Cultural Factors Shape How Childhood Adversity Connects to Cannabis Use in Latinx Students
Among Latinx college students on the U.S./Mexico border, attachment style, marianismo beliefs, and bicultural self-efficacy moderated the link between adverse childhood experiences and substance use, but only among women.
Quick Facts
What This Study Found
For female participants, insecure attachment style strengthened the link between childhood adversity and substance use, while stronger marianismo beliefs and higher bicultural self-efficacy altered this relationship. No moderation effects were statistically significant among males.
Key Numbers
451 Latinx participants (283 female, 168 male); attachment style moderation β=0.04 (p=.03); marianismo beliefs moderation β=-65.57 (p=.01); bicultural self-efficacy moderation β=0.34 (p=.04); no significant moderation among males
How They Did This
Cross-sectional survey of 451 Latinx college students (283 female, 168 male) at a U.S./Mexico border university. Measured adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), alcohol and marijuana use frequency, attachment style, self-efficacy, familism, traditional gender norms (machismo/marianismo), and bicultural self-efficacy. Hierarchical linear regressions tested moderation effects.
Why This Research Matters
Latinx populations are underrepresented in substance use research. Understanding how cultural factors like gender role beliefs and bicultural identity influence the path from childhood trauma to substance use can inform more culturally responsive prevention and treatment.
The Bigger Picture
This study highlights that the path from childhood adversity to substance use is not universal. Cultural context, gender role expectations, and bicultural identity can either buffer or amplify risk, suggesting that one-size-fits-all prevention approaches may miss key factors.
What This Study Doesn't Tell Us
Cross-sectional design cannot establish causal or temporal relationships. Sample limited to one border university, limiting generalizability to broader Latinx populations. Self-reported substance use may underestimate actual use. Gender differences could reflect measurement issues rather than true differences.
Questions This Raises
- ?Why were moderation effects significant only among females?
- ?Would longitudinal data reveal different patterns over time?
- ?How could culturally informed interventions target these specific moderating factors?
Trust & Context
- Key Stat:
- 451 Latinx college students
- Evidence Grade:
- Moderately sized sample with validated measures, but cross-sectional design and single-site recruitment limit generalizability
- Study Age:
- 2022 study
- Original Title:
- Cultural and psychosocial moderators of the association between adverse childhood experiences and alcohol and marijuana use among Latinx college students on the U.S./Mexico border.
- Published In:
- Child abuse & neglect, 133, 105859 (2022)
- Authors:
- Woloshchuk, Claudia J, Frietze, Gabriel A, Cooper, Theodore V(2)
- Database ID:
- RTHC-04309
Evidence Hierarchy
A snapshot of a population at one point in time.
What do these levels mean? →Frequently Asked Questions
What are marianismo beliefs?
Marianismo refers to traditional gender role expectations for Latina women, emphasizing virtues like self-sacrifice, caretaking, and moral purity. In this study, stronger marianismo beliefs altered how childhood adversity related to substance use.
Why were results different for men and women?
The study found moderation effects only among women. The authors suggest this may reflect how gender-specific cultural expectations interact differently with trauma and coping, though further research is needed.
Read More on RethinkTHC
Cite This Study
https://rethinkthc.com/research/RTHC-04309APA
Woloshchuk, Claudia J; Frietze, Gabriel A; Cooper, Theodore V. (2022). Cultural and psychosocial moderators of the association between adverse childhood experiences and alcohol and marijuana use among Latinx college students on the U.S./Mexico border.. Child abuse & neglect, 133, 105859. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2022.105859
MLA
Woloshchuk, Claudia J, et al. "Cultural and psychosocial moderators of the association between adverse childhood experiences and alcohol and marijuana use among Latinx college students on the U.S./Mexico border.." Child abuse & neglect, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2022.105859
RethinkTHC
RethinkTHC Research Database. "Cultural and psychosocial moderators of the association betw..." RTHC-04309. Retrieved from https://rethinkthc.com/research/woloshchuk-2022-cultural-and-psychosocial-moderators
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.