PULLMAN, Wash. — Cannabis marketers may be shaping how young adults think about sex and intimacy in ways alcohol advertisers have long been discouraged from doing, according to a new Washington State University study.

Published in Communication Research, the study suggests that college students who interpret cannabis advertisements as implying cannabis leads to better sex are more likely to expect those benefits themselves and to say they might use cannabis before sex.

The researchers said the findings could have implications for sexual decision-making and consent, particularly in an area with limited advertising standards.

“We know from alcohol advertising that sexualized appeals can make a difference in how people understand the information presented,” said Jessica Fitts Willoughby, a professor in WSU’s Edward R. Murrow College of Communication and the study’s lead author. “Cannabis is a little different because there really aren’t rules saying you can’t tie it to sex.”

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The findings are based on an online experiment involving 747 Washington college students who viewed real cannabis ads posted on Instagram. Participants were shown ads featuring sexual, romantic or recreational imagery, including people using cannabis in bed, couples in intimate settings and friends gathered around a bonfire. Researchers then asked what messages participants took from the ads, what they expected from using cannabis before sex, and whether they intended to do so.

The study found that simply seeing a sexual or romantic ad did not consistently predict participants’ expectations or intentions. Instead, the key factor was how viewers interpreted the message.

“It wasn’t as simple as seeing a message and automatically being influenced by it,” Willoughby said. “The stronger connection appeared when someone interpreted the ad as saying cannabis makes sex better, and then they thought it might do the same for them.”

Students who believed an ad was promising better sex were more likely to expect cannabis to improve their own sexual experiences or reduce nervousness, and they were more likely to say they might use cannabis before sex, the study found.

Researchers also found differences between men and women. Men who wanted to be like the men shown in sexual or romantic ads — described as typically physically fit, attractive and masculine — were more likely to say they intended to use cannabis before sex.

Women who thought the ads raised concerns about sexual consent were less likely to say they would use cannabis before sex.

The researchers said that finding could help public health officials craft messages that address how cannabis may affect judgment and consent.

“If health communicators want to address cannabis use before sex, they could create messages that clearly explain how it may affect decision-making or consent,” said Stacey J.T. Hust, a professor in the Murrow College and the study’s co-author. “Our findings suggest that those messages could make people, particularly women, less likely to intend to use cannabis before sex.”

The study also points to potential policy questions around cannabis advertising. Washington prohibits ads aimed at people younger than 21, but it does not specifically bar companies from suggesting cannabis can improve sex or romantic experiences, according to the researchers. They noted that, unlike the alcohol industry, the cannabis industry has no nationwide guidelines discouraging such claims.

The distilled spirits industry has had voluntary advertising guidelines since shortly after prohibition ended in 1934, and its code has prohibited claims linking alcohol to sexual success since at least the mid-1990s, the researchers said.

“The larger question is whether cannabis advertisements should be regulated more like those for other adult-use products, such as alcohol,” Hust said. “Our findings show that when people interpret these ads as promising positive sexual experiences, that can shape what they expect from cannabis and whether they intend to use it.”