Testing a Health Communication Tool to Reduce Cannabis Misuse in College Students
A technology-delivered health communication intervention showed promise in reducing cannabis misuse intentions among college students, though the sample was small.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
The intervention, voiced by a cannabis marketing professional, effectively shifted student attitudes and intentions around cannabis misuse in a pre/post-test design with 64 participants.
Key Numbers
N = 64 college students participated in the proof-of-concept study at one Washington state university.
How They Did This
Proof-of-concept pretest/post-test lab experiment with 64 college students at a Washington state university testing a technology-delivered health communication intervention.
Why This Research Matters
College students face unique cannabis risks as legalization expands. Finding effective, scalable communication strategies that resonate with young adults could reduce misuse without relying on prohibition-era messaging.
The Bigger Picture
Traditional anti-drug messaging often fails with young adults. This study explores whether credible voices from the cannabis industry can deliver more effective harm reduction messaging.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Very small sample from a single university, no control group, pre/post design without long-term follow-up, and conducted in a legal-cannabis state which may limit generalizability.
Questions This Raises
- ?Would this approach work at scale across diverse campuses?
- ?Does the messenger's industry credibility genuinely improve message reception compared to health professionals?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- Evidence Grade:
- Small proof-of-concept with no control group — interesting signal but far from definitive evidence of efficacy.
- Study Age:
- Recent study reflecting the current landscape of college cannabis use in legal-market states.
- Original Title:
- A proof-of-concept study examining a health communication intervention to reduce cannabis misuse among college students.
- Published In:
- Journal of American college health : J of ACH, 73(9), 3312-3315 (2025)
- Authors:
- Willoughby, Jessica Fitts(2), Hust, Stacey J T(3), Couto, Leticia(2), Price, Ron, Johnson, Opeyemi, Nickerson, Christina Griselda, Oladele, Pearl, Gray, Marie, Maykovich, Bailey
- Database ID:
- RTHC-07954
Evidence Hierarchy
Frequently Asked Questions
What made this intervention different from typical anti-drug messaging?
It used a voice actor with cannabis marketing experience, aiming for credibility rather than scare tactics, delivered through technology rather than in-person counseling.
Did students actually reduce their cannabis use?
The study measured attitudes and intentions, not actual behavior change. A larger randomized trial would be needed to determine if the intervention reduces real-world use.
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Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-07954APA
Willoughby, Jessica Fitts; Hust, Stacey J T; Couto, Leticia; Price, Ron; Johnson, Opeyemi; Nickerson, Christina Griselda; Oladele, Pearl; Gray, Marie; Maykovich, Bailey. (2025). A proof-of-concept study examining a health communication intervention to reduce cannabis misuse among college students.. Journal of American college health : J of ACH, 73(9), 3312-3315. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2024.2418527
MLA
Willoughby, Jessica Fitts, et al. "A proof-of-concept study examining a health communication intervention to reduce cannabis misuse among college students.." Journal of American college health : J of ACH, 2025. https://doi.org/10.1080/07448481.2024.2418527
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "A proof-of-concept study examining a health communication in..." RTHC-07954. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/willoughby-2025-a-proofofconcept-study-examining
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.