Primary Objective: to assess the immediate and delayed effects of THC on true and false memories in a legal context (i.e., on eyewitness and offender statements).Secondary Objective(s): to link drug-induced false memory effects to dissociation
ID
Source
Brief title
Condition
- Other condition
Synonym
Health condition
no health condition is addressed in the research, and healthy volunteers who are occasional cannabis users will be recruited
Research involving
Sponsors and support
Intervention
Outcome measures
Primary outcome
Primary: Spontaneous false memories will be measured using the
Deese/Roediger-McDermott (DRM) paradigm. Suggestion-based false memories will
be assessed via exposing subjects to a virtual reality mock crime and adding
suggestive misinformation in subsequent interrogations.
Secondary outcome
Secondary: Dissociative psychopathology (i.e., dissociative traits) will be
measured using the Dissociative Experiences Scale (DES). Reality
monitoring/dissociative symptoms (i.e., dissociative states) will be assessed
using the Clinician Administered Dissociative States Scale (CADSS). Other
parameters include constructs related to (false) memory, such as attention,
information processing, compliance, arousal, and convergent and divergent
thinking.
Background summary
False memories refer to memories of events/details that did not actually occur
(Otgaar, Howe, Brackmann, & Smeets, 2016). False memories frequently occur
spontaneously but can also be elicited through suggestive pressure. Legal cases
have shown that eyewitnesses and innocent suspects can falsely remember to have
seen non-existing details of a crime or falsely confess to have committed a
crime due to suggestive interrogation tactics of the police. Such false
memories can lead to wrongful convictions. Moreover, eyewitnesses and suspects
are often under influence of drugs such as cannabis while no knowledge base
exists whether their drugged state makes them more sensitive to spontaneous or
suggestion-based false memories. From a practical perspective, examining this
issue is highly relevant as cannabis is the most widely used illicit drug in
the world, and is strongly prevalent in the Netherlands. In the courtroom,
eyewitness and suspect statements are seen as highly valuable evidence, thus
their reliability is important.
Study objective
Primary Objective: to assess the immediate and delayed effects of THC on true
and false memories in a legal context (i.e., on eyewitness and offender
statements).
Secondary Objective(s): to link drug-induced false memory effects to
dissociation
Study design
The study will be conducted according to a double-blind, placebo-controlled, 2
(Group: Treatment vs. Control) by 2 (Time 1 vs. Time 2) cross-over mixed design
with Group as a between-subjects factor. Occasional (N=64) cannabis users will
receive single doses of cannabis (300 µg/kg THC and placebo according to a
double-blind design in which they will be exposed to either an eyewitness
scenario (Study 1a) or a perpetrator scenario (Study 1b). Each participant will
be allocated to 1 of 2 groups (n=32 each) that receive eyewitness and
perpetrator virtual reality scenarios during opposing treatment conditions.
Groups will be matched according to sex, education and age. The major advantage
of this approach is that participants will only be exposed once to each
scenario (i.e. to exclude carry-over and learning effects) while participating
in both studies.
Intervention
Placebo (Knaster Hemp) and bedrobinol (300 µg THC/kg bodyweight)
Study burden and risks
The participants will inhale placebo and bedrobinol in a cross-over study. They
will view two different virtual reality mock crimes on separate testing days,
and subsequently their memory will be assessed.
Universiteitssingel 40
Maastricht 6229ER
NL
Universiteitssingel 40
Maastricht 6229ER
NL
Listed location countries
Age
Inclusion criteria
Occasional cannabis users (used between 1 times a month and 1 times a week during the previous year)
Aged between 18 and 40 years
Free from psychotropic medication
Good physical health as determined by medical examination and laboratory analysis
Absence of any major medical, endocrine and neurological condition
Normal weight, body mass index (weight/height2) between 18 and 28 kg/m2
Written Informed Consent
Good knowledge and understanding of the English language (at least 5 years of English language education; assessed in the pre-screening)
Exclusion criteria
History of drug abuse (other than the use of cannabis) or addiction (determined by the medical questionnaire, drug questionnaire and medical examination)
Pregnancy or lactation (pregnancy test, if needed)
Hypertension (diastolic> 90; systolic> 140)
Current or history of psychiatric disorder (determined by the medical questionnaire and medical examination)
Liver dysfunction
(Serious) side effects due to previous cannabis consumption
History of cardiac dysfunctions (arrhythmia, ischemic heart disease,*)
Design
Recruitment
Medical products/devices used
Followed up by the following (possibly more current) registration
No registrations found.
Other (possibly less up-to-date) registrations in this register
In other registers
| Register | ID |
|---|---|
| EudraCT | EUCTR2016-004982-22-NL |
| CCMO | NL60303.068.16 |
| Other | not yet available |
| OMON | NL-OMON25116 |