Previous research has suggested a strong association between sensation seeking and adolescent marijuana use, but a recent study takes these findings further and looks into other factors such as peer influences and risk appraisal.
This study used data from Monitoring the Future, a longitudinal study of adolescent students in the United States. Participants were surveyed on their marijuana use, sensation seeking, marijuana risk appraisal, and importance of peer influence. The students responded to and ranked phrases such as “explore new places” and “break rules” to measure sensation seeking. As for risk appraisal and peer influence, they responded with their likelihood to use marijuana and feel influenced by peer use, peer approval, and use by famous people.
The results of the data collected show that social norms and risk perceptions play a role in the level of association between sensation seeking and marijuana use. Therefore, sensation seeking alone does not lead to marijuana use. Increased perception of risk of marijuana use leads to decreased marijuana use. The perception of risk can be influenced by the social norms of proximal peers, however distal social reference groups such as celebrities have less of an impact.
Take Away: Sensation seeking alone does not lead to marijuana use in adolescents and young adults—risk appraisal and social norms are associated with marijuana use and can impact the effect of sensation seeking. Knowledge of which factors potentially lead to marijuana use can be useful in future efforts to educate and deter adolescents and young adults from using.