Marijuana Use Is Associated With Alcohol Use and Consequences Across the First 2 Years of College

• Main Authors: Barnett, N.P (Author), Gunn, R.L (Author), Merrill, J.E (Author), Micalizzi, L. (Author), Norris, A.L (Author), Sokolovsky, A. (Author)
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Educational Publishing Foundation 2018
• Subjects: adolescent; Adolescent; adult; Alcohol consequences; alcohol consumption; Alcohol Drinking; Alcohol Drinking in College; Alcohol use; Article; breath analysis; cannabis use; college drinking; college student; concentration (parameters); controlled study; Co-use; cross-sectional study; disease association; drinking behavior; epidemiology; female; Female; human; Humans; Longitudinal Studies; longitudinal study; male; Male; Marijuana use; Marijuana Use; prediction; psychologic assessment; smoking; statistics and numerical data; student; Students; United States; Universities; university; young adult
• Online Access: View Fulltext in Publisher

 College entry is associated with marijuana initiation, and co-use of alcohol and marijuana is associated with problematic outcomes, including alcohol-related consequences. The present study explored if: (a) use of marijuana on a given day would be associated with greater alcohol use within the same day; (b) use of marijuana within a given week would be associated with increased alcohol-related consequences in that same week; and (c) the association between marijuana use and alcohol consumption and consequences varies across time or by precollege level of problematic alcohol use. Participants (N 488 college student drinkers, 59% female) completed assessments of marijuana use, alcohol use, and alcohol consequences across 2 years. Analyses revealed: (a) daily marijuana use predicted greater number of daily drinks and estimated breath alcohol concentration; (b) weekly marijuana use predicted more weekly positive and negative alcohol consequences; (c) the effect of daily marijuana use on alcohol use strengthened over time, while the effect of weekly marijuana use on positive alcohol consequences reduced over time; and (d) precollege level of problematic alcohol use moderated the association between daily marijuana and alcohol use and weekly marijuana use and negative consequences. This study provides the first longitudinal evidence of the association between marijuana use and greater alcohol use and consequences in college students. Future research examining event-level measurement of alcohol and marijuana co-use is important for the prevention of alcohol-related consequences. © 2018 American Psychological Association.