Global Patterns of Domestic Cannabis Cultivation: A cross-national analysis of (other) criminal involvement amongst cannabis growers

• In Event: Crimes and Criminality: Global Perspectives

Abstract

While there has been previous research on cannabis grower typologies and national studies with domestic cannabis cultivators, the global cannabis cultivation study aimed to further this work by collecting data in a number of countries in order to compare who grows cannabis, reasons for growing, methods of growing, involvement in cannabis and other drug supply, and experiences with the criminal justice system – and how these factors differ across national borders.
While all cannabis growers of at least 18 years of age were eligible to participate, we predominantly accessed small-scale cultivators through employing internet research methods. Here we are able to present a comparative analysis of cannabis growers recruited in the US, Canada, Belgium, Australia, the UK, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and The Netherlands. This paper will briefly compare demographic characteristics of growers, general features of participants’ experiences with growing cannabis, their methods and the scale of growing operations, reasons for growing and participants’ personal use of cannabis and other drugs. As appropriate to an audience of criminologists, the paper will give a more detailed examination of respondents’ participation in cannabis and other drug markets, and their contacts with the criminal justice system.

Authors

• Gary Richard Potter, London South Bank University

• Vibeke Asmussen Frank, Aarhus University, Denmark

• Monica Barratt, National Drug Research Institute / Curtin University

• Martin Bouchard, Simon Fraser University

• Helle Vibeke Dahl, Aarhus University, Denmark

• Tom Decorte, University of Gent

• Pekka Hakkarainen, National Institute for Health and Welfare (THL), Helsinki

• Axel Klein, University of Kent, UK

• Simon Lenton, National Drug Research Institute / Curtin University

• Aili Malm, California State University, Long Beach

• Holly Nguyen, University of Maryland

• Bernd Werse, Goethe University, Frankfurt

• Marije Wouters, University of Amsterdam