Among emerging adult cannabis users, socially anxious males with high negative urgency were at greatest risk for using cannabis to cope, which in turn predicted more cannabis-related problems.
college counselors, addiction prevention researchers, clinical psychologists
What the researchers found
Higher social anxiety predicted elevated cannabis use and problems via coping motives, but only for males higher in negative urgency. The mediated moderation model showed that the combination of social anxiety and impulsivity specifically drove coping-motivated use and subsequent problems in male emerging adults.
Why it matters
Identifying which subgroups of cannabis users are most at risk for problems helps target prevention efforts. This study points to a specific combination of traits (male, socially anxious, impulsive) that predicts problematic cannabis use patterns.
The numbers in context
Sample: emerging adult undergraduates with past 6-month cannabis use. Effect found only in males with high negative urgency. Social anxiety predicted use and problems through coping motives in this subgroup.
How the study worked
Cross-sectional online survey of emerging adult undergraduates who reported past six-month cannabis use. Mediated moderation analysis tested whether negative urgency moderated the path from social anxiety to cannabis outcomes through coping motives.
What this study cannot tell us
Cross-sectional design limits causal inference. Self-selected undergraduate sample. Only examined past 6-month use. Effect specific to males, limiting generalizability. Did not measure cannabis type or dose.
How to read the evidence
Cross-sectional survey with a specific undergraduate sample and gender-limited findings places this at preliminary evidence.
When this study was published
Recent cross-sectional study of US undergraduates.
The bigger picture
This adds to the literature showing that cannabis risk is not uniform. The intersection of personality traits, gender, and use motives creates specific vulnerability profiles that could inform targeted interventions.
Questions still open
- Would interventions targeting negative urgency reduce coping-motivated cannabis use?
- Does this pattern hold in non-college populations?
Common questions
What is negative urgency?
Why is this specific to males?
Read the original research
Negative urgency increases risk for coping-motivated cannabis outcomes in socially anxious male emerging adult cannabis users.
Journal of American college health : J of ACH, 73(9), 3636-3643
Citation
Single, Alanna; Mota, Natalie; Keough, Matthew T. (2025). Negative urgency increases risk for coping-motivated cannabis outcomes in socially anxious male emerging adult cannabis users.. Journal of American college health : J of ACH, 73(9), 3636-3643. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2024.2435936
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