Motives for cannabis use in high-risk adolescent users

The present investigation examined the relationships between motives for cannabis use and negative consequences associated with cannabis use following a brief intervention. The sample consisted of 205 adolescent cannabis users (66.3% male), who were recruited in high schools and randomly assigned to a brief two-session motivational enhancement therapy (MET) or an educational feedback control (EFC). Results supported the hypothesis that using cannabis to cope with negative affect would predict the number of problems and dependence symptoms related to cannabis use, after controlling for age, gender, years and frequency of cannabis use, and internalizing and externalizing behavior problems. Significant interactions between internalizing behavior problems and the coping motive showed that using to cope was associated with a higher number of cannabis dependence symptoms among adolescents reporting lower levels internalizing behavior problems. Findings support the potential utility of conducting further research to explore the coping motive as an important indicator of problematic cannabis use.