A new University at Buffalo study based on many years of data found that married couples who smoke pot are less likely to engage in domestic violence over the course of their relationship.

The study, published in Psychology of Addictive Behaviors, looked at 634 couples over nine years of marriage, and found a significant correlation between cannabis use and nonviolence "even after controlling for things like demographic variables, behavioral problems, and alcohol use," the Washington Post writes.

Some hypotheses the researchers for the connection, as noted by the Post: "marijuana may increase positive affect, which in turn could reduce the likelihood of conflict and aggression," and "chronic users exhibit blunted emotional reaction to threat stimuli, which may also decrease the likelihood of aggressive behavior." That last one—chronic, blunted—seems a little on-the-nose, but OK.

Another potential explanation: couples who smoke together generally do other stuff together too, and those shared values and experiences lead to fewer fights. Said Dr. Kenneth Leonard:

"It is possible, for example, that - similar to a drinking partnership - couples who use marijuana together may share similar values and social circles, and it is this similarity that is responsible for reducing the likelihood of conflict."

One thing the research did not examine was any correlation between weed and violence on a more immediate level—that is, does smoking lead couples to fight while they're high? Again, Dr. Leonard:

"Although this study supports the perspective that marijuana does not increase, and may decrease, aggressive conflict, we would like to see research replicating these findings, and research examining day-to-day marijuana and alcohol use and the likelihood to intimate partner violence on the same day before drawing stronger conclusions."

[Image via Wikimedia]