Hours high as a proxy for marijuana use quantity in intensive longitudinal designs

Area of Science:

• Addiction Research
• Survey Methodology
• Cannabis Science

Background:

• Accurately measuring marijuana use quantity in surveys is challenging due to diverse products, potencies, and consumption methods.
• No standardized measure currently exists for marijuana use quantity in research settings.
• This study investigates 'hours high' as a potential proxy for marijuana use quantity, especially in intensive longitudinal designs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the validity of 'number of hours high' as a proxy for marijuana use quantity in survey research.
• To determine if 'hours high' can effectively capture marijuana use across different products and consumption modes.
• To assess the utility of this proxy in intensive longitudinal study designs.

Main Methods:

• Utilized data from a community sample of young adults (N=379) in a longitudinal study on alcohol and marijuana use.
• Employed a measurement-burst design with participants completing daily surveys over extended periods.
• Analyzed data using Poisson multilevel models and logistic regression to test hypotheses.

Main Results:

• Within-person analyses showed that marijuana use quantity predicted same-day 'hours high,' supporting criterion validity.
• 'Hours high' predicted same-day negative marijuana-related consequences, indicating proximal predictive validity.
• Between-person analyses revealed that average 'hours high' was associated with increased odds of cannabis use disorder, demonstrating distal predictive validity.

Conclusions:

• 'Number of hours high' shows promise as a simple and effective proxy for measuring marijuana use quantity in surveys.
• This proxy is potentially applicable across various modes of marijuana consumption.
• The findings support the use of 'hours high' in intensive longitudinal research designs for cannabis use studies.