Marijuana use/cessation expectancies and marijuana use in college students

Research suggests that marijuana expectancies are associated with problematic marijuana use; however, these marijuana-related cognitions remain relatively understudied.

This study examined marijuana-related decision-making among college students by exploring the relationships among marijuana expectancies and marijuana use variables.

College students (N = 357) endorsing lifetime marijuana use completed an online survey on marijuana use expectancies, marijuana cessation expectancies, marijuana use, and future marijuana use intentions. A simple regression framework was used to test the effect of each type of expectancies on marijuana outcome; a hierarchical regression framework tested the unique predictive validity when both types were entered into the same model.

Both marijuana use expectancies and marijuana cessation expectancies independently predicted a number of marijuana use variables. Additionally, marijuana use expectancies and marijuana cessation expectancies contributed significant unique variance to the prediction of marijuana use.

It is important to consider both use expectancies and cessation expectancies, as these two domains of marijuana-related cognitions appear to act independently, rather than as opposite ends of the same construct. Longitudinal studies are needed to further examine how these factors interact to influence marijuana use and problems over time.