Abstract Background: Motivational interviewing (MI) is frequently used to facilitate behavior change. The use of change talk during motivational interviews can predict subsequent behavior change. However, no studies have compared the information obtained from traditional face-to-face motivational interviews and computer-mediated motivational interviews or resulted in the same amount of behavior change. Objective: This study aimed to investigate if face-to-face motivational-type interviews (MTIs) and computer-mediated MTIs elicit the same amount of "change talk" and behavior change when young adults discuss their ambivalence about using marijuana. Methods: A total of 150 users, including frequent marijuana users, occasional marijuana users, and non-marijuana users, participated in the study. All participants reported...

Please use this link to access this publication. Abstract Cannabis legalization is expected to result in more frequent and compulsive use, potentially contributing to worsening psychosocial functioning among some cannabis users. This review evaluates associations between cannabis use and psychosocial functioning in recently published reports from prospective longitudinal studies and considers evidence for and against causation. Unlike previous reviews, studies of adolescents/emerging adults are considered separately from studies that followed adolescents well into adulthood, in part because of vast differences in cumulative cannabis exposure. Infrequent adolescent cannabis use is associated with poorer psychosocial functioning in some domains in emerging adulthood, whereas chronic, frequent adult use, regardless of adolescent-onset versus adult-onset, is associated...

Please use this link to access publication Abstract Objective: Trait anger has been shown to be predictive of emotion-focused coping and alcohol use. Yet, the connection between cannabis use and trait anger remains poorly characterized. The present study sought to investigate the relationship between cannabis use and self-reported trait anger in youth seeking substance use treatment. Methods: A retrospective chart review was conducted on youth (n=168) aged 14–26 presenting for an initial evaluation at an outpatient substance use treatment program. Patients self-reported trait anger score (TAS) and lifetime, recent, and Diagnostic and Statistics Manual-5th Edition diagnostic status of cannabis use were assessed. Clinician-coded psychiatric and substance...

Abstract The existing literature largely focuses on health risks and other pharmacodynamics of using cannabis, with fewer investigations of other normative psychological effects from consumption among otherwise healthy people. We measured several basic constructs of social psychology corresponding to the concept of prosociality among 146 healthy young adults between 18 and 25 years (M = 18.9, SD = 1.4) with varying detectable levels of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in their urine, controlling for participant’s sex, age, ethnicity, and childhood socio-economic status. Compared to THC-free individuals, cannabis users scored higher than non-users on validated measures of Prosocial Behaviors (d = .34, p = .04), the Empathy Quotient (d = .36, p < .01), Moral Harmlessness (d = .76, p < .01) and Moral Fairness (d = .49, p < .01), but exhibited a...

Please use this link to access publication Abstract Introduction:Cannabis sativa L. (C. sativa) is used since ancient times to produce fabrics, baskets, and cords. Later, different ethnic groups used to burn the leaves and flowers of psychotropic cultivars with high Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (D9-THC) levels, during the religious or propitiatory rites to alter the state of consciousness. To date, it is not known whether also nonpsychotropic cultivars of C. sativa were used during these rites, and whether these varieties could have an effect on human behavior. This study aimed to evaluate the behavioral effects of an extract of nonpsychotropic C. sativa (NP-CS) in mice. Materials and Methods: An extract of a nonpsychotropic...