Racism has long been identified as a social determinant of health, meaning that a person’s appearance can influence one’s access to resources, opportunities, and services. Racism perpetuates systems that unfairly advantage certain individuals and groups. These systems can exacerbate stress within communities that are discriminated against. Researchers have also hypothesized that a parent’s experience of discrimination has the potential to impact adolescent well-being. The Transactional Model of Stress and Coping Theory has proposed that substance use may be used to cope with stressors associated with discrimination. Cannabis is one drug in particular that has been thought be used to cope with psychological effects associated with racial and social discrimination. Prior studies have demonstrated that Black people have higher lifetime rates of cannabis use compared to other races and ethnicities. This study examines the potential relationship between racial and social class discrimination and cannabis use among Black youth in Missouri.
This study was a secondary analysis that examined data from the Missouri Family Study (MOFAM) which was a longitudinal study that examined alcohol use disorder. All 806 Black participants from the MOFAM study were included within this study’s sample. Data was collected through telephone calls to assess both mother and offspring. Researchers assessed the age of onset of cannabis use and the age at which cannabis use disorder (CUD) symptoms were reported in offspring. Racial and social class discrimination was assessed through a variety of questions addressing experience and frequency of discrimination in a variety settings including work, school, getting a job, etc. Cox proportional hazards (PH) regression analysis were used to determine associations of discrimination with time to cannabis initiation and time from first use to CUD symptoms.
Results of the data analysis found that the lifetime prevalence of cannabis use was 56.2% and 47.0% of cannabis users reported at least one CUD symptom. The mean age of first cannabis use was 15.50 and mean age of first CUD symptom was 17.01. Additionally, 62.3% of offspring reported racial discrimination while 26.4% identified that they had experienced social discrimination. Both racial and social class discrimination were associated with increased hazard of initiating cannabis. When controlling for additional variables, a mother’s experience of discrimination predicted lower hazards of cannabis initiation among offspring. Offspring experience of social class discrimination was associated with a more rapid transition from cannabis initiation to CUD. Additionally, racial discrimination was associated with lower hazard of transition to CUD symptoms.
Takeaway: Racial and social discrimination may provide predictive value in assessing cannabis use likelihood in Black youth.