Not Using Marijuana Was Among Key Protective Factors for Aboriginal Youth Mental Health
Among 710 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth, absence of marijuana use was one of several protective factors associated with not experiencing depression.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
72.1% of youth were not experiencing depression. Protective factors associated with absence of depression included exercise, sport participation, and absence of marijuana use, cigarette smoking, job difficulties, homelessness, trouble with police, and violence experience.
Key Numbers
710 participants aged 15-24. 72.1% not experiencing depression. Protective factors: exercise, sport, no marijuana, no cigarettes, no job difficulty, no homelessness, no police trouble, no violence.
How They Did This
Cross-sectional analysis of health assessment data from 710 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth aged 15-24 attending an urban health service (2016-2021). Modified Poisson regression used a positive-outcome approach analyzing factors associated with absence of depression.
Why This Research Matters
This study takes a strengths-based approach, identifying what promotes wellbeing rather than just what causes harm. For Aboriginal youth, not using marijuana emerged as one of several modifiable protective factors.
The Bigger Picture
The positive-outcome framing is important for Indigenous health research, which often focuses on deficits. Marijuana absence as a protective factor does not prove marijuana causes depression but identifies it as part of a cluster of modifiable risk behaviors.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Cross-sectional health assessment data. Single urban health service. Cannot establish causation. Depression measured by service-specific tools, not validated scales. Youth attending health services may differ from the general population.
Questions This Raises
- ?Does marijuana cessation improve mental health in this population?
- ?How do these protective factors interact with cultural and community connectedness?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Evidence Grade:
- Adequate sample with meaningful positive-outcome approach, but single-site cross-sectional design limits to moderate.
- Study Age:
- Health assessment data from 2016-2021.
- Original Title:
- Protective factors for psychological wellbeing: A cross-sectional study of young people attending an urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary healthcare service.
- Published In:
- Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, 49(1), 100218 (2025)
- Database ID:
- RTHC-07710
Evidence Hierarchy
Watches what happens naturally without intervening.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
Does marijuana cause depression in Aboriginal youth?
This study found that not using marijuana was associated with better mental health, but the cross-sectional design cannot prove marijuana causes depression. It may be one factor among many.
What protects Aboriginal youth from depression?
Exercise, sport participation, not using marijuana or cigarettes, stable housing, employment access, and absence of police trouble and violence were all associated with better mental health.
Read More on RethinkTHC
Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-07710APA
Spurling, Geoffrey K P; Askew, Deborah A; Hayman, Noel E; Schluter, Philip J. (2025). Protective factors for psychological wellbeing: A cross-sectional study of young people attending an urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary healthcare service.. Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, 49(1), 100218. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anzjph.2024.100218
MLA
Spurling, Geoffrey K P, et al. "Protective factors for psychological wellbeing: A cross-sectional study of young people attending an urban Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander primary healthcare service.." Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anzjph.2024.100218
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Protective factors for psychological wellbeing: A cross-sect..." RTHC-07710. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/spurling-2025-protective-factors-for-psychological
Access the Original Study
Study data sourced from PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health.
This study breakdown was produced by the RethinkTHC research team. We analyze and report published research findings without making health recommendations. All interpretations are based solely on the published abstract and study data.