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Updated: May 15, 2026

Post-Movie Subliminal Measurement (PMSM), for Investigating Implicit Social Bias
Published on: February 29, 2020
Substance use and misuse in Brazilian movies (2000-2008)
João Mauricio Castaldelli-Maia1, Dinesh Bhugra, Arthur Guerra de Andrade
1Department of Psychiatry, Medical School, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. jmcmaia2@gmail.com
Abstract:
Considering the absence of data on the appearance of drugs other than alcohol and tobacco in movie scenes, we decided to study the prevalence of portrayal of illicit drug use in a convenience sample of 50 Brazilian Movies. A total of 192 scenes (12h49'03(″)) meeting the inclusion criteria were identified and assessed in a structured manner. Despite several limitations regarding the nature of this comparison, we found that scenes show substance use and misuse almost similar to that in the general population, mainly alcohol (especially among people of low socioeconomic status), cannabis and inhalants. Main differences were found in cocaine and tranquilizers (over- and underexposure in movies, respectively).
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