Frequency of Use Matters: The Role of Peer Norms and Approval on College Students’ Marijuana Use

Authors

  • Victoria Ameral Department of Psychology, Clark University, Worcester, MA
  • Meghan E. Reilly Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse, McLean Hospital, Belmont, MA
  • Kathleen M. Palm Reed Department of Psychology, Clark University, Worcester, MA
  • Denise A. Hines Department of Psychology, Clark University, Worcester, MA

Abstract

Social norms play a critical role in motivation for marijuana use, particularly for emerging adults. The current report evaluated the differential impact of perceived approval of friends (injunctive norms) and perception of friends’ use (descriptive norms) on marijuana use in n=187 college students. While injunctive norms were significantly associated with participants’ marijuana use, most reported their friends would be indifferent to abstinence or infrequent use. Our model using a traditional measure of injunctive norms indicated that perceptions of friends’ approval of marijuana use is not uniquely associated with use when considered in combination with descriptive norms. Given the lack of variability in perceptions of friends’ approval of all but regular use, we compared our original model with an exploratory one evaluating the differential impact of injunctive norms for regular use in addition to descriptive norms. Results indicated that perceptions of friends’ approval of regular use influenced participants’ use above and beyond perceptions of friends’ actual use. Such findings may be indicative of the current social climate, in which occasional use of marijuana is accepted, and may parallel similar findings in the binge drinking literature. Limitations and future directions are discussed.

DOI: 10.26828/cannabis.2018.02.002 

Additional Files

Published

2018-07-07

Issue

Vol. 1 No. 2 (2018): Cannabis

Section

Original Report