Cannabis use is very prevalent among college students in the United States, and popularity of the substance continues to increase each year due to legalization and decriminalization efforts compounded with greater accessibility. While the effects of cannabis are becoming more well defined, the motivating factors and influences behind use are less clear. Coping has been postulated as a potential motivation behind cannabis use, especially in the context of traumatic experiences. Students within minority demographics in the United States are particularly susceptible to racially motivated trauma often in the form of discriminatory behavior. This study aims to identify links between cannabis use and coping mechanisms used by black college students due to experiences of racial discrimination.
The study’s sample contained 119 African American students from a large, primarily white university in the midwestern United States who met the following eligibility criteria: current enrollment, past-year cannabis use, and at least 18 years old (N=119, 67% female, mean age= 21.1 years). Participants completed questionnaires which evaluated the following measures: demographics, cannabis use frequency, cannabis use motives (via Comprehensive Marijuana Motives Measure), and perceived racial discrimination. The data was analyzed using confirmatory factor analyses and path models.
Results of the study found 90% of all participants had experienced at least one instance of subtle racial discrimination in the past year, and 40% had reported an experience of blatant discrimination in the past year. The path model created between cannabis use and experiences of subtle racial discrimination was found to be significant using distressed coping as a mediator. This model was not found to be significant when examining blatant racial discrimination.
Takeaway: Black students in the United States continue to experience frequent racial discrimination which may contribute to a variety of coping mechanisms. Cannabis use may be related to distressed coping. Interventions designed to reduce cannabis use must consider factors related race/ethnicity and discrimination experiences when designing effective treatment strategies.