Cannabis, Religion, and Trust in the Medical Profession: A Cross-Religious Study of Patients' Attitudes Toward Medical and Recreational Use in Northern Israel.

Abstract

Despite the global expansion of medical cannabis, limited empirical attention has been given to the sociocultural and religious factors shaping patient attitudes, particularly in multi-faith societies. Israel provides a distinctive context for such examination, combining advanced medical cannabis regulation with substantial religious diversity. This cross-sectional study examined how religious affiliation and trust in the medical profession influence attitudes toward medical and recreational cannabis among patients in Northern Israel. A survey was administered to 374 hospitalized patients from four religious groups-Jewish, Muslim, Christian, and Druze-using validated measures of cannabis-related attitudes and trust in the medical profession. Exploratory factor analyses supported scale validity and reliability. Analyses included ANCOVA and correlations, controlling for age, religiosity, and prior exposure to medical cannabis. Attitudes toward cannabis differed significantly by religious affiliation. Christian participants reported the most favorable views toward both medical and recreational cannabis, followed by Jewish respondents, while Muslim and Druze participants expressed more conservative attitudes. Contrary to prior literature, higher trust in the medical profession was associated with more negative cannabis attitudes overall. A mixed-design ANCOVA revealed a significant interaction between religious affiliation, trust level, and cannabis type, indicating religion-specific patterns in how trust shapes cannabis attitudes. These findings underscore the importance of culturally and religiously informed health communication and policy approaches in pluralistic healthcare settings.