The perception of weed smoking as a creativity amplifier is popularized in western cultures because substance abuse is frequently mentioned and even praised among famous artists. Moreover, the bias that masterpieces and exceptional works cannot be crafted without enhancing abstract thinking with drugs forces young people to underestimate their natural talents and achieve success with artificial enhancers (Heng et al., 2022). I heard this popular notion about substance use for creativity in various songs I listened to and from adults who claimed that smoking weed is an exclusive way to discover new ideas.
Creativity is essential for individuals involved in arts, such as painting, songwriting, filmmaking, and composing, because they require abstract thinking and generating ideas beyond common knowledge. The relation between narcotic use and this characteristic has been mentioned in artists’ biographies since the drug appeared in medicine and in modern songs praising the inspiration from smoking (Haranath & Abraham, 2022). In western culture, where overnight success and hard work are praised, more people believe in this myth than in ones where slow living is valued. Thus, social norms built on traditions significantly influence deviant behaviors such as drug use, and if there are no high standards around professionalism and career, people might perceive the effects of smoking weed differently. It would be favorable to learn about the roots of such perception in modern society during the class and explore ways to influence future generations to consider other ways to enhance creative thinking.
The boosting effect of drugs on creativity is a myth because changes in thinking are a brain reaction to a narcotic that is temporary yet severe. Indeed, the research on graduate students and substance use revealed that individuals do not become more creative after consuming a drug, yet their sensory stimuli and surroundings’ perception modifies (Haranath & Abraham, 2022). Moreover, a psychology study by Heng et al. (2022) demonstrated that “cannabis use facilitates joviality, which translates to more favorable evaluations of creativity of one’s own ideas and others’ ideas” (p. 1). The effect of drug abuse is artificial and disruptive to brain functioning, and society should educate younger generations on alternative strategies for creativity improvement.
References
Haranath, S., & Abraham, M. (2022). Myths and facts of substance abuse: A study on graduate students. International Journal of Social Science and Humanities Research, 10(2), 182-189.
Heng, Y. T., Barnes, C. M., & Yam, K. C. (2022). Cannabis use does not increase actual creativity but biases evaluations of creativity. Journal of Applied Psychology, 107.