:09Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-1de9b182cd014662858cf00106eae8ec |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0965-2299 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-22T02:13:09Z |
| publishDate | 2021-05-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Complementary Therapies in Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-1de9b182cd014662858cf00106eae8ec2022-12-21T18:42:20ZengElsevierComplementary Therapies in Medicine0965-22992021-05-0158102716Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparisonPatricia A. Findley0Offer E. Edelstein1Itay Pruginin2Alexander Reznik3Nicole Milano4Richard Isralowitz5School of Social Work, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USA; Corresponding author at: Rutgers University Graduate School of Social Work, 120 Albany Street, New Brunswick, NJ, 08901, USA.The Spitzer Department of Social Work, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, IsraelRegional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, IsraelRegional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, IsraelSchool of Social Work, Rutgers University, New Brunswick, New Jersey, USARegional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, IsraelObjectives: Worldwide, considerable attention is being given to cannabis use for medical conditions. In the current study, we sought to assess attitudes and beliefs about MC among social work students from the US and Israel. Methods: We sought to assess attitudes and beliefs about MC among a sample of 417 social work students (230 from the US and 187 from Israel) who voluntarily participated in an anonymous online survey. Chi-square tests were used to analyze differences between groups. Results: Most of the US and Israeli participants (84.3 % and 96.7 %, respectively) reported no formal education about MC; and, they would recommend MC for their clients. Participants who reported any cannabis use, compared to non-users, were more likely to believe MC could benefit physical or mental health and less inclined to believe use of the substance poses serious physical or mental health risks. Secular, compared to religious students, believed it has more benefits for physical and/or mental health. Conclusions: Our findings evidence a considerable dearth of formal evidence-based education about cannabis for medical conditions in two university-based cohorts, despite beliefs in MC as useful for physical and mental health conditions. Efforts to develop curricula and training programs for social work students are needed since they will be among key professionals addressing client needs from health care and counseling perspectives.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229921000571Medical cannabisSocial workUniversity studentsAttitudesBeliefsChronic conditions |
| spellingShingle | Patricia A. Findley Offer E. Edelstein Itay Pruginin Alexander Reznik Nicole Milano Richard Isralowitz Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison Complementary Therapies in Medicine Medical cannabis Social work University students Attitudes Beliefs Chronic conditions |
| title | Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison |
| title_full | Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison |
| title_fullStr | Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison |
| title_full_unstemmed | Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison |
| title_short | Attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students: Cross-national comparison |
| title_sort | attitudes and beliefs about medical cannabis among social work students cross national comparison |
| topic | Medical cannabis Social work University students Attitudes Beliefs Chronic conditions |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229921000571 |
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