Marijuana use has increased among all groups, but specifically among African American females. One factor that may increase this use is neighborhood disorder. Neighborhood disorder is places with high levels of threat. The current study examines associated of perceived neighborhood disorder and marijuana use among emerging adult African American females coming from low socioeconomic status (SES) neighborhoods.
The sample for this study included 117 African American females taken from a larger survey study conducted in MD. Participants self-reported marijuana use during the previous 30 days. A biological measure of marijuana use was also conducted using urinalysis. Cigarette use was assessed by asking participants if they had smoked within the previous 24 hours and if they smoke cigarettes together with marijuana. Neighborhood environment was assessed to look at neighborhood disorder.
38% of participants indicated cigarette use and neighborhood disorder scores ranged from 19-37, higher scores indicated more disorder. 46% of participants tested positive for marijuana with 27% reporting frequent/ heavy use. No relationship was found between education and cigarette use with frequency of marijuana use. Researchers did find that females in the highest portion of perceived neighborhood disorder were 3.3 times more likely to use marijuana frequently. Those who smoked cigarettes were 2.2 times more likely to frequently use marijuana. Females who did not complete high school were 3.9 times more likely to frequently use marijuana. These findings suggest African American emerging adult female who live in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods are at higher risk for problematic use. Policy makers should consider marijuana use and negative outcomes among these different groups when deciding on legalization.
Take Away: The current study examines associated of perceived neighborhood disorder and marijuana use among emerging adult African American females coming from low socioeconomic status (SES) neighborhoods. The sample for this study included 117 African American females who self-reported marijuana use during the previous 30 days. Other measures included biological measure of marijuana use, Cigarette use, and neighborhood environment. 46% of participants tested positive for marijuana with 27% reporting frequent/ heavy use. Females in the highest portion of perceived neighborhood disorder were 3.3 times more likely to use marijuana frequently. Females who did not complete high school were 3.9 times more likely to frequently use marijuana. These findings suggest African American emerging adult female who live in economically disadvantaged neighborhoods are at higher risk for problematic use.