Family conflict predicted stronger positive beliefs about cannabis in adolescents, mediated by negative urgency (impulsive reactions to distress), with specific brain regions amplifying this pathway.
Parents, family therapists, adolescent prevention specialists, and developmental neuroscientists
What the researchers found
Family conflict at baseline predicted increased cannabis positive expectancies through negative urgency (β=0.017, p<0.001); heightened anterior cingulate cortex activation during emotional reward processing amplified this indirect effect.
Why it matters
This maps the exact pathway from family stress to cannabis risk: conflict → emotional impulsivity → positive cannabis beliefs, with brain imaging confirming the neural vulnerability that amplifies this chain.
The numbers in context
6,638 youth (47.8% female, baseline age 10.1); mediation β=0.017 (p<0.001); left caudal ACC moderation β=0.081 (p<0.001); right caudal ACC β=0.062 (p=0.004).
How the study worked
Longitudinal moderated mediation analysis of 6,638 youth from the ABCD Study across three waves (baseline age ~10 years), combining behavioral measures with task-based fMRI of emotional reward processing.
What this study cannot tell us
Cannabis expectancies measured, not actual use; ABCD cohort participants still young; ACC activation from a lab task may not reflect real-world emotional processing; observational design.
How to read the evidence
Large longitudinal study with neuroimaging from the premier US adolescent brain development cohort, using sophisticated moderated mediation analysis.
When this study was published
Published in 2026 from the ongoing ABCD Study, providing current insights on adolescent cannabis risk pathways.
The bigger picture
Identifying that emotional impulsivity is the bridge between family conflict and cannabis openness — and that specific brain activity amplifies it — provides precise targets for prevention interventions.
Questions still open
- Could emotion regulation training interrupt the family conflict → cannabis pathway? Are there adolescents with high ACC activation who might benefit from targeted prevention?
Common questions
Does family conflict increase teens' cannabis risk?
What is negative urgency?
Read the original research
Negative Urgency Mediates the Effect of Family Conflict on Cannabis Positive Expectancy: The Moderating Role of Anterior Cingulate Cortex.
Addiction biology, 31(2), e70131
Citation
Azarmehr, Rabeeh; Howard, Cullin J; Kogan, Steven M; Geier, Charles; Oshri, Assaf. (2026). Negative Urgency Mediates the Effect of Family Conflict on Cannabis Positive Expectancy: The Moderating Role of Anterior Cingulate Cortex.. Addiction biology, 31(2), e70131. https://doi.org/10.1111/adb.70131
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