Abstract

Background: Marijuana use is increasing among adolescents and young adults. Long-term marijuana use magnifies the risk of a wide variety of behavioral, cognitive-emotional, and neurological problems, and can be a gateway to use of other drugs. In the present study, we investigated the cognitive-emotional and behavioral predictors of marijuana use. To this end, young Iranian adults answered questions based on an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and related it to marijuana use. We hypothesized that cognitive-emotional and behavioral factors would predict intention to use marijuana, and that this, in turn, would predict actual consumption. Methods: A total of 166 young Iranian adults (mean age: 20.51 years; 15.7% females) attending a walk-in center for drug use took part in this cross-sectional study. Participants completed questionnaires covering sociodemographic information, frequency of marijuana use per week, along with questionnaires assessing the following dimensions of the TPB: attitude towards marijuana use, subjective norms, self-efficacy to resist marijuana use, environmental constraints, problem-solving skills, and behavioral intention for marijuana use. Results: Mean marijuana use was found to be 4.6 times/week. Attitude towards marijuana use, subjective norms, environmental constraints, and behavioral intention to use marijuana were positively correlated to each other and with marijuana use/week. In contrast, higher self-efficacy and problem-solving skills were associated with lower marijuana use/week. The multiple regression analysis showed that a positive attitude to marijuana use, lower self-efficacy in resisting its use, higher behavioral intention, and poorer problem-solving skills predicted actual use. Conclusion: The pattern of results suggests that dimensions of TPB can explain marijuana use among young Iranian adults self-admitted to a walk-in center for drug use. Specifically, poor problem-solving skills, low self-efficacy in resisting marijuana use, and positive labelling of its use appeared to be the best predictors of actual use. It follows that prevention programs aimed at improving problem-solving skills and raising self-efficacy, along with educational interventions aimed at highlighting the negative effects of marijuana might decrease the risk of its use among young adults in Iran.

Highlights

  • Marijuana is the drug most commonly abused by teenagers and young adults worldwide [1].Typically, marijuana use among adolescents and young adults is related to recreational/leisure time rather than medical needs

  • Young adults in Esfahan and Kermanshah (Iran) who were attending a walk-in center for drug use were approached via advertisements at universities and word-of-mouth recommendation with respect to potential participation in the present study

  • The key findings of the present study were that, in a sample of young Iranian adults attending a walk-in center for drug use, dimensions of an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and its facets were associated with the frequency of marijuana use

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Summary

Introduction

Marijuana is the drug most commonly abused by teenagers and young adults worldwide [1].Typically, marijuana use among adolescents and young adults is related to recreational/leisure time rather than medical needs. According to the European Drug Report [4], prevalence rates for marijuana use among individuals aged 15 to 34 years ranged from 3.5% (Hungary) to 21.5% (France) in 2018. We investigated the cognitive-emotional and behavioral predictors of marijuana use. To this end, young Iranian adults answered questions based on an extended Theory of Planned Behavior (TPB) and related it to marijuana use. Methods: A total of 166 young Iranian adults (mean age: 20.51 years; 15.7% females) attending a walk-in center for drug use took part in this cross-sectional study. Higher self-efficacy and problem-solving skills were associated with lower marijuana use/week. The multiple regression analysis showed that a positive attitude to marijuana use, lower self-efficacy in resisting its

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